PTC Windchill ® Workgroup

Manager for CATIA ® V5

Administrator's and User's
Guide
Windchill ® 10.1 M050
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 Contents

About This Guide.........................................................................................................5

How to Use This Guide ................................................................................................9
Guide Structure ..................................................................................................10
Guide Content Flow ............................................................................................10
PDM Actions ......................................................................................................10
Changes for This Release ..........................................................................................13
Windchill Workgroup Manager Overview .....................................................................17
What is Windchill Workgroup Manager?................................................................18
Understanding the Client and Server System Architecture ......................................22
Windchill Workgroup Manager Capabilities ...........................................................23
Installing the Windchill Workgroup Manager.................................................................25
Prerequisites for Installation.................................................................................26
Installing the Abstraction Library...........................................................................26
Copying the Shared Library .................................................................................29
Windchill Workgroup Manager Client Installation ...................................................30
Registering a Server ...........................................................................................44
Registering a CAD Application .............................................................................48
Uninstalling Windchill Workgroup Manager ...........................................................52
Getting Started ..........................................................................................................55
Initial Setup ........................................................................................................56
Getting Familiar with the Windchill Workgroup Manager User Interface....................62
Working with Windchill Workgroup Manager..........................................................71
Making It Work For You .......................................................................................78
PDM Actions .............................................................................................................83
CATIA V5 Toolbar................................................................................................85
Open .................................................................................................................87
Open from Windchill............................................................................................88
Insert Component from Windchill..........................................................................91
Replace Component from Windchill......................................................................91
Save ..................................................................................................................91
Save As .............................................................................................................92
Save to Workspace .............................................................................................93
Revise and Check Out ........................................................................................94
Open in CATIA V5 ...............................................................................................94
Check In ............................................................................................................95
Check Out ..........................................................................................................99
Undo Checkout................................................................................................. 101
Update............................................................................................................. 102

3
 Synchronize ..................................................................................................... 103
Revision........................................................................................................... 105
Lock and Unlock ............................................................................................... 106
Rename ........................................................................................................... 108
Import to Workspace ......................................................................................... 108
Upload ............................................................................................................. 111
Export List to File .............................................................................................. 113
Managing Incomplete Dependent Objects........................................................... 113
Conflict Management ........................................................................................ 116
Advanced Techniques.............................................................................................. 121
Working with CATIA V5 Document Links ............................................................. 123
Working with Large Assemblies.......................................................................... 124
Working with Design Tables and CATIA V5 Catalogs............................................ 162
Working With Fixed Member Links ..................................................................... 178
Managing CATIA V5 Environments In Windchill ................................................... 179
CATProcess Document Support......................................................................... 187
CATAnalysis Document Support......................................................................... 190
CATMaterial File Support................................................................................... 192
Working With CATIA V4 Data ............................................................................. 202
Working With Templates .................................................................................... 202
Comparing Model Iterations in CATIA V5............................................................. 203
Administration and Configuration .............................................................................. 207
CAD Worker Setup ........................................................................................... 208
Using a File Synchronization-Capable Worker with Windchill Workgroup
Manager ....................................................................................................... 208
Installing and Configuring CATIA V5 ................................................................... 214
Configuring Theorem Worker ............................................................................. 226
Configuring Business Practices.......................................................................... 246
Performance Considerations.............................................................................. 295
System Configuration Recommendations ........................................................... 298
Client and Server Logging ................................................................................. 299
Enabling Debug Logging in Windchill Workgroup Manager Client.......................... 301
Preferences ............................................................................................................ 305
Preference Organization.................................................................................... 306
Managing Preferences Using the Preference Management Utility ......................... 306
Managing Preferences Using the wgmclient.ini File.............................................. 327
Glossary ................................................................................................................. 343

4 PTC Windchill® Workgroup Manager for CATIA® V5 Administrator's and User's Guide
 About This Guide

Windchill Workgroup Manager for CATIA V5 Administrator's and User's Guide

describes the Windchill Workgroup Manager system architecture and concepts, and
provides high-level task flows.
This guide is intended for novice and advanced authoring application users on how
to use, set up, and understand Windchill Workgroup Manager. It is also written for
system and CAD administrators, who may be required to install Windchill Work-
group Manager client, and configure the setup between CATIA V5 and Windchill.
Examples in this guide referencing third-party products are intended for
demonstration purposes only. For additional information about third-party
products, contact individual product vendors.
Some code examples in this guide have been reformatted for presentation purposes
and, therefore, may contain hidden editing characters (such as tabs and end-of-line
characters) and extraneous spaces. If you cut and paste code from this manual,
check for these characters and remove them before attempting to use the example
in your application.
Related Documentation
The following documentation may be helpful:
• PTC Windchill Installation and Configuration Guide
• PTC Windchill Basic Administration Guide
• PTC Windchill Enterprise Administration Guide
• PTC Windchill Specialized Administration Guide
If books are not installed on your system, see your system administrator.

5
Accessing Client Online Help
Online help is available so you can access more detailed information on Windchill
Workgroup Manager or Windchill. The Windchill Workgroup Manager client
online help is available from the Help menu as displayed in the following graphic.
Select the question mark and click an area in the user interface for context-sensitive
online help, or select the Help Center link for a list of Windchill Workgroup Man-
ager client online help topics.

Additionally, Windchill server online help is available from the Windchill

Workgroup Manager Help page.
About This Guide
Technical Support
Contact PTC Technical Support through the PTC website, or by phone, email, or
fax if you encounter problems using this product or the product documentation.
For complete details, see the PTC Customer Service Guide. You can find this guide
under Contacting Technical Support on the PTC Technical Support page:
http://www.ptc.com/support/index.htm
You must have a Service Contract Number (SCN) before you can receive technical
support. If you do not have an SCN, contact the PTC Maintenance Department
using the instructions found in the PTC Customer Service Guide or on the PTC
Technical Support page.

Documentation for PTC Products

You can access PTC documentation using the following resources:
• Windchill Help Center —The Windchill Help Center is an online knowledge
base that includes a comprehensive index of all Windchill documentation. You
can browse the entire Windchill documentation set, or use the search capability
to perform a keyword search. To access the help center, you can:
○ Click any help icon in Windchill

6 PTC Windchill® Workgroup Manager for CATIA® V5 Administrator's and User's Guide
 ○ Select Help ▶ Windchill Help Center from the Quick Links menu at the top
right of any Windchill page
○ Use the following link to access all PTC help centers:
https://www.ptc.com/appserver/cs/help/help.jsp
• Reference Documents Website —The Reference Documents website is a library
of all PTC guides:
http://www.ptc.com/appserver/cs/doc/refdoc.jsp
A Service Contract Number (SCN) is required to access the PTC documentation
from the Reference Documents website. For more information on SCNs, see the
PTC Technical Support page:
http://www.ptc.com/support/index.htm

Comments
PTC welcomes your suggestions and comments on its documentation. To submit
your feedback, you can:
• Send an email to [email protected]. Include the name of the application
and its release number with your comments. If your comments are about a
specific help topic or book, include the title.
• Click the PTC help center feedback icon in the upper right of a Windchill Help
Center topic and complete the feedback form. The help topic title is
automatically included with your feedback.

Comments 7
 1
How to Use This Guide

Guide Structure .........................................................................................................10

Guide Content Flow ...................................................................................................10
PDM Actions .............................................................................................................10

This guide is designed to provide the information you need in an easy-to-use

format. General scenarios and specific CATIA V5 examples are intended to provide
useful recommendations as you work with Windchill Workgroup Manager.
The information in this chapter details the structure of the guide, its content flow,
and summarizes the content and intended audience for each chapter.

9
Guide Structure
The contents of this guide are presented in sequential order so that, by reading this
guide sequentially, you have a full, comprehensive view of Windchill Workgroup
Manager and its interaction with CATIA V5. However, each chapter is written in
standalone sections that can be read independently. Hyperlinks are available in
most sections to take you to related subjects.

Guide Content Flow

The guide begins with an introduction to Windchill Workgroup Manager and how
it relates to Windchill and your CAD application. It then explains how to use the
CATIA V5 Abstraction Library and client installation procedure to make Windchill
Workgroup Manager available on your desktop. After installation, the guide lists
certain administrative functions and configurations that need to be performed by a
system administrator so that your CAD application works properly with Windchill.
The guide then familiarizes you with common Windchill functionality that is used
with Windchill Workgroup Manager. You learn about the basic functionality used
for interaction between CATIA V5 and Windchill. Once you have covered these
standard Windchill fundamentals, you are ready to start using CATIA V5 with
Windchill Workgroup Manager. You use a common set of product data
management functionality to interact between CATIA V5 and Windchill. These
functions are explained next, in the PDM Actions chapter. The advanced features
chapter explains more specific features you might use with CATIA V5 and Wind-
chill Workgroup Manager, such as working with drawings, or external references.
The guide then explains how to set up preferences on the server and the client. This
chapter is beneficial to both administrators and CAD users. The guide ends with a
glossary of terms with which you may want to become familiar.

PDM Actions
PDM (Product Data Management) actions are used to manage your CATIA V5 data
in Windchill and are available from CATIA V5 and theWindchill Workgroup Man-
ager embedded browser.
When the CAD application is connected to Windchill Workgroup Manager, some
PDM actions become active in CATIA V5(for example, Check In and Check Out ).
The following lists the PDM actions, and the area from which they are available:
• Available only from CATIA V5:
○ Open —Remains the same even when connected to the Windchill Work-
group Manager.
○ Open from Windchill
○ Save —Use of this function is not recommended when connected to Wind-
chill Workgroup Manager.

10 PTC Windchill® Workgroup Manager for CATIA® V5 Administrator's and User's Guide
 ○ Save As —Use of this function is not recommended when connected to
Windchill Workgroup Manager.
○ Insert Component from Windchill
○ Replace Component from Windchill
○ Save to Workspace
○ Revise and Check Out
• Available from both CATIA V5 and the Windchill Workgroup Manager
embedded browser:
○ Open in CATIA V5
○ Check In
○ Check Out
○ Undo Checkout
○ Update
• Available only from the Windchill Workgroup Manager embedded browser:
○ Synchronize
○ Revision
○ Lock , Unlock
○ Rename
○ Upload
○ Export List To File

Note
Most PDM actions are also available by right-clicking (RMB). However, RMB
actions are only applicable to CATProducts or CATParts.

How to Use This Guide 11

 Changes for This Release
2
Changes for 10.1 M050
The following topics and topic collections have been added or significantly
changed for Windchill Workgroup Manager for CATIA V5 10.1 M050 release:
• Enhancements to file synchronization
○ New topic: Configuring Theorem Worker — Run as a Service (Optional)
on page 237
○ Added the new preference to the list of frequently used preferences:
Frequently Used Preferences: wgmclient.ini File on page 329
○ Added a step to turn off Windchill File System (WFS) if it is running on the
machine where you will install the Theorem worker: Downloading and
Installing Theorem Worker on page 226
• Enhancements to the auto-numbering functionality
○ Updated topic: Automatic Numbering of File Names on page 247
○ Added the new preference to the list of frequently used preferences:
Frequently Used Preferences: wgmclient.ini File on page 329
• Enhancement to the force.update.metadata.on.open preference and
addition of the update.metadata.on.load preference to obtain better
performance
○ Updated topic: Delaying Metadata Updates of Attributes on page 296
○ Added the new preference to the list of frequently used preferences:
Frequently Used Preferences: wgmclient.ini File on page 329

13
Changes for 10.1 M040
There are no significant functional or documentation updates for this release.

Changes for 10.1 M030

The following topics and topic collections have been added or significantly
changed for the Windchill Workgroup Manager for CATIA V5 10.1 M030 release:
• Reorganized the getting started section:
○ Getting Started on page 55
• Expanded preferences information and placed it in its own section:
○ Preferences on page 305
• Additional updates:
○ In the Configuring Naming and Numbering on page 247 topic, removed the
note indicating that “Drawing files are not subject to automatic
numbering.” This information is incorrect.
○ Added the new preference store.formula.value.for.parameters, which stores
the formula value instead of the display value for parameters that use
formulas. For more information, see Frequently Used Preferences:
wgmclient.ini File on page 329.
The following updates did not require documentation updates, but might be of
interest:
• If data has missing instance names, the user is asked how to proceed when the
data is saved to workspace, checked in, or imported to workspace. The missing
instance names can be added automatically or manually. You can control
whether missing instance names are added automatically using the preference
set.missing.instance.name in the wgmclient.ini file. The preference
can be set to Part Number, File Name, or Initial Name.
• Files with .model and .cgr extensions that are used as shape representations in
CATIA V5 are now imported as secondary content, rather than as primary
content of separate CAD documents.

Changes for 10.1 M020

The following topics and topic collections have been added or significantly
changed for the Windchill Workgroup Manager for CATIA V5 10.1 M020 release:
• New performance consideration topic:
○ Preventing Automatic Synchronization of System Parameter Changes on
page 298
• Updated administrative topics:
○ Windchill Workgroup Manager Client Installation on page 30: Added
information about backward compatibility.

14 PTC Windchill® Workgroup Manager for CATIA® V5 Administrator's and User's Guide
 ○ Exposing CATIA Properties to Windchill on page 286: Added information
about how to expose CATIA properties for only the main part body.
• New end user topic:
○ Import to Workspace on page 108
• Additional update for this release:
○ Supported CATIA V5 versions: Removed information about R18, which is
not supported in this release, and added information about 5-6R2012,
which is now supported in this release.

Changes for 10.1 M010

The following topics and topic collections were added or significantly changed for
the Windchill Workgroup Manager for CATIA V5 10.1 M010 release:
• New administrative topics:
○ Using a File Synchronization-Capable Worker with Windchill Workgroup
Manager on page 208
○ Exposing Extensive Design Information on page 288
○ Server-side Generation of CGR files for CATPart Documents on page 128
• New end user topics:
○ Windchill Status Icons on page 70
○ Comparing Model Iterations in CATIA V5 on page 203
• Updated end user topics:
○ Design in Context on page 142: Section updated to distinguish between
Windchill server and Windchill Workgroup Manager for CATIA V5
specific functionality and best practices.
○ Enhanced Link Support on page 123: Added Windchill Workgroup
Manager’s alternate shape representation support.
○ Viewing Windchill Objects: Added instructions on how to view an object’s
dependents in the same order as CATIA V5 Specific Tree from the
Structure tab.

Note
This topic is no longer available. It was added for the 10.1 M010 release,
but in the 10.1 M030 release, it was replaced by content in the reorganized
Getting Started on page 55 section.
• Additional updates for this release:
○ Export from the commonspace: Added the preference allow.export.
to.add.to.Workspace to directly export from commonspace to a
directory on disk. For more information, see the Windchill Help Center
topic “Exporting from the Workspace.”

Changes for This Release 15

 ○ Import to Workspace: Added the preference allow.revise.and.
check.out.on.workspace.import so documents checked in to a
workspace from disk can be saved as a new revision. For more information,
see the Windchill Help Center topic “Importing to the Workspace.”

16 PTC Windchill® Workgroup Manager for CATIA® V5 Administrator's and User's Guide
 3
Windchill Workgroup Manager
Overview
What is Windchill Workgroup Manager? ......................................................................18
Understanding the Client and Server System Architecture.............................................22
Windchill Workgroup Manager Capabilities ..................................................................23

This section is intended for users of all experience levels. It provides a general
overview of Windchill Workgroup Manager, its architecture, and a typical first-use
scenario. Windchill Workgroup Manager provides a common client application
that enables you to use Windchill to manage CAD data generated by many
different CAD applications. Windchill Workgroup Manager is designed for CAD
Design Engineers who use one or more CAD applications and want to manage the
design process in a controlled, collaborative manner within the Windchill
environment. The Windchill Product Data Management (PDM) actions, such as
check in and check out, can be initiated from theWindchill Workgroup Manager
client application, by using the embedded commands in the CAD application, or
by accessing Windchill through a standard internet browser window.

17
What is Windchill Workgroup Manager?
The Windchill Workgroup Manager common framework supports the following
CAD applications.
• AutoCAD
• Autodesk Inventor
• CATIA V5
• SolidWorks
• NX
• Mathcad
• Arbortext IsoDraw
• Creo Elements/Direct Model Manager
When you use Windchill Workgroup Manager, you only need to launch one CAD
application in order to work with any of your company’s supported CAD
applications and Windchill. For example, if you use CATIA V5 for one project and
NX for another, once you open Windchill Workgroup Manager, you can easily
switch between the two CAD applications.
Accessing data through Windchill Workgroup Manager provides the same set of
core features that are available from Windchill on a standard web browser.
Examples of this are opening files from a CAD application supported by Windchill
Workgroup Manager, saving a CAD structure, and renaming a CAD object.
Windchill Workgroup Manager supports two modes:
• Standalone (not connected to a CAD application)—Windchill Workgroup Man-
ager can be launched on its own, so that you can access your CAD data stored
in the Windchill database or in your private working area (workspace) without
having to start the CAD application. This also allows you access to Windchill
through the Windchill Workgroup Manager embedded browser.
• Connected (connected to a CAD application)—Windchill Workgroup Manager
can be launched with your CAD application so the two are connected.
Note
A common practice when using Windchill Workgroup Manager (while
connected to your CAD application) is to minimize the Windchill Workgroup
Manager client and work predominantly in the CAD application.
The full Windchill Workgroup Manager interface appears only when an action is
invoked in the CAD application (such as Save , Custom Check In , or Update ), or
when you are notified of the status of an action. It is a temporary environment that
is used to connect actions in the CAD application to actions on the Windchill
server. When sufficient information to complete the action is supplied, the
workgroup manager user interface closes and control of the CAD tool is returned
to the user. The status of continuing server transactions appears while work

18 PTC Windchill® Workgroup Manager for CATIA® V5 Administrator's and User's Guide
continues in the CAD application. Information on transactions performed by Wind-
chill Workgroup Manager is available from the Windchill Workgroup Manager
client message area. The following graphic illustrates information messages in the
message area:

A window opens when Windchill Workgroup Manager is minimized, or an action

is initiated from CATIA V5. The following graphic provides an example of a
window that notifies a user when PDM actions have succeeded.

More detailed transaction information is also available from the event console,
accessed directly from your CAD application (Tools ▶ Event Management ). The
following graphic shows information messages from the event console:

Windchill Workgroup Manager Overview 19

Windchill Workgroup Manager PDM System
Architecture
The basic architecture of Windchill Workgroup Manager Product Data
Management (PDM) system is composed of the following:
• The CAD application
• The Windchill Workgroup Manager client, which connects the CAD
application and Windchill
• A workspace on the server
• The Windchill database
The next graphic illustrates the Windchill Workgroup Manager architecture:

Once the Windchill Workgroup Manager client is installed, you need to register
CATIA V5 with Windchill Workgroup Manager before you can begin working
with your CAD data. For more information, see Initial Windchill Workgroup
Manager Scenario on page 21.

20 PTC Windchill® Workgroup Manager for CATIA® V5 Administrator's and User's Guide
Initial Windchill Workgroup Manager Scenario
The Windchill Workgroup Manager application must be installed on the same
computer as the CATIA V5 client. The client software is downloaded from the
Windchill server. After Windchill Workgroup Manager has been installed, you
must perform the following basic configuration before you can begin using it.
• Register one or more CAD applications with Windchill Workgroup Manager

Note
Only one version of a CAD application can be registered at one time.
• Register your Windchill servers with Windchill Workgroup Manager.
• Create and select a workspace as your active workspace.
• Set one of the registered Windchill servers as the primary server.
This basic configuration is discussed below.
1. Register your servers using one of the following methods:
• From Windchill Workgroup Manager, access the Server Management
window.
• From your CAD application, select Tools ▶ Server Management .
Note
Access to the Server Management from your CAD application is only
available after you have initiated a connected authoring application and a
Windchill Workgroup Manager session.
Because the client and the server are available, you can now configure
communication between the CAD application and Windchill.
2. Configure server importance.
Before you can manage any CAD objects in Windchill, you need to give one of
your registered servers primary importance. This means that Windchill Work-
group Manager and the CAD application recognize and communicate with the
Windchill server that manages the CAD data.
To give a server primary importance:
a. From Windchill Workgroup Manager, right-click the registered server
node.
b. Select Set as Primary Server .
To start a registered session, you must select the CATIA V5 icon on your
desktop, or from the Start Programs menu.
3. Select a workspace.
A workspace is an area in Windchill that manages your working data. You can
select a default workspace on Windchill, or create your own. This workspace is
private to you and is used to interface with your CAD documents. When you

Windchill Workgroup Manager Overview 21

 work in this workspace, your CAD documents are not visible to others until
they are checked in to a Windchill server. Once the CAD documents have been
checked in to Windchill, they are available to others. For more information on
workspaces, see Using Windchill Workspaces on page 67.

Note
You may want to create several workspaces to manage the different projects on
which you are currently working.
4. Create data and save it to your workspace. Once it has been registered, CATIA
V5 starts. Create a part in CATIA V5 and save it to your workspace, which
means that it is saved locally. When you are ready to share it with others, select
File ▶ Check In from CATIA V5. Your CAD data is then uploaded to the server
and is made available to other Windchill users.

Understanding the Client and Server

System Architecture

Windchill Workgroup Manager has a client-server architecture. The client resides

on an end-user's workstation and consists of the following components:
• The CAD application. This communicates with the workspace local directory
and Windchill Workgroup Manager.
• The workspace local directory. This is the local cache for the workspace on the
Windchill server.
• Windchill Workgroup Manager application. This communicates between the
CAD application and the Windchill server.
The Windchill server is the computer that houses the Windchill database and the
server-side workspace. The workspace consists of two components:

22 PTC Windchill® Workgroup Manager for CATIA® V5 Administrator's and User's Guide
• server-side workspace
• workspace local directory that caches the physical CAD files so they can be
accessed by the CAD application.

Windchill Workgroup Manager

Capabilities
This section introduces the concept of the workspace, and provides a general
overview of the commonly used Product Data Management (PDM) functions.
Windchill Workgroup Manager manages your CAD data in Windchill, which
maintains data integrity. Because Windchill is a PDM system, your data is
revision-controlled and managed through its life cycle.
Windchill Workgroup Manager supports several CAD applications. All the CAD
applications you use are registered in Windchill Workgroup Manager, so you do
not have to open separate workgroup manager applications each time you need to
work on a CAD part or document. Once registered, you are ready to use the PDM
system in your daily work.

Managing Data Through the Workspace

Your data is managed through a workspace that is split between the client and the
server. These workspace components are:
• Workspace local directory—The client-side cache for CAD files currently
being worked on.
• Server-side workspace—A user's private working area, which is synchronized
with the CAD files in the workspace local directory.
The workspace local directory is a cache area on the client computer through
which the CAD application accesses and modifies your CAD data when you work
on it. When you have completed work on this data, but don't want it to be shared,
you upload it to the server-side workspace, located on the server. The server-side
workspace is a private area that is accessible only to you. The server-side
workspace stores your current work-in-progress, allowing you to save data from,
and retrieve data to, your CAD applications. Once you are ready to share this data
with others, you check it in to the commonspace, which is also located on the
Windchill server. Unlike the workspace, the commonspace is viewable to anyone
who has access to it, typically your team members.

Windchill Workgroup Manager Overview 23

Common PDM Actions
When are connected to a primary Windchill server (the server you have given
primary importance) while you work in an active workspace, PDM actions become
available in your CAD application. These actions help you manage your data in
Windchill. The common PDM actions are Save to Workspace , Check In , Check
Out , Undo Checkout , and Update .
Your CAD models, drawings, and associated documents remain in your control
until you are ready to share them with others. Use Save , Save As , or Save to
Workspace from the CAD application File menu to save any changes you have
made. Then, use Check In to copy your documents to the Windchill server, where
they can be accessed by others.
The Update action ensures that the objects in your workspace comply with the
workspace configuration specification setting. For example, if data has been
changed by other users in the commonspace, the configuration of objects in your
workspace may be out-of-date. You may want to update your workspace with
those changes. Update also determines how objects are organized in the
workspace. Sometimes the version of an object you have modified is not the latest,
and you must perform an update before you can check in your modifications as the
latest iteration of the object. A conflict message appears and prompts you to Save
and Update this object. Windchill updates the saved version of this object, and then
you can proceed to check the object in.

Note
Update should not be confused with Synchronize . Synchronize is only available
through the Windchill Workgroup Manager workspace browser, and does not rely
on the Workspace Configuration Specification setting. Synchronize ensures that
the contents of the workspace local directory cache are the same as the contents in
the server-side workspace.
The Check Out action enables you to modify the data being checked out, and
prevents the checked-out object from being modified by anyone else. The object
can be viewed by others, but can only be modified by the owner who performed
the checkout. Requiring objects to be checked in and checked out ensures that data
integrity is maintained, because the file is always controlled through Windchill.

24 PTC Windchill® Workgroup Manager for CATIA® V5 Administrator's and User's Guide
 4
Installing the Windchill Workgroup
Manager
Prerequisites for Installation .......................................................................................26
Installing the Abstraction Library .................................................................................26
Copying the Shared Library ........................................................................................29
Windchill Workgroup Manager Client Installation ..........................................................30
Registering a Server ..................................................................................................44
Registering a CAD Application....................................................................................48
Uninstalling Windchill Workgroup Manager ..................................................................52

This chapter covers installation of the Windchill Workgroup Manager and the
abstraction library (which must be installed before installing the Windchill Work-
group Manager client).
• To build the abstraction shared library, you should have knowledge of the CAT-
IA V5 CAA RADE tool so you can correctly enter the tool level name. (CAA
RADE is a separate toolkit from Dassault, from whom you can find
documentation.) You should be able to locate required files (tck_init script
and CAADir.txt) in case the builder cannot locate them. You should also
understand how to move files to the Windchill server.

25
Prerequisites for Installation
For a smooth installation, you must perform the installation in the order shown
below. If you complete these steps out of order, you will need to perform
additional, more complex configuration steps later.
1. Install and configure License Use Management (LUM).
2. Install Microsoft Visual Studio. Ensure that:
• It contains static and shared Unicode libraries for Microsoft foundation
classes.
• The default C++ settings are used, with the additional installation of X64
Compilers and Tools if you are installing on 64-bit Windows.
• You have applied any available service packs and hotfixes.
3. Install CATIA V5.
4. Install CATIA V5 API software.
5. Install and configure CATIA V5 RADE software. Open
CATVBT_Setup.exe in the CAA RADE tools bin directory, and run the
CATVBTLicenser.exe file and select the correct RADE license.

Note
See the CAA RADE documentation for the CATIA V5 versions you are
planning to use with the Windchill Workgroup Manager for CATIA V5 for the
supported compilers.

Installing the Abstraction Library

The Abstraction Library is the uncompiled code that allows the Windchill Work-
group Manager for CATIA V5 to interact with CATIA V5. Abstractions are
required for patches and maintenance releases.
This installation builds the CATIA V5 Abstraction shared library. Two main
processes are required to make the Abstraction Library functional:
• Building the library
• Copying it to the Windchill server

Building the Library

The Abstraction Library installer file (CATIA_V5_Builder.exe) is located in
the
ptc\Windchill_10.1\Windchill\codebase\install\uwgm
\Catia5Builder installation directory on the server.

26 PTC Windchill® Workgroup Manager for CATIA® V5 Administrator's and User's Guide
1. Download or copy the abstraction library installer executableto the machine
that you plan to use to compile the shared library.
2. Locate and open the installation file (CATIA_V5_Builder.exe).
This executable will be installed to the Windchill server after the server-side
portion of the Windchill Workgroup Manager client installation section is
performed.
3. Select the installation language from the list and then click OK .
4. Under the Before You Begin step, review the information to ensure that you
have the required products, then select Next .

5. Under the Select Installation Directory step, do one of the following:

• Accept the default location.
• Highlight the default location and replace it by typing the exact path for the
installation.
• Select Choose to browse for the installation location. On the Browse for
Folder page, navigate to the installation location and select it, then select
OK .

Once you have entered or selected the installation location, click Next .
Note
You can revert to the default path by clicking Restore Default Folder .

Installing the Windchill Workgroup Manager 27

6. If you are a Windows user, skip this step and go to step 7.
Under the Select CATIA V5 Release step, select the appropriate CATIA V5
release and then click Next .

7. Under the CAA RADE Tool Level step, type the CAA RADE tool level, which is
the default profile. Click Next .

28 PTC Windchill® Workgroup Manager for CATIA® V5 Administrator's and User's Guide
8. Under the Review Settings step, review the settings and then click Install .
9. After the installation is complete, the Installation Results step provides the
Abstraction shared library location and instructions for copying the library to
the Windchill server codebase. These instructions are also provided in this
document under Copying the Shared Library on page 29. Click Done .

Copying the Shared Library

It is recommended that you save the shared library on a storage device (for
example, a flash drive or CD) so that you can easily reinstall it on any new Wind-
chill server.
Copy the shared library to the Windchill server:
1. Building the Library on page 26 procedure, navigate to the installation location
and locate the appropriate library file based on your Windows and CATIA
versions. This is the file that you will copy.
• Windows 32-bit:
○ uwgm_client.i486_nt.cv5absR19.zip
○ uwgm_client.i486_nt.cv5absR20.zip
○ uwgm_client.i486_nt.cv5absR21.zip

Installing the Windchill Workgroup Manager 29

 ○ uwgm_client.i486_nt.cv5absR22.zip
• Windows 64-bit:
○ uwgm_client.x86e_win64.cv5absR19.zip
○ uwgm_client.x86e_win64.cv5absR20.zip
○ uwgm_client.x86e_win64.cv5absR21.zip
○ uwgm_client.x86e_win64.cv5–6absR2012.zip
2. Place the copy of the library in the following folder on the Windchill server:
• <Windchill>\codebase\install\
uwgm\catiav5_bundles

Multiple Installations
Under certain conditions, you may need to perform multiple installations of the
library:
• If you are using versions 17, 18, 19, and 20, run the build again, beginning at
step 2 of Installing the Abstraction Library on page 26, to install the other
version.
• If you are running CATIA V5 on more than one client platform and building
the library on the clients, you need to build it for each platform. Run the build
again, beginning at step 2 of Building the Library on page 26, to build the
library on the other client.

Windchill Workgroup Manager Client

Installation
This section describes installing Windchill Workgroup Manager on a local
computer. Windchill Workgroup Manager client installation is a two-step process;
in it, all components are installed and configured for use.
• The first step is the CD-to-server installation, typically performed by a system
administrator. Note that all the CAD applications supported by your company
are installed and configured during this step. For more information, see the
Windchill System Administrator's Guide.
• The second step is the server-to-client installation, where you install the client
components on your local computer.

30 PTC Windchill® Workgroup Manager for CATIA® V5 Administrator's and User's Guide
Note
Before proceeding with the Windchill Workgroup Manager installation on your
local computer, ensure that the CATIA V5 Abstraction Library is installed on the
Windchill server for the CATIA V5 version you are planning to use. See the
Windchill System Administrator's Guide for more information. You can access this
guide from: http://www.ptc.com/appserver/cs/doc/refdoc.jsp for more information.
For CATIA V5 Abstraction library installation instructions, see Installing the
Abstraction Library on page 26.
To install Windchill Workgroup Manager client:
1. Download Windchill Workgroup Manager client installer to your local
computer.
2. Install Windchill Workgroup Manager client.
3. Select the CAD application (first launch only).

Installing the Windchill Workgroup Manager 31

Backward Compatibility
Beginning with the Windchill 10.1 M020 maintenance release, new versions of the
Windchill Workgroup Manager client are supported with older versions of the
Windchill server, i.e., the client will be “backwardly compatible” with an older
version of the server. This allows client-side software fixes, along with support for
new versions of CAD applications with older server maintenance releases without
the need to upgrade the Windchill server.
• Backward compatibility is supported from Windchill 10.1 M020 and only
within the 10.1 release stream. Windchill Workgroup Manager compatibility is
not supported against Windchill 10.1 F000, Windchill 10.0 or Windchill 9.1.
Refer to the illustration below for an example of this concept.

• Backward compatibility is not extended forward. In on other words, new

versions of Windchill Workgroup Manager are supported with earlier versions
of the server, but earlier versions of the Windchill Workgroup Manager are not
supported with later versions of the server.
• To install a newer maintenance release of the Windchill Workgroup Manager
client onto an older server, you must use the PTC Solution Installer of the same
maintenance release date code as the new version of the Windchill Workgroup
Manager client, and run it against the old server to install the new client into
the old Windchill server.

Installing the Windchill Workgroup Manager Client

At this point, the system administrator has configured Windchill Workgroup Man-
ager on the Windchill server, and you need to download the Windchill Workgroup
Manager client installer to your local computer. Use the following procedure to
download the installer and install the client.
1. Access the Software Downloads page from the Windchill Quick Links menu.
2. Select Windchill Workgroup Manager . The Installing Windchill Workgroup
Manager Client window launches.

32 PTC Windchill® Workgroup Manager for CATIA® V5 Administrator's and User's Guide
 Note
Because your Windchill system administrator selected the Windchill Work-
group Manager for one or more CAD applications supported by your company,
the installation window displays a link to the administrator's and user's guide
for each supported Windchill Workgroup Manager. You might want to save
one or more of these guides to your local computer before you start the
installation process. To save the guides, select the appropriate link to open its
related PDF and save the file to your local computer. Repeat for any other
guides you want to save.
3. Select Start Installation . The Windchill Workgroup Manager client installer
launches on your local computer and the installation process begins. The
installer indicates the language that the system administrator selected during
the CD-to-server installation.
If the installer does not start, select Troubleshooting Windchill Workgroup
Manager Client Installation and follow the troubleshooting instructions.
4. Select the appropriate language and click OK .
5. Under the Before You Begin step, click Next .
6. Under the Select Directory step, keep the default directory or browse to the
installation directory on your computer, then click Next .
A confirmation window appears if the directory selected as the installation
directory does not exist on your local computer.
7. Select Yes to confirm that the client installation directory is correct. If it is not
correct, select No and browse to the appropriate directory. Select Next to
continue.

Installing the Windchill Workgroup Manager 33

8. For Windows and Solaris, the Choose Shortcut Folder panel appears. Select a
shortcut directory and then click Next .

9. Under the Review Settings step, review the settings. If you need to make
corrections, click Back . Otherwise, select Install . The installation process
begins.

34 PTC Windchill® Workgroup Manager for CATIA® V5 Administrator's and User's Guide
 A progress bar to indicate the status of the installation. Click Cancel if you
want to stop the installation.
10. Once the installation is complete, the Installation Complete step appears.

11. Select Done . The Windchill Workgroup Manager is now installed on your
computer.

Note
The information about Windchill Workgroup Manager installation location and
registered applications is stored in the root directory. The default location of this
directory (assuming <PTC_WGM_ROOT> is not set) is <APPDATA>\PTC
\Windchill Workgroup Manager. To change the default location, set the
environment variable <PTC_WGM_ROOT> to the value with the new location.

Selecting the CAD Application

The operating system-specific components for integration with supported CAD
applications and their versions are automatically installed with the Windchill Work-
group Manager client. For example, if you perform the installation on a machine
running Windows XP, all the CAD application integration components built for
Windows XP are installed, (except any that were specifically excluded by the
system administrator during the CD-to-Server installation).

Installing the Windchill Workgroup Manager 35

A CAD application must be registered with the client before it can be used with
Windchill Workgroup Manager. It is possible to register several different CAD
applications and versions of CATIA V5 at the same time. However, it is not
possible to register several installations of the same CATIA V5 version. If there are
no CAD applications registered with the Windchill Workgroup Manager client at
startup (typically the first startup after installation), the client automatically
launches the application manager window so that the required CAD applications
can be registered with the client.

Windchill Workgroup Manager Client Update from

Prior Release
The following is the recommended approach for updating your current Windchill
Workgroup Manager client maintenance release to a newer release.
1. Before updating, check in or perform an undo checkout of all checked-out files
that have been locally modified or saved.
2. Launch the existing Windchill Workgroup Manager client as an administrator.
3. Un-register all of the registered authoring applications.
4. Exit Windchill Workgroup Manager client.
5. Uninstall the existing Windchill Workgroup Manager client as an administrator.
6. Delete the files and folders from the following locations:
a. Cache directory <PTC_WF_ROOT>
b. Workspace local directory <PTC_WLD_ROOT>
c. Application registry location <APPDATA>\PTC\Windchill Workgroup
Manager
Or, <PTC_WGM_ROOT> if it is set
d. Clear the Java plug-in cache
7. Install the new version to the required location as an administrator.
8. Register the applicable authoring applications.

Windchill Workgroup Manager Client Update

Several supported methods are available for updating a current Windchill Work-
group Manager installation to a later version:
1. Install into an existing Windchill Workgroup Manager client loadpoint (the
existing installation will be removed before the new installation begins).
2. Install to a new location without uninstalling the existing Windchill Workgroup
Manager client.

36 PTC Windchill® Workgroup Manager for CATIA® V5 Administrator's and User's Guide
 If you use this method, ensure that you un-register the authoring application
that is registered with the existing Windchill Workgroup Manager client and
delete the contents of <APPDATA>\PTC\Windchill Workgroup Manager
directory OR <PTC_WGM_ROOT>, if PTC_WGM_ROOT is set) before
installing to a new location.
3. Uninstall the existing Windchill Workgroup Manager client and install the new
version.
The recommended approach to upgrading your current Windchill Workgroup Man-
ager client to a new release is the following:
1. Before upgrading, check in or perform an undo checkout of all checked-out
files that have been locally modified or saved files.
2. Launch the existing Windchill Workgroup Manager client as an administrator.
3. Un-register all the registered CAD applications.
4. Exit the Windchill Workgroup Manager client.
5. Uninstall the existing Windchill Workgroup Manager client as an administrator.
6. Delete the files and folders from the following locations:
a. The Cache directory <PTC_WF_ROOT>, if set.
Or,
The .wf and .wwgm directories and files that are created under the
Application registry location.

Note
The wf and .wwgm directories are hidden. To see these directories and
files, you may need to set the option in your operating system to show
hidden files.
b. The /wwgm directory that is created under <User Profile Location>.
c. The Workspace Local Directory (WLD) <PTC_WLD_ROOT>, if set.
Or,
The /wwgm directory that is created under <User Profile Location>.
d. The Application registry location <APPDATA>\PTC\Windchill Workgroup
Manager
Or,
The <PTC_WGM_ROOT>, if set.
e. Clear the Java plug-in cache.
7. Install the new version to the required location as an administrator.
8. Register the applicable CAD applications.

Installing the Windchill Workgroup Manager 37

Configuring Simultaneous Windchill Workgroup
Manager Sessions
1. Install the Windchill Workgroup Manager. The following example assumes the
Windchill Workgroup Manager installation directory is
C:\Program Files (x86)\PTC\wgm.
2. Create two batch files, WWGM_A.bat and WWGM_B.bat, to be used to run the
two different Windchill Workgroup Manager environments:
a. Use the following for WWGM_A.bat:
set PTC_WGM_ROOT=C:\Program Files (x86)\wgm_A
set PTC_WF_CACHE=%PTC_WGM_ROOT%\PTC_WF_CACHE
set PTC_WF_ROOT=%PTC_WGM_ROOT%\PTC_WF_ROOT
set PTC_WGM_STARTUP_DIR=%PTC_WGM_ROOT%\logs
set PTC_WLD_ROOT=%PTC_WGM_ROOT%\PTC_WLD_ROOT
set VC_LOG_DIR=%PTC_WGM_ROOT%\logs
set PTC_WGM_XML_TEMP=%PTC_WGM_ROOT%\XML
“C:\Program Files (x86)\PTC\wgm\bin\uwgm_client.js”

b. Use the following for WWGM_B.bat:

set PTC_WGM_ROOT=C:\Program Files (x86)\wgm_B
set PTC_WF_CACHE=%PTC_WGM_ROOT%\PTC_WF_CACHE
set PTC_WF_ROOT=%PTC_WGM_ROOT%\PTC_WF_ROOT
set PTC_WGM_STARTUP_DIR=%PTC_WGM_ROOT%\logs
set PTC_WLD_ROOT=%PTC_WGM_ROOT%\PTC_WLD_ROOT
set VC_LOG_DIR=%PTC_WGM_ROOT%\logs
set PTC_WGM_XML_TEMP=%PTC_WGM_ROOT%\XML
“C:\Program Files (x86)\PTC\wgm\bin\uwgm_client.js”

3. Create two more batch files, CATIAV5_A.bat and CATIAV5_B.bat to run

the registered CATIA V5 sessions with their respective Windchill Workgroup
Manager sessions.

Note
A second batch file is automatically created in the same location for launching
a headless import.
a. Use the following for CATIAV5_A.bat:

Note
Formatting constraints require that the last line be displayed below as three
lines. Also, note that RXX should be the CATIA V5 version, such as R19.
set PTC_WGM_ROOT=C:\Program Files (x86)\wgm_A
set PTC_WF_CACHE=%PTC_WGM_ROOT%\PTC_WF_CACHE
set PTC_WF_ROOT=%PTC_WGM_ROOT%\PTC_WF_ROOT
set PTC_WGM_STARTUP_DIR=%PTC_WGM_ROOT%\logs
set PTC_WLD_ROOT=%PTC_WGM_ROOT%\PTC_WLD_ROOT
set VC_LOG_DIR=%PTC_WGM_ROOT%\logs
set PTC_WGM_XML_TEMP=%PTC_WGM_ROOT%\XML
"[location to CATIA installation]\[os]\code\bin\CATSTART.exe" -run

38 PTC Windchill® Workgroup Manager for CATIA® V5 Administrator's and User's Guide
 "CNEXT.exe" -env WGM_[wwgm release number]_CATIA_V5_RXX -direnv
"[application data folder]\DassaultSystemes\CATEnv" -nowindow -object none

b. Use the following for CATIAV5_A.bat:

Note
Formatting constraints require that the last line be displayed below as three
lines. Also, note that RXX should be the CATIA V5 version, such as R19.
set PTC_WGM_ROOT=C:\Program Files (x86)\wgm_B
set PTC_WF_CACHE=%PTC_WGM_ROOT%\PTC_WF_CACHE
set PTC_WF_ROOT=%PTC_WGM_ROOT%\PTC_WF_ROOT
set PTC_WGM_STARTUP_DIR=%PTC_WGM_ROOT%\logs
set PTC_WLD_ROOT=%PTC_WGM_ROOT%\PTC_WLD_ROOT
set VC_LOG_DIR=%PTC_WGM_ROOT%\logs
set PTC_WGM_XML_TEMP=%PTC_WGM_ROOT%\XML
"[location to CATIA installation]\[os]\code\bin\CATSTART.exe" -run
"CNEXT.exe" -env WGM_[wwgm release number]_CATIA_V5_RXX -direnv
"[application data folder]\DassaultSystemes\CATEnv" -nowindow -object none

4. Run WWGM_A.bat to launch the first Windchill Workgroup Manager.

Note
For Windows 7 and Vista operating systems, run this file in Administrative
mode.
a. Select the CATIA V5 version.
b. Register the server.
c. Close the Windchill Workgroup Manager client.
5. Run WWGM_A.bat to launch the first Windchill Workgroup Manager.

Note
For Windows 7 and Vista operating systems, run this file in Administrative
mode.
a. Select the CATIA V5 version.
b. Register the server.
c. Close the Windchill Workgroup Manager client.
6. Edit the common Windchill Workgroup Manager for CATIA V5 environment
file to use the PTC_WF_ROOT that is set in the catia5worker.bat:
a. Edit the Windchill Workgroup Manager for CATIA V5 environment file
(located at
%APPDATA%\DassaultSystemes\CATEnv
\WGM_10.0_CATIA_V5_[Release].txt by default).

Installing the Windchill Workgroup Manager 39

 b. Replace all references to the PTC_WF_ROOT location (C:\Program Files
(x86)\wgm_B\PTC_WF_ROOT) with the environment variable %
PTC_WF_ROOT%.
7. To complete the configuration, launch CATIAV5_A.bat.

Note
To configure multiple-file-sync–enabled CATIA CAD workers, see Using a
File Synchronization-Capable Worker with Windchill Workgroup Manager on
page 208.

Redistributable Windchill Workgroup Manager Client

Installer
The Windchill Workgroup Manager Client can be downloaded for redistribution
rather than installed from the server. This feature allows users to download the
installer without starting the install process. Administrators can then copy the
installation to a network location where it can be installed on multiple machines or
installed through a software deployment tool. To download the redistributable
installer and install the client:
1. Access the Software Downloads page from the Windchill Quick Links drop-
down list.
2. Select Windchill Workgroup Manager . The installation window appears.
3. Select Creating a redistributable Windchill Workgroup Manager installer .

40 PTC Windchill® Workgroup Manager for CATIA® V5 Administrator's and User's Guide
4. A new window opens to create the redistributable installation. Follow the steps
on the web page and enter the applicable information for each of the fields.
• Enter a location to output the installation image.
• Ensure you have JRE 7.0 installed; if not, install it or update your system to
that version.
• Download the ClientInstaller.jar file to a location on your local
file system.
• Enter the location to the local ClientInstaller.jar file.
• Enter the path to the java executable file.
• Select the Operating System used to build the image.
• Enable build logging, if desired.

Installing the Windchill Workgroup Manager 41

 As you enter the paths, the Launch command field becomes populated with
applicable code.
In the previous steps, you created the redistributable installation. There is also
an option to configure the installation for silent deployment. The silent
deployment option installs without user interaction. Inputs are provided from
values stored in a silent.properties file. Complete the next step to
create a silent deployment installation. Otherwise, skip this step and proceed to
the last step.
5. Checking the Create image for silent (background) deployment box displays the
following fields where you enter details about which client machines to install
Windchill Workgroup Manager.
Note
If “Installation Directory”, “Shortcuts Directory”, and “Path to the installer
image from deployment machine” are left blank, the default install locations
and the Java Virtual Machine supplied with the installer will be used.

42 PTC Windchill® Workgroup Manager for CATIA® V5 Administrator's and User's Guide
 • Select the Operating System of the machines where the client is deployed.
• Provide the path to the installation directory.
• Provide the path to the shortcuts directory where application shortcuts are
created.
• Provide the path to the installer image accessible from the deployment
machine.
• Provide the path to the java executable on the deployment machine.
Note
The silent install is launched using silent.bat located in the <Install
Directory>\Client directory.
6. Once you have completed all required inputs, open a command prompt
window and copy the text under the Launch command: section into the
command line. Run the command to create the installer image.

The installer is now created under the directory specified as the output location.
You can copy the installer to any location accessible from the client machines to
install Windchill Workgroup Manager.

Installing the Windchill Workgroup Manager 43

• Normal install — The installation can be launched by running <output
directory>\CLIENT\setup.vbs.
• Silent non-user installation — If you entered details to create a silent
installation script, the silent installation can be launched using <output
dir>\CLIENT\silent.bat. This can be run either by end users or used
by a software deployment tool to roll out software to user machines.

Registering a Server
This section explains how to work with Windchill servers in Windchill Workgroup
Manager. It includes how to connect to a Windchill server and the Server
Management window, and how to use Windchill Workgroup Manager to create and
remove Windchill server connections.
To work in Windchill from CATIA V5, you must first establish a connection by
registering a Windchill server. You do this with the Tools menu in Windchill Work-
group Manager. Once you have registered a server, you can select a workspace and
start working with your CAD data.

Incompatible Server Errors

If the Windchill server version is not compatible with your version of the Windchill
Workgroup Manager client, an error message appears.
If the server is not registered in the Server Registry window, no compatibility
check is triggered and the mismatched server becomes disabled. (If a server is
down due to a network problem, an error message indicating that the server is
offline appears instead.) You can still open and view data in CATIA V5, but you
can no longer save or check in CAD documents.
Following are reasons why clients and servers might be mismatched:
Message Sample Text
Server's major version is mismatched “The client and server <Server Name>
do not match. Server major version 9.0
is not supported by this client build. See
your Windchill Administrator about
downloading the latest client.”
Major version is OK but maintenance “The client and server <Server Name>
release levels differ. do not match. Server version 9.1 M010
is not supported by this client build (9.1
> M020). See your Windchill
Administrator about downloading the
latest client.”
Major version and maintenance release “The client and server <Server Name>
levels are OK but patch sets differ do not match. Server patch set (TP01)
does not match that of client (TP03).

44 PTC Windchill® Workgroup Manager for CATIA® V5 Administrator's and User's Guide
Message Sample Text
See your Windchill Administrator about
downloading the latest client.”
Multiple patches “The client and server <Server Name>
do not match. Server patch set (TP01,
TP02, TP05, TP07, TP08) does not
match that of client (TP03, TP04, TP05,
TP08, TP10). See your Windchill
Administrator about downloading the
latest client”
Client startup when server is down “Server <server name> is currently
(offline) down. Version checking requires that
the client be restarted when the server is
running. Please restart your client when
<server name> returns to service.”
If you receive a mismatched client and server version error in the status panel when
you register a default server, restart the server.

Connecting to the Server

To create the connection to a Windchill server, you must register a server and select
a workspace. If you want to work on a particular server, set it as the primary server.
Use the following steps to register a server (if you do not register a server, you will
not be able to connect to Windchill).
1. From an active Windchill Workgroup Manager session, select Tools ▶ Server
Management . The Server Management window opens.
2. Select Server ▶ Register New Server . The Register New Server window opens.
3. Specify the server name that will appear in the folder navigator.
Note
It is recommended that all users in a company register the server using the
same name.
4. Enter the URL to the Windchill server codebase location (obtain this
information from your Windchill administrator).
5. Select Check to validate the server location.
6. Enter the user name and password in the authentication window.

Installing the Windchill Workgroup Manager 45

7. Select the workspace name from the list of workspaces that you want to be
your active workspace.

Note
A default workspace already exists for each Windchill product that you can
access. If you want to create new additional workspaces, click Workspace ▶
New . This option is only available when the server is registered and has been
given primary importance.
8. Select Close .
9. Select Server ▶ Set as Primary Server . This makes the server and workspace
your working server.
Once the server is registered, the server and workspace are listed in the folder
navigator.

Using the Server Tab

The Server tab contains three sections: Servers , Server Active Workspace , and
Description .
• Servers —Lists the servers that are registered with Windchill Workgroup Man-
ager You can right-click a server and set it as primary (if it is not already), edit
the server name, or register another server.
• Server Active Workspace —Lists the workspaces on a selected server when you
select it from the Servers list. You can use the workspace commands to do the
following:
○ New
Creates a new workspace on the primary server.
○ Activate
Activates a workspace on a secondary server, or activates a workspace and
sets it as primary.
○ Delete
Deletes the server.
• Description —Describes the server name, location, and primary active
workspace name.

Using the Server Management Utility

To register and manage servers in Windchill Workgroup Manager, use the Server
Management window. To access the Server Management window, select Tools ▶
Server Management .
The Server Management window has three menus:
• File

46 PTC Windchill® Workgroup Manager for CATIA® V5 Administrator's and User's Guide
 Opens the Save Server Management Settings File window, and allows you to
save a servers configuration file (FLD file) to a common folder, server, or
workspace.
• Server
Allows you to register a new server.
• Workspace
Allows you to create a new workspace.
Two tabs are available from the Server Management window:
• The Servers tab allows you to view the server names, register servers, edit
server names, and delete servers.

Installing the Windchill Workgroup Manager 47

 It displays the registered servers and their online or offline status. It also
displays “NO SERVER.” If you set “NO SERVER” as the primary server, all
PDM actions in the CAD application File menu are disabled, except Open from
Windchill and Save to Workspace .
You might want to use the no server option when you want to restore the basic
behaviors of the CAD application without unregistering any Windchill servers.
• The Cache tab allows you to see how much disk space the workspace local
directory cache uses per server or workspace, and also allows you to clear the
cache. For more information on cache, see Managing Cache on page 137.

Registering a CAD Application

This section describes how to register a CAD application with Windchill Work-
group Manager, and why it is necessary.
To work on your CAD data, CATIA V5 needs to be registered with Windchill
Workgroup Manager. If you did not automatically register it when you installed
Windchill Workgroup Manager, you might need to manually register your CAD
application. To do so, select the applicable CAD application from a list in the
Application Management utility. If you have already-registered CAD applications,
you can use the Application Management utility to add others.
To register a CAD application with Windchill Workgroup Manager:

Note
When working with Windows Vista 64-bit operating system, consider the
following:
• For NX, Creo Elements/Direct Drafting, and Mathcad, any user (administrator
or typical user) can register or unregister a CAD application in Windchill Work-
group Manager.
• Windchill Workgroup Manager and the CAD application should be launched in
same mode (either elevated or non-elevated).
1. Access the Application Management utility from the Windchill Workgroup
Manager Tools menu.

48 PTC Windchill® Workgroup Manager for CATIA® V5 Administrator's and User's Guide
 The Application Management utility lists the CAD applications that your
system administrator has allowed for your company.
2. Select Applications ▶ Register New Application . The Register an Authoring
Application window opens and displays the CAD applications your
administrator has made available:

3. Select the CAD application you want to register.

4. Click Find .

Installing the Windchill Workgroup Manager 49

 Windchill Workgroup Manager locates this application. Once the CAD
application has been located, the paths to the application appear in the
Attributes section.
5. Browse to change the directory. In the following example, SolidWorks 2005
was found on the D: drive, and its installation directory was found on the D:
drive in Program Files.

Registering Multiple Versions of a CAD Application

You can register any valid installation of CATIA V5 without having to unregister
other versions. However, you cannot register multiple installations of the same
version.

50 PTC Windchill® Workgroup Manager for CATIA® V5 Administrator's and User's Guide
The client preference for opening a CATIA V5 document is based on the
“authoring application version selection on open” preference in the wgmclient.ini
file:
• If set to true, the selection window always launches.
• If set to false, the selection window may or may not open, based on the “last
saved ” related rules. If multiple options are available to open the selected files,
or if none of the files can be opened by the registered versions, the window
opens. Otherwise, no window is shown and CATIA V5 opens the selected files.
Automatic registration is currently supported for Windows systems only. To
manually register CATIA V5, do the following:
1. Click Register Manually .
2. Select the version of CATIA V5 that you want from the Authoring Application
list.
3. Click Find .
The installation directory is already filled out. You can edit this location in the
Installation Directory field, or browse by clicking the folder next the field.
If the installation is valid and if it matches the selected version, then the installation
is registered and the menu exits back to the Application Management utility menu.
Windchill does not support multiple sessions of CATIA V5 running at the same
time. Running multiple simultaneous sessions results in error messages in both
CATIA V5 and the Windchill Workgroup Manager client.

Removing a CAD Application

To remove (unregister) a CAD application:
1. In the Windchill Workgroup Manager window, click Tools ▶ Application
Management . The system opens the Application Management utility.
2. In the Application Management utility, select the application you want to
remove.
3. Click Applications ▶ Remove . The system removes the selected application.
4. Repeat steps 2 and 3 to remove additional applications, or click Close to exit
the Application Management utility.

Note
You must exit your CAD application before trying to remove it from the
Application Management utility. Windchill Workgroup Manager does not allow
you to register, unregister, or edit a CAD application if it is running.

Installing the Windchill Workgroup Manager 51

Uninstalling Windchill Workgroup
Manager
There are three methods you can use to uninstall Windchill Workgroup Manager.
• Start menu (Windows only)—Click the uninstall icon.
• Add or Remove Programs (Windows only)—Select Windchill Workgroup
Manager and then click Remove .
• Uninstall Windchill Workgroup Manager tool:
1. Navigate to
<Windchill Workgroup Manager Installation Directory>
\installer\uninstall.
2. Double-click the following file:
Uninstall Windchill Workgroup Manager.exe.

Note
On UNIX, the filename is
Uninstall_Windchill_Workgroup_Manager.
The Uninstall Windchill Workgroup Manager window appears.

3. Click Uninstall .

52 PTC Windchill® Workgroup Manager for CATIA® V5 Administrator's and User's Guide
 4. The uninstall status step shows the status of the operation. When the
Uninstall Complete step appears, click Done .

Installing the Windchill Workgroup Manager 53

Note
In some cases, the uninstall might fail. This is caused by an issue in
InstallAnywhere. If your uninstall fails, perform the following procedure:
1. Navigate to Program Files\Zero G Registry and delete the file
.com.zerog.registry.xml.

Note
On UNIX, this file is located in the user home directory.
2. Reinstall Windchill Workgroup Manager into the same directory as the original
installation.
3. Run the uninstall program again as described above.

Deleting Windchill Workgroup Manager Files and Folders

After you have uninstalled the Windchill Workgroup Manager client, delete the
following Windchill Workgroup Manager files and folders from the following
locations:

Note
These directories may be hidden. To view hidden directories, go to Windows
Explorer and select Tools ▶ Folder options . From the View tab, navigate to Files and
Folders ▶ Hidden files and folders and select Show hidden files and folders .
• The Cache directory <PTC_WF_ROOT>, if it is set.
• The .wf and .wwgm directories and files that are created under the .wf and .
wwgm cache locations.
• The Application registry location, <APPDATA>\PTC\ProENGINEER
\Wildfire.
• The Virtual File System (VFS) Cache directory <PTC_VFS_ROOT>, if it is set
or,
The /wwgm directory that is created under <User Profile Location>
• The Workspace Local Directory (WLD) <PTC_WLD_ROOT>, if it is set.
or,
The /wwgm directory that is created under <User Profile Location>
• The Application registry location <APPDATA>\PTC\Windchill Workgroup
Manager
or,
The <PTC_WGM_ROOT>, if it is set.
• Clear the Java plug-in cache.

54 PTC Windchill® Workgroup Manager for CATIA® V5 Administrator's and User's Guide
 5
Getting Started

Initial Setup ...............................................................................................................56

Getting Familiar with the Windchill Workgroup Manager User Interface ..........................62
Working with Windchill Workgroup Manager ................................................................71
Making It Work For You ..............................................................................................78

This section provides basic information on how to start working with Windchill
using Windchill Workgroup Manager. The next topics describe a streamlined
approach to some of the most common data management functions.

55
Initial Setup
Before you start using Windchill Workgroup Manager, you administrator typically
performs an initial setup to configure certain business processes and to establish a
seamless data exchange between your application and Windchill. The next sections
describes some of the necessary configurations.

Configuring an Attribute Exchange Between Windchill and CATIA V5

Your CAD or Windchill administrator must map your application attributes and
parameters to Windchill attributes. This mapping ensures that attributes and
parameters are propagated and properly updated in both Windchill and your
application.
In addition, the administrator may need to manage system attributes and
parameters, and customize out-of-the-box Windchill attributes to create the
necessary additional CAD attributes.
For more information, see Configuring Attributes on page 263.

Using CAD Document Templates

When your application data is managed by Windchill, to create a new object you
must select a CAD document template used by Windchill. A CAD document
template determines the attributes that you need to specify when creating a new
CAD document.
CAD document templates are created and managed from the Templates pages in
Windchill, which are accessible only to administrators. The CAD document
templates can be created in the context of a product, library, project, program,
organization, or site.
For more information, see “About CAD Document Templates” in the Windchill
Help Center.

Creating a Repository for Your Data

Before you start working on a new design, your administrator typically creates a
new product or library in Windchill to manage the new product data. Within this
product, you can then set up a workspace to work on your portion of the design.
To learn about creating a new product or library, see the Product and Library
Administration section in the Windchill Help Center.

Enabling Workspaces
By default, the workspace may not be listed in the Windchill navigation pane in the
embedded browser or in a standalone Windchill. To display the workspace link in
the navigation pane, set the preference Workspace to yes using the Windchill
Preference Management utility.

56 PTC Windchill® Workgroup Manager for CATIA® V5 Administrator's and User's Guide
Other Considerations
This topic provides some additional considerations for setting up Windchill Work-
group Manager.

Configuring Object Collections

The collection process determines how the dependents of an object are collected
when the object is selected for a data management operation, for example, Check
In . An administrator or a user can define the default collector behavior using the
Preference Management utility.
For more information, see Configuring Collection on page 254.

Configuring Revisions
Your administrator can configure the sequence of steps in the revision process by
using the Initial Revision Parameter preference in the Windchill
Preference Management utility. For more information, see Configuring Revision
on page 261.

Suggestions for Further Reading

Your primary resource for information on Windchill processes and functions is the
Windchill Help Center, which you can access from the embedded browser or from
standalone Windchill by clicking the ? icon on a Windchill page or table, or by
selecting Quick Links ▶ Help in Windchill (see the next figure).

Getting Started 57
When learning about Windchill, you may be interested in the following functional
areas:
Windchill process or Where to find information
functional area
Configuring access control See the Managing Data Security section in the
Windchill Help Center.
Configuring life cycles See the Life Cycle Template Administration
section in the Windchill Help Center.
Setting preferences See the Preference Management section in the
Windchill Help Center.
Creating new subtypes See the Managing Types section in the Wind-
chill Help Center.
Using Windchill workflows See the Workflow Template Administration
section in the Windchill Help Center.

Installing Windchill Workgroup Manager

Windchill Workgroup Manager installation is a two-step process:
• Step 1—CD-to-server installation. this step is typically performed by a system
administrator.
• Step 2—Server-to-client installation. A user or an administrator installs the
client components on the user’s computer. For information on installing the
client, see Windchill Workgroup Manager Client Installation on page 30.
Once you have installed the client, you must register a Windchill server and your
CAD application with Windchill Workgroup Manager. For more information, see
Installing the Windchill Workgroup Manager on page 25.

Registering Your Authoring Application

To make your application files accessible in Windchill Workgroup Manager, you
need to register your application with Windchill Workgroup Manager using the
Application Management utility.

1. In Windchill Workgroup Manager, click Tools ▶ Application Management .

2. Click Applications ▶ Register New Application .
3. Choose an application from a list of installed applications.
4. Click Register .

Tip
If your installed application is not found by clicking Register , click Register
Manually and browse to the application to register.

58 PTC Windchill® Workgroup Manager for CATIA® V5 Administrator's and User's Guide
Connecting to a Windchill Server
To work with Windchill, you must register a Windchill server and select an active
workspace on that server.

Primary and Secondary Servers

Windchill Workgroup Manager allows you to browse multiple Windchill servers
simultaneously. However, it is necessary to designate one server as the primary
server.
The primary server acts as the default location for all storage and retrieval using
the PDM functions performed with Windchill. When it is required that you work in
another server, you can set it as primary using Server Management on the Tools
menu.
Secondary servers are typically used for backing up data, for libraries, or for
sharing data with other users who do not have access to your primary server (for
example, Windchill servers that are placed on a different part of the company
network, such as outside the company’s firewall), or test servers. For example, you
might create a project on your company’s Windchill server, and then invite
suppliers to share this data. You would not set this server as primary. This
secondary server gives your suppliers the ability to read and write to that project.

Registering a Server
1. In Windchill Workgroup Manager, select Tools ▶ Server Management . The
Server Management window opens. The Servers tab has two sections: the top
section lists registered servers, and the bottom section lists the workspaces
available on the selected server.
2. Select Server ▶ Register New Server. The Register New Server window opens.
3. Specify the server name to appear in the Folder Navigator.
Tip
As a working practice, it is recommended that all users in a company register
the server using the same name.
4. Specify the location by entering the URL to the Windchill server (you can get
this information from your Windchill administrator).
5. Click Check to validate the server location.
6. Enter the user name and password in the authentication window.

Getting Started 59
7. Select the active workspace.

Note
If you are setting up your connection for the first time, a default workspace is
created in each Windchill product that you have access to. If you are
connecting to a previously registered server, you can select from a list of
available workspaces. For more information, see Creating and Activating a
Workspace on page 68.
8. Click Close .
9. Designate the primary server by right-clicking it in the list and selecting Set as
Primary Server (or in the Server Management window, by clicking Server ▶
Set as Primary Server ).
The next picture shows an example of the registered primary server and the active
workspace, as they appear in the Server Management window.

60 PTC Windchill® Workgroup Manager for CATIA® V5 Administrator's and User's Guide
Note
Once registered, the active workspace is listed in the Folder Navigator. If desired,
you can now create your own workspace on the primary server and set it as active.
For more information, see Creating and Activating a Workspace on page 68.

Supported File Types

The following CATIA V5 file types are supported by Windchill Workgroup
Manager:
• .CATPart
• .CATProduct
• .CATDrawing
• .CATProcess
• .CATAnalysis
• .CATMaterial
• .CATShape
• .catalog
• .cgr
• .model

Getting Started 61
Getting Familiar with the Windchill
Workgroup Manager User Interface
Windchill Workgroup Manager contains two distinct areas:
• Navigators – This pane contains the Folder, Favorites, History, and Search
navigators.
• Windchill Workgroup Manager browser (or embedded browser) – This pane
allows you to view and access data for the locations selected in the Folder
navigator, for example, the contents of a workspace or the contents of a folder
on a Windchill server.

Note
The Windchill Workgroup Manager embedded browser is the only browser that
supports the connection between your CAD application and a Windchill server. An
Internet Explorer or Mozilla browser does not support connectivity between your
application and Windchill.

62 PTC Windchill® Workgroup Manager for CATIA® V5 Administrator's and User's Guide
Learning About the Windchill User Interface
Once connected to the Windchill server, the embedded browser displays Windchill
pages and functions. To learn about the basics of the Windchill user interface, you
can review a Windchill Quick Start Guide. The next figure shows how to navigate
to the Quick Start guide from a Windchill page.

Using Windchill Data Management Actions from Your CAD Application

When your application is connected to Windchill Workgroup Manager, Windchill
inserts certain data management actions in your application user interface, such as
Check In and Check Out .

Getting Started 63
In addition, Windchill Workgroup Manager changes the behavior of some of the
commands in your application, such as Save or Open . For example, when a CAD
application is connected to Windchill Workgroup Manager, Open and Save use the
workspace local directory as the default location.

64 PTC Windchill® Workgroup Manager for CATIA® V5 Administrator's and User's Guide
Searching for Existing Data in Windchill
To search the Windchill database, use Search available at the top of any Windchill
page inside the Windchill Workgroup Managerembedded browser. Pick the object
types to search for and enter a word or phrase in the search field.

In addition, you can use the Advanced Search page located on the Search tab in
Windchill, which provides the ability to specify additional search criteria that
include both keywords and attributes.
Searches that are specific to a context may be performed in the folder browser for
that context.
Note
Your ability to search for and retrieve information depends upon access control
policies implemented at your company. An object can exist in the Windchill
database but not appear in your search results because of these policies. A global
search is always performed against all contexts for which you have access.

Getting Started 65
Use the following procedure to perform a global search:
1. Select one or more specific object types, or All Types , from the menu on the
left. All Types is selected by default.

Note
The list of available object types can be modified by changing the Global
Search Default Types List preference. Change your user preferences using the
Preference Management utility. Access your preferences from the Quick Links
▶ My Settings ▶ Preferences menu located on the right side of the Windchill
header bar.
2. Type one or more words in the search field. Text separated by spaces is
interpreted as separate search strings joined by an AND operator.

Note
• All Windchill searches are case insensitive.
• Wildcards can be used with the text strings entered in the search field.
Asterisks (*) entered in the middle or at the end of a text string are replaced
by zero or more characters in the search. A question mark (?) is replaced by
a single character.
• An asterisk wildcard entered at the beginning of a text string has special
meaning. It causes the search to be performed against specified mapped
attribute values (Name and Number by default). An asterisk at the
beginning of a text string is also replaced by zero or more characters in the
mapped attribute value. For example, entering the text string *handle in
the search field finds a part with the name Handle, and also a document
with the word handle in its content. This behavior assumes that Windchill
Index Search is installed
• Windchill Index Search supports stemming. Stemming uses forms of the
base word entered in the keyword field to search the keyword index. For
example, entering revise in the keyword field may return objects having
the words revision, revised, or revising as attribute values or in
the object content
3. Click the search icon or type ENTER to start the search.
4. The results of the simple search are shown in the Search Results table, in the
Search tab.

Tip
A search that is taking an unacceptable amount of time can be stopped by
clicking the cancel icon next to the search progress indicator above the
Search Results table.

66 PTC Windchill® Workgroup Manager for CATIA® V5 Administrator's and User's Guide
Using Windchill Workspaces
Windchill Workgroup Manager provides you with a workspace – a private area
managed by Windchill that enables you to collaborate on a project with other
designers.
The primary purpose of a workspace is to allow you to work on a portion of a
design without impacting data in Windchill “commonspace”. Once you are ready
to expose design changes to the rest of your team, you can check in your design in
Windchill.
Tip
In Windchill, you can create multiple workspaces. This is useful if you are working
on several projects at a time, enabling you to maintain the data for each project in a
dedicated workspace.

Viewing Objects in a Workspace

Once you save a file from your application or check out an object from Windchill,
it appears in your private active workspace in Windchill.
To view objects in your workspace, click the active workspace node (indicated by
) in the Windchill Workgroup Manager Folder navigator. The embedded browser
shows the contents of the workspace.

Tip
You may wish to customize the view of the workspace table (for example, to add
columns that display important object attributes) by creating a new table view or
modifying an existing one. You can create several views for different purposes. For
example, you may have a view that shows the status of the objects, such as out-of-
date. For more information on creating custom views of the workspace table, see
the Windchill Help Center topic, “Creating and Editing New Table Views.”
To obtain information about an object in the workspace, open its information page
by clicking the information icon . The information page called from the
workspace presents the workspace-relevant information about the object.

Tip
The information page for an object that is opened from the commonspace may
have different contents than the information page opened from the workspace.
You can configure how objects are displayed in the workspace table by selecting
the desired view. You can select one of the following views:
• As a List (default)
• Featured Objects—Featured Objects is a view designed to restrict the number
of objects displayed in the workspace to the ones likely to be the most
interesting to you, as defined by the following rules:

Getting Started 67
 ○ Include objects initially selected for Add to Workspace or Check Out
actions
○ Include all checked-out objects
○ Include all objects modified locally or in the server-side workspace
○ Include drawings included for selected items
Tip
To view an object’s dependents in the same order as a CATIA V5 Specification
Tree from the Structure tab:
1. Click Views ▶ Manage Structure Views .
2. Create or modify your existing view to add the Component Number
column. For more information on creating and modifying views, click the
icon from the window that appears.
3. From the Structure tab, click the Component Number column to order your
object’s dependents the same way as CATIA V5.
Note
The Featured Objects view filter is sticky, and will retain your last view
selection should you navigate away from the workspace and return. Toggling
the view between As a list and As a Featured Objects list in the workspace
toggles the value setting for the preference, Workspace > Workspace Display,
between All items and Featured items , respectively.

Populating a Workspace
There are several ways to populate your workspace. Some of them include:
• Save an object from your CAD application session using Save or Save to
Workspace .
• Locate and then check out (and download) an object from a commonspace
folder in Windchill to your workspace.
• Import objects into the workspace from a location on your hard disk.

Creating and Activating a Workspace

You can create a new workspace either from the Windchill Workgroup Manager
using the Server Management utility or from a workspace table in Windchill.

Creating a New Workspace using the Server Management Utility in

Windchill Workgroup Manager
1. From Windchill Workgroup Manager, select Tools ▶ Server Management . The
Server Management window opens.
2. Click Workspace ▶ New .

68 PTC Windchill® Workgroup Manager for CATIA® V5 Administrator's and User's Guide
3. Specify a unique name for the workspace and select the context (product or
library) where you want the workspace to reside.
4. Click OK . The new workspace is added to the list of the workspaces in the
Server Management window, and it immediately becomes your active
workspace.

Creating a New Workspace from a Workspace Page in Windchill

1. In the embedded browser or in standalone Windchill, browse to find the
product within which you want to create a workspace.
2. On the Browse tab, expand the product node and click the Workspaces link.

3. In the My Workspaces table that appears in the content pane, click the new
workspace icon .
4. In the New Workspace window, specify a unique name for the workspace.
5. Optionally, provide a description for the workspace.

Getting Started 69
6. Select the Activate checkbox (not available in a standalone browser) to make
the new workspace active upon creation.
7. Click OK . The system confirms that the new workspace is created.

Activating a Workspace
You can designate a particular workspace as the active workspace. The active
workspace is used as the default location for data management functions.
1. In Windchill Workgroup Manager, select Tools ▶ Server Management .
2. In the Server Management window, right-click a workspace that you want to
activate from the list of workspaces available on the selected server. Continue
as follows:
• To activate a workspace on the primary server, click Activate ▶ Workspace .
• To activate a workspace and make its server the primary server, click
Activate ▶ Workspace and Set Primary .

Windchill Status Icons

Windchill Workgroup Manager for CATIA V5 displays the PDM status of an
object in Windchill as part of the icon of a CATIA V5 object:
Icon in CATIA Specification Tree Description
New in the workspace

Checked out in the workspace

Locked in the workspace

Checked out in another workspace

Checked out by another user

From your workspace in Windchill, the following icons tell the status of an object:
Icon in Windchill Workspace Description
New
Modified locally or modifications
uploaded
Modifications not eligible for upload
Modifications need to be uploaded
Locked by user in workspace

70 PTC Windchill® Workgroup Manager for CATIA® V5 Administrator's and User's Guide
Icon in Windchill Workspace Description
Local files are out of date with
workspace
Checked out by you
Checked out by you in another
workspace
Checked out by another user

Working with Windchill Workgroup

Manager
The next sections cover the most typical PDM actions that you may use while
working on your design.

Starting Out on a Design

The next sections describe different scenarios for how you may start working on
your design using Windchill Workgroup Manager.

Creating a New CAD Document

CAD documents are Windchill objects that are used to manage your application
data in Windchill.
CAD documents can be created using the following approaches:
• On-the-fly—When you create and save a new object in your application.
• Created from Windchill—When you create a new CAD document in the
workspace. This can be done from the embedded Windchill Workgroup Man-
ager browser or from standalone Windchill browser.

Creating a New CAD Document from Your Application

When you create a new object in your application and save it to the workspace, it
creates a new CAD document in your workspace.

Creating a CAD Document from a Workspace Page

1. Go to the workspace page in the embedded browser or in a standalone Wind-
chill browser.
2. From your workspace page, select File ▶ New ▶ CAD Document or click the
new CAD document icon . The New CAD Document window opens.
3. Specify the following fields:

Getting Started 71
 • Organization ID
• Authoring Application —Selecting the authoring application may preselect
values for other attributes, for example Category and Type and Template
Name .
• Category
• Type
• Template Name —Select the CAD document template to use.
Tip
You can click the Default button to save the currently-selected template as
the default. When you revisit the New CAD Document window, the
previously-saved default value is preselected in the Template Name menu.
4. Specify values for the attributes in the Attributes pane. The attributes listed
depend on the template selected, but typically the following attributes are
available out-of-the-box:
• Number
Note
If autonumbering is on, Number is not shown as a required field and the
word (Generated) is displayed.
• Name
• File name
• New Revision
• Description
• Location

Note
The default location is the current workspace. If you want to specify a
different location, click Select Folder and either enter a path or browse to a
folder within your selected context.
5. If you want to open the newly-created CAD document in the authoring
application, select the Open in Authoring Application checkbox (available in the
embedded browser only).
6. If you want to simultaneously create an associated Windchill part, select the
Create and Associate Part checkbox.

Note
It is recommended that you associate a part with a CAD document at object
creation, not when you create a structure.
7. Click Finish . The new CAD document is created in the target workspace.

72 PTC Windchill® Workgroup Manager for CATIA® V5 Administrator's and User's Guide
Importing Files into Windchill
There are two ways to import your objects into Windchill:
• Import objects into the workspace using the embedded browser—You can use
Tools ▶ Import to Workspace to select files from your local disk or another
location and import them into your workspace. Selecting a top-level assembly
default collects all required dependents for import.

Note
Importing into the workspace is not supported for files that come from multiple
authoring applications.
• Save an opened file to your workspace—When your application session is
connected to Windchill using Windchill Workgroup Manager, you can open an
object in your application from a location other than a workspace. Then you
can use Save to Workspace to save the active object in session with its
dependents to the workspace. For more information, see Saving Your Work to
the Workspace on page 75.

Opening a File From Windchill

You can use Open from Windchill to open an object in your application. By default,
the system first looks for the object in the active workspace on the primary server,
but you can use the Open from Windchill window to navigate to any accessible
Windchill folder.

Getting Started 73
Checking Out Files from Windchill to Make Changes
Checking out an object reserves the object for you, so you can make changes to the
object. There may be different scenarios for a checkout:
• If you have an object in your authoring application session that is downloaded
but not checked out, the object is treated by the system as a read-only file. Prior
to modifying the downloaded file, you must first check it out. From the
authoring application, use Check Out .
• You can check out an object “on-the-fly”. If a CAD document is opened in
your application but is not checked out, saving the document from the
application causes a conflict. To resolve the conflict, you can check out the
object using the Conflicts window.

• You can search Windchill and locate an object in the commonspace, and then
check it out into an existing or new workspace using the Actions menu.

Adding an Object to the Workspace

1. In Windchill, locate the part/assembly of interest.
2. Right click the object and select Add to Workspace .
3. The Add to Workspace page opens on the Basic collection tab that specifies the
related objects (in addition to the ones you selected) that are collected for the
Add to Workspace action.

Note
The default setting—Dependents is set to Required —specifies that all
dependent children (which are necessary to fully define the selected object) are
included for the Add to Workspace action.
4. Accept the default and click OK . This loads the objects into the selected
workspace.

Note
The default target location is your active workspace.

74 PTC Windchill® Workgroup Manager for CATIA® V5 Administrator's and User's Guide
Once CAD documents are in your workspace, you may want to open them in the
authoring application. From the workspace, or from almost any place in Windchill
that an object is listed, you can click the icon to access the information page for
the object.

Saving Your Work to the Workspace

Use Save to save a modified or a new object that is open in your authoring
application.
1. In an active session of your authoring application, click File ▶ Save .
2. Enter a name for the file or accept the default.
3. Click OK . The file is saved to the workspace (both the local managed directory
and the server-side workspace).

Checking In Your Work to Windchill

To make your modifications available to other members of the team, you need to
check in the object in to Windchill. Checking in your files removes the lock on the
reserved objects.
Windchill Workgroup Manager provides two ways to check in an object:
• Auto Check In —Checks in objects from the active session of your authoring
application to the Windchill server using default values set in the configuration
specification of your workspace . This method of checkin is only available
from the authoring application.
• Custom Check In —Allows you to specify options for the check-in process. The
custom method is available from both the authoring application and the
workspace page.
Note
After you have checked in your object into Windchill, you may want to clear your
workspace. For more information, see Clearing a Workspace on page 81.

Undoing a Checkout
You may need to undo a checkout if you do not intend to check in your changes to
Windchill. This can be done from an active session of your authoring application
or from the workspace page by selecting Undo Checkout .

Getting Started 75
Keeping Your Workspace Objects Up-to-
Up-to-Date
Date
An object (for example, an assembly) stored in your workspace can become out-of-
date after other users have made modifications to some of its components. You can
update selected workspace objects to make sure they remain current with the latest
server information.
You can check the status of a workspace object by adding these optional status
columns to your workspace table view:
• Out of Date Status
• Out of Date with Workspace Configuration Status
If you set up a view to show the status column, a glyph indicates that the object
is out-of-date.
Note
Due to performance considerations, you may want to create a custom view that can
display the optional status columns when needed (using the default view for more
rapid performance during routine PDM activities). For more information on
creating custom views of the workspace table, see the Windchill Help Center topic,
“Creating and Editing New Table Views.”
To update objects in the workspace, use the workspace Update action available
from the workspace page of the embedded browser or standalone Windchill.
Tip
Another way to make sure everyone on the project has access to an up-to-date
design is to periodically check in your updates into the commonspace.

Copying Objects Using Save As

You may want to use an existing design as a basis for a new design. The original
design may reside in a folder in the commonspace on the Windchill server, or it
may be located in one of your workspaces.

Using Save As from the Commonspace

You can search the commonspace on the Windchill server to locate the desired
object (a CAD document or a Windchill part), and then use Save As to create a
copy of that object on the Windchill server.
Consider this information about copying objects from the commonspace:
• When you copy a top-level object and all of its lower-level parents, a new
complete parallel structure (CAD structure or part structure, depending on the
object that you selected) is created for that object.
• If you did not select the top-level object and all of its lower-level parent
objects, the system creates copies of only the objects that you explicitly
selected.

76 PTC Windchill® Workgroup Manager for CATIA® V5 Administrator's and User's Guide
To create a copy:
1. Search or browse Windchill folders to locate the desired object or structure in
Windchill.
2. Open the information page of the object.
3. Select Save As from the actions list.

Note
During the Save As operation, you can assign new names to the copied object
using the Set New Name on the Save As page.

Using Save As from the Workspace

The workspace Save As action allows you to create copies of new objects that are
located in the workspace. These newly created objects are not saved to the
commonspace until you perform a checkin. The workspace Save As can be useful
to you if you want to investigate “what if” design scenarios before selecting the
one that you want to check in into the commonspace. That way you do not clutter
the database with alternative design versions, and only check in the version that
you want to develop further. The rejected designs can be easily removed from the
workspace.
The workspace Save As allows you to update a dependency from an existing
parent object to the newly-duplicated object, letting you replace an old component
with a newly-duplicated component without involving the authoring application. In
addition, circular dependencies can be detected and managed.
1. Select an object in the workspace that you want to save as a new object and
click File ▶ Save As .

Note
Locally modified or incomplete objects, or objects that have never been
uploaded, are not eligible for Save As.
2. Use the Configuration menu to set rules for the dependency and configuration
of objects to be listed in the Save As table.
3. Select one or more objects and click the appropriate collection toolbar action to
gather, remove, exclude, or include related objects in the Save As table.
4. By default the system appends an underscore to the original name. You specify
a naming using the naming icon .
5. By default, Save As creates new objects. However, you can specify that the
original object is reused by selecting the object and clicking the reuse icon .

Getting Started 77
6. By default, newly-saved-as objects are stored in the same location as the
original. To set a different location, select one or more objects and click the set
location icon .
7. Click Next to update a dependency from a parent object, or click Finish to
complete the Save As operation without updating parent objects.

Renaming Objects
You can use Rename from the workspace to rename only objects that have never
been checked in. After the objects have been checked into the commonspace, you
can no longer rename them from the workspace. Instead, you can rename them
from the commonspace.
1. From the workspace, select one or more new objects to rename and select File
▶ Rename .

or
From the commonspace or a commonspace view of the information page of an
object, select Rename from the Actions menu.
2. Set new values in the New Name and New File Name fields. You can either
enter values directly into the text fields available in the row for each object, or
you can select object rows and click the set new name icon to access the Set
New Name window where you can specify patterns for renaming objects.
Note
Setting a new filename is not supported for dynamic documents.
3. Selecting one or more objects and clicking the reuse icon keeps its current
name within the newly-named object structure.
4. Click OK .

Making It Work For You

The next sections provide tips for how to set up your working environment.

Using the Event Management Utility

You can use the Event Management utility to review log messages generated in
your authoring application or in a Windchill session.
The Event Management utility can be accessed in the following ways:

78 PTC Windchill® Workgroup Manager for CATIA® V5 Administrator's and User's Guide
• By selecting the Event Management link under Quick Links at the top of a
Windchill page
• From a workspace, by selecting Event Management from the workspace
actions menu
• From Windchill Workgroup Manager, by clicking the console status icon in the
status bar
• By selecting Tools ▶ Event Management in the Windchill Workgroup Manager
In a standalone browser, the Event Management utility starts automatically
whenever a transaction fails. When using the embedded browser in the Windchill
Workgroup Manager, a console status icon appears in the status bar.

Clearing Cache
To clear cache from a specific workspace:
1. Click Tools ▶ Server Management . The Server Management window opens.
2. Click the Cache tab in the Server Management window.

Getting Started 79
3. Click Cache Tools .

4. In the Cache Management window, double-click a server in the Location list.

The Location list expands to show all workspaces on the selected server.
5. Select a workspace and click Clear Cache . The cache for the selected
workspace is deleted.

Setting Preferences
Windchill Workgroup Manager allows you to set preferences that control certain
aspects of the system behavior (for example, the behavior of Revise or Undo
Checkout ) and customize some features of the user interfaces.
Depending on the nature of the preference, it can be set on the server or on the
client. Server-side preferences are set using the Preference Management utility.
Client-side preferences can be set in two ways:
• wgmclient.ini file located in the Windchill Workgroup Manager home
directory.
• Windchill Preference Management utility

80 PTC Windchill® Workgroup Manager for CATIA® V5 Administrator's and User's Guide
For more information, see Preferences on page 305.

Clearing a Workspace
After you have checked in a modified object into Windchill, you can clear the
workspace to remove objects and their dependents.
1. Go to the workspace page in the embedded browser or in standalone Windchill.
2. Select an object that you want to remove from the workspace.
3. Click File ▶ Remove or click the remove icon in the toolbar. The Remove
from Workspace page appears, displaying your initially selected objects.
4. You can collect, remove, include, or exclude objects for the Remove action.
5. Click OK at the bottom of the Remove from Workspace page. The selected
objects are removed from your workspace.
Caution
If you remove a checked-out object from your workspace, the checkout is undone,
and any modifications made to the object are lost. In addition, the removed objects
are erased from your CAD session.

Getting Started 81
 6
PDM Actions

CATIA V5 Toolbar ......................................................................................................85

Open ........................................................................................................................87
Open from Windchill ..................................................................................................88
Insert Component from Windchill ................................................................................91
Replace Component from Windchill ............................................................................91
Save.........................................................................................................................91
Save As....................................................................................................................92
Save to Workspace....................................................................................................93
Revise and Check Out ...............................................................................................94
Open in CATIA V5......................................................................................................94
Check In ...................................................................................................................95
Check Out.................................................................................................................99
Undo Checkout ....................................................................................................... 101
Update ................................................................................................................... 102
Synchronize ............................................................................................................ 103
Revision ................................................................................................................. 105
Lock and Unlock...................................................................................................... 106
Rename.................................................................................................................. 108
Import to Workspace................................................................................................ 108
Upload.................................................................................................................... 111
Export List to File..................................................................................................... 113
Managing Incomplete Dependent Objects ................................................................. 113
Conflict Management ............................................................................................... 116

PDM (Product Data Management) actions are used to manage your CATIA V5 data
in Windchill and are available from CATIA V5 and theWindchill Workgroup Man-
ager embedded browser.

83
When the CAD application is connected to Windchill Workgroup Manager, some
PDM actions become active in CATIA V5(for example, Check In and Check Out ).
The following lists the PDM actions, and the area from which they are available:
• Available only from CATIA V5:
○ Open —Remains the same even when connected to the Windchill Work-
group Manager.
○ Open from Windchill
○ Save —Use of this function is not recommended when connected to Wind-
chill Workgroup Manager.
○ Save As —Use of this function is not recommended when connected to
Windchill Workgroup Manager.
○ Insert Component from Windchill
○ Replace Component from Windchill
○ Save to Workspace
○ Revise and Check Out
• Available from both CATIA V5 and the Windchill Workgroup Manager
embedded browser:
○ Open in CATIA V5
○ Check In
○ Check Out
○ Undo Checkout
○ Update
• Available only from the Windchill Workgroup Manager embedded browser:
○ Synchronize
○ Revision
○ Lock , Unlock
○ Rename
○ Upload
○ Export List To File

Note
Most PDM actions are also available by right-clicking (RMB). However, RMB
actions are only applicable to CATProducts or CATParts.

84 PTC Windchill® Workgroup Manager for CATIA® V5 Administrator's and User's Guide
CATIA V5 Toolbar
The CATIA V5 toolbar provides easy access to Windchill PDM actions.

Note
PTC_TOOLBAR_ENABLED is the environment variable that creates the CATIA
V5 toolbar when CATIA V5 is registered, and by default it is set to true.
The toolbar contains the following icons.
Icon CATIA Windchill Action
Opens the Client Workgroup Manager
Opens a document from the workspace or the
commonspace
Inserts a component into CATIA V5 from
Windchill
Replaces a component in CATIA V5 from
Windchill
Saves and uploads the document to a
workspace

PDM Actions 85
Icon CATIA Windchill Action
Generates and checks in a CATIA V5 All-In-
One CATPart
Checks in the document interactively (custom
checkin)

Checks in the active document using the

default values for the action (automatic
checkin)
Checks out the active document
Revises and checks out the active document
Undoes a checkout for the active model
Updates the active document with information
from Windchill
Updates all currently active documents with
information from Windchill
Opens the Server Management utility

Opens the Event Management utility to view

PDM transaction status for the primary server
Opens the Workgroup Manager help

Switch to include components (Design In

Context only)
Switch to exclude components (Design In
Context only)
Switch the currently selected assemblies to
Structure Mode (Heterogeneous Design In
Context and Super CGRs only)

86 PTC Windchill® Workgroup Manager for CATIA® V5 Administrator's and User's Guide
Disabling the CATIA V5 Toolbar
To disable the toolbar:
1. Unregister CATIA V5 as an application and close both CATIA V5 and the
Windchill Workgroup Manager for CATIA V5.
2. Set the PTC_TOOLBAR_ENABLED environment variable to f:

3. Launch the Windchill Workgroup Manager and register CATIA V5 as an

authoring application.
4. Launch the CATIA V5 application.

Open
This section describes the Open action available from CATIA V5.
The Open action opens a CAD document in CATIA V5. When you activate this
action, Open attempts to find the CAD document in the local directory and allows
you to open objects from there.
The following graphic illustrates the workflow for Open .

When there is no primary server or primary activated workspace, Open attempts to

find the CAD document in the last browsed location that it was accessed. You can
browse to locate the CAD document you want to open.
Open is available on the File menu in CATIA V5.

PDM Actions 87
Information that is modified in Windchill is updated when it is opened from a
workspace. When you change a parameter in a CAD model (for example, the
name) the Windchill attribute also changes and becomes the default for CATIA V5.

Open from Windchill

To open a CAD document that is stored in Windchill, select CATIA ▶ Windchill ▶
Open from Windchill to access the workspace on the registered Windchill server.
This action first opens the workspace on the registered server, as shown in the
following graphic:

When you select Open from Windchill , the Windchill window and the Open from
Windchill window open. From here, you can browse for the file you want to open
in CATIA V5.

88 PTC Windchill® Workgroup Manager for CATIA® V5 Administrator's and User's Guide
Select the file, or type the name of the file you want to open in the Filename: text
box. If the file has a viewable representation (thumbnail) generated on the system,
you can preview it by selecting Preview in the lower right portion of the window.
You can filter the display by selecting either all the files or only CATIA V5 files
using the Type menu. Use the Search utility to find CAD documents by partial
name or wildcard (*).

Note
If you attempt to use the Open from Windchill action while a part is Out of Sync,
you will be prompted with an error message that the Windchill Workgroup Manag-
er is unable to open the CAD document.
To customize the view for the Open from Windchill window, you can select options
from the following menus.
• Views
To configure a view, select from the List , Thumbnails , All , or CAD Documents
only views under the Views menu, as shown in the following graphic.

PDM Actions 89
• Organize
Under the Organize menu, you can rename or remove objects to your
Favorites.

The Organize ▶ Delete option removes an object from the workspace, and
works only when the Windchill server goes offline. To delete an object from
the workspace local directory, exit CATIA V5 and clear the cache using Tools ▶
Server Management ▶ Cache ▶ Clear Cache . For more information on cache
management, refer to Managing Cache on page 137.
• Tools
Under the Tools menu, you can determine whether or not you want to show the
instance next to all objects, and define the sort order (model name, or markup
or instance name).

90 PTC Windchill® Workgroup Manager for CATIA® V5 Administrator's and User's Guide
Insert Component from Windchill
Insert Component from Windchill is the equivalent of a native CATIA V5 insertion
of a part, subassembly, or CGR to a CATIA V5 product from the Windchill
workspace or commonspace. This function prevents you from having to open and
drag a CAD document into the CATProduct. The menu is sensitive to what is
selected, and the object or objects to be inserted into the CATProduct must be
preselected.

Note
You can insert multiple objects by selecting multiple documents in the Insert
Component from Windchill window.
You can also insert a component or components by clicking the icon on the
CATIA V5 toolbar or in the Windchill menu.

Replace Component from Windchill

This section describes the CATIA ▶ Windchill ▶ Replace Component from Windchill
action, which is available from CATIA V5. Replace Component from Windchill is
the equivalent of a CATIA V5 replacement of a part, subassembly, or CGR to a
CATIA V5 product from the Windchill workspace or commonspace. The menu is
sensitive to what is selected, so you must preselect the object to be replaced.
You can also replace a component by clicking the icon on the CATIA V5
toolbar.

Note
You cannot replace a top node.

Save
This section describes the Save action, which you can access by following CATIA
V5 ▶ File ▶ Save .

PDM Actions 91
The native Save action behavior does not differ from its typical behavior when it is
not connected to the Windchill Workgroup Manager. Save saves the CAD models,
and any of their dependents currently in session, to the location which they were
last saved. Windchill Workgroup Manager does not alter any native CATIA V5
save functions, so if you use these functions no CAD data is passed to the Wind-
chill Workgroup Manager.
If you save an object using the native CATIA V5 save function, the model will go
“Out of Sync” in the workspace, meaning that the file on disk no longer matches
the file located in Windchill. In order to bring the part back in sync with the
workspace, you need to perform a Save to Workspace action. Another method of
bringing the object back in sync is to perform a synchronization from the
workspace; however, all changes that were saved will be lost.

Save As
This section describes the Save As action, which you can access through CATIA ▶
File ▶ Save As .

92 PTC Windchill® Workgroup Manager for CATIA® V5 Administrator's and User's Guide
Using Save As in CATIA V5 allows you to give an object a new name. This option
does not differ from native CATIA V5 behavior, and saves the file with a new
name to any specified location on disk. The command does not communicate with
the Windchill Workgroup Manager, and it is recommended that after using this
function you should also perform a Save to Workspace action through the CATIA ▶
Windchill menu.

Save to Workspace
This section describes the CATIA ▶ Windchill ▶ Save to Workspace action available
from CATIA V5. Unlike CATIA ▶ File ▶ Save (where the saved object is not
uploaded and can cause the workspace to become out of sync), Save to Workspace
automatically uploads the saved object to the server.
Save to Workspace locates the workspace where an object was last saved; however
you can browse to other servers and select a secondary workspace. For example,
use Windchill ▶ Utilities ▶ Preference Management ▶ Save to Workspace to save
CAD data to a secondary workspace. This action saves all dependents, whereas
Save As does not.
The following graphic illustrates information flow for Save to Workspace .

You can set a preference in the wgmclient.ini file that determines whether a
viewable is generated using defaults, or whether you set options each time you
initiate Save to Workspace .
By default, files are uploaded to the Windchill server workspace when you perform
Save to Workspace . The save_to_ws.upload client preference provides the
default user interface setting for the Upload option for Save To Workspace , and is
set to Yes by default.

PDM Actions 93
Tip
If you do not want newly saved content to be uploaded to the Windchill server
workspace when you perform Save to Workspace , set this preference to No .
To generate only viewables, set the save_to_ws.content.options
preference to Viewables.

Revise and Check Out

This section describes the Revise and Check Out action, which is available from
the CATIA ▶ Windchill ▶ Revise and Check Out menu.
Revise and Check Out is applicable to a checked-in CAD document. It performs
the following:
• Revises the CAD document if needed, and checks out the document in a single
option.
• Creates a new revision of the CAD document, and adds it to the workspace (the
local modification is not overwritten).

Open in CATIA V5
This section describes the Windchill ▶ File ▶ Open in CATIA V5 action, which is
available only from Windchill. Open in CATIA V5 allows you to select an object
from a workspace and then open it in its native CATIA V5 application.
This graphic illustrates the information flow for this action.

94 PTC Windchill® Workgroup Manager for CATIA® V5 Administrator's and User's Guide
In Windchill, access this action by first selecting the workspace folder:

Then, select Open from the File menu.

You can also access the Open in CATIA V5 function through the CATIA ▶ Windchill
menu.
An Open in CATIA V5 tooltip appears when you hover your mouse over this icon.
Select it to open the CAD document in CATIA V5.
Note
You must register a server from the Tools ▶ Server Management in Windchill
Workgroup Manager and activate a workspace for Open in CATIA V5 to be
available. .

Check In
This section describes the Check In action, which is available from bothCATIA V5
and Windchill.
Check In is available from the File menu in CATIA V5 and from three separate
areas in Windchill.

PDM Actions 95
To access Check In , use one of the following methods:
• The File menu in CATIA V5.
• The Windchill Workspace File menu.
• The checkin icon on the workspace Object List table toolbar, or on the
workspace Actions column.
When you are finished making changes to an object and are ready to publish the
changes to the shared area on the server, you must check in your objects. The
following graphic illustrates the information flow during checkin.

Note
Check In transfers data from the server-side workspace to the commonspace. If
you check in an object directly from your CAD application, the data is transferred
from CATIA V5 to the server-side workspace, and then to the Windchill server.
Check In accomplishes the following:
• Copies the working copy of your object from your workspace to the shared
area of the server.
• Creates a new iteration of the checked-out object in the shared area.
• ,Releases the lock on the object in the shared area if this object was checked
out by you, so that others can access it.
When you initiate Check In , you can select from three options:
• Check In All-in-One CATPart —
This option generates and checks in an All-In-One CATPart, a CATPart which
is the entire CATProduct that the action was performed on. Note that this does
not check in the active document. Refer to All-In-One CATPart Support on
page 156 for more details.
• Auto Check In —

96 PTC Windchill® Workgroup Manager for CATIA® V5 Administrator's and User's Guide
 When you select Auto Check In , your object is directly copied to the
commonspace. The check-in process follows the defaults that you or your
administrator have set up as the changes in modified objects are checked in.

• Custom Check In —
When you select Custom Check In , you check objects with changed settings in
using the Windchill Workgroup Manager embedded browser. Selecting Custom
shows you two pages where you can specify the following options to apply to
the object you are checking in:
1. Collect Objects

The Collect Objects page allows you to select the objects you want to check
in. Select the checkboxes next to the objects you don't want to be visible to
others on the Windchill server. Go to the Edit menu and select Set for
Check In to deselect the selected objects for checkin. Select Next .
On the File menu,

select Check Out Now . The object can be checked out using the Check in
option.

PDM Actions 97
 On the Edit menu

you can select Set Location , Keep Checked Out , or Set for Check In .
2. Check In Options

The Check In Options page allows you to specify certain options for the
objects you are checking in. Select the checkbox next to the options you
want to set. You can select from the following:
○ Create a baseline.
○ Auto associate parts to CAD documents.
○ Undo checkout of unmodified objects.
○ Remove objects from the workspace.
○ Auto-resolve incomplete object.
○ Update with objects on the server, then ignore.

98 PTC Windchill® Workgroup Manager for CATIA® V5 Administrator's and User's Guide
 ○ Always ignore.

Note
For information about Customizing Auto Associate, Enabling Support for Custom
Parts, Customizing the Parameters in the Download Service, or Customizing the
HTML Client Object Selection Page, see the “Customizations for PDM” chapter of
the Windchill Customization Guide, or search for “Customizations for PDM" in
the Windchill Help Center.
Check In is not an available action if no primary server and primary workspace are
set. You must register a server from Tools ▶ Server Management in Windchill
Workgroup Manager, and activate a workspace.
As a best practice, copying the catalog and its dependents to the workspace local
directory before performing a checkin will reduce the time it takes to complete a
checkin.

Check Out
This section describes the Check Out action available from CATIA V5. Check Out
is also available from Windchill. Checked-out objects in Windchill have a specific
status icon in the workspace and appear in the CATIA V5 specification tree with
a checkbox in the upper right corner (example: ).

Additional CATIA V5 icons indicate objects checked out by others (such as ,

which corresponds to the icon in Windchill).
Access the Check Out action using one of the following three ways:
• Right-click the product node on the CATIA V5 specification tree, and select
Windchill ▶ Check Out
• Use the Windchill Workspace File menu.
• Select the checkout icon on the workspace Object List toolbar, or in the
Actions column.
In order to modify an object, you must first check it out. Selecting Check Out
accomplishes the following:

PDM Actions 99
• Creates a copy on the server of the object in the commonspace and marks it as
checked-out. This tells other users that the object is being modified, and they
cannot modify it.
• Creates a working copy of the object in your workspace that holds all your
changes until you check the object back in.
• Reserves the object in the commonspace, preventing other users from checking
in any changes to it until you release it. You release it by checking it back in or
undoing the checkout. For more information on Undo Checkout , refer to Undo
Checkout on page 101.
You can also check out a family table or a catalog. Selecting Check Out
accomplishes the following:
• When you check out a family table, all instances (generic part, Design Table,
instance part) are checked out into the workspace.
• When you check out a catalog from Windchill, you can specify which
dependencies need to be checked out in the window that opens.
• When you check out a catalog from CATIA V5, if the
independendlymodifiedinstancesproperty is set to false in the
wgmclient.ini file, all instances are checked out together with the generic. (If
set to true, only the generic is checked out.) Note that catalogs are large sets of
data, and administrators should not remove a catalog and its shared members
from a shared workspace.
Note
Windchill allows you to check out non-latest iterations of CAD documents, and
also allows you to check in those CAD documents as the latest iteration. This
permits you to revert to an earlier version of a design.
For more information on checking out non-latest iterations, see the Windchill
server help topic, “Checking Out Non-latest Objects,” which is linked to the help
topic, “Checking Out Objects from Windchill”, (available from the Windchill
Check Out page). You can also access this topic from the Help Center. For more
information on accessing online help, refer to About This Guide on page 5.
This graphic illustrates the checkout workflow for an object that is open in session.

100 PTC Windchill® Workgroup Manager for CATIA® V5 Administrator's and User's Guide
The next graphic illustrates the check-out workflow for an object that is open on
request from Windchill Workgroup Manager.

When Check Out is performed from CATIA V5, the top-level object is checked out
and a status message appears in Windchill Workgroup Manager. When Check Out
is performed from the workspace in Windchill, a status message appears in
Windchill.
Note
During a check-out operation that uses the option of adding the object content to
the workspace, data is transferred from the Windchill database to the server-side
workspace. Optionally, if you open the object from the workspace, the data is
transferred from the workspace to CATIA V5.

Undo Checkout
This section describes the Undo Checkout action, which can be accessed in the
following ways:
• The File menu in CATIA V5.
• The Windchill workspace File menu.
• The icon on the Windchill workspace and on the Object List table toolbar.

PDM Actions 101

Undo Checkout performs the following:
• Reverses the checkout, and allows you to return to the version that you
originally checked in.
• Acts on the object open in the active model and reverses any changes that were
made to this object after it was checked out.
The preference Undo Checkout Overwrite Local Content specifies whether the
model content is overwritten in cache by default when using the Undo Checkout
action. The preference default is set to false , meaning that model content is not
overwritten in cache by default.

Update
This section describes the Update action, which is available from both CATIA V5
and Windchill .
To access Update , use one of the following options:
• The Windchill menu in CATIA V5.
Use to update the active model, and to update all the models in the
workspace.
• The workspace File menu in Windchill.
• The update icon on the Windchill workspace object list table toolbar.
Use Update when you have defined a more specific configuration specification for
your workspace, in order to conform the versions of objects in session in your
primary workspace to your new workspace configuration specification.
For example, if the workspace configuration specification is LATEST, and you
have version A.2 of an object added to a workspace, but a different user has
checked out this object and checked in version A.3, Update identifies your object
as out-of-date and gives you the option of bringing the A.3 (latest) version into the
workspace. Update always functions in one direction, replacing what is in session
in the workspace with a version from the server. The following graphic illustrates
the information flow for Update .

102 PTC Windchill® Workgroup Manager for CATIA® V5 Administrator's and User's Guide
Note
If the Out-Of-Date and Out-Of-Date With Workspace Configuration columns are
visible in the workspace, Windchill checks the workspace contents for objects that
are out-of-date with respect to the workspace configuration specification each time
the workspace is refreshed. You will see a notification when an object goes out-of-
date. These columns are not opened by default, since performing this check on
each refresh slows down the workspace refresh.

Synchronize
This section describes the Synchronize action, which is only available from the
Tools menu in the Windchill Workgroup Manager menu. It is not accessible from
CATIA V5.

Synchronize ensures that the contents of the cache are in sync with the contents of
the server-side workspace. The cache can become out of sync when you are
working on workstation "A" for a day, and then upload all data in the workspace to
work on workstation "B" the following day. If you activate that same workspace on
Workstation "A" at a later time, the cache is out-of-date. This data needs to be
synchronized so that the object contains updated data.

PDM Actions 103

Data can also become out of sync when the connection to the server is lost, and
you keep working on cached workspace data. The data in cache is more up-to-date
than what is in the server-side workspace. If you rename an object in CATIA V5,
the workspace can become out of sync as well.
The following graphic illustrates the data flow for Synchronize with a server
offline.

By default, updating, undoing a checkout, and synchronization do not require

global attributes to be propagated into a CATIA V5 session. However, if you make
edits, then the global attributes have to be updated. Customer-defined attributes
have two-way propagation to properties in CATIA V5, whereas non-file-based
global attribute values exist only in Windchill.

104 PTC Windchill® Workgroup Manager for CATIA® V5 Administrator's and User's Guide
Once updated, the window for content change opens to support auto-propagation
in CATIA V5.

Selecting Update executes the content and attribute changes.

Revision
This section describes the Revision action, which is only available from the File ▶
New menu on the workspace menu in Windchill. It is not accessible from CATIA
V5.
To revise an object, assign it the next revision level available in a revision scheme.
The revision scheme represents a sequence of characters that identify subsequent
versions of an object. Creating a new revision of an object results in the object, and
all objects you choose to associate with it, advancing to the set revision level.
When you revise an object, the latest version of that object is used as the content
for the new revision.
For more information about how to use Revision , see the Windchill server online
help.

PDM Actions 105

Lock and Unlock
This section describes the Lock and Unlock actions, which are only available from
the Windchill workspace menu. They are not accessible from CATIA V5. In CAT-
IA V5, the icon appears for locked objects.
A locked object is reserved for the user who is making or plans to make changes to
the object. You can manually lock structure objects before making a change to an
object and unlock them when you have completed making changes. Automatically-
created locks are automatically released by the system when the changes you make
are saved and uploaded to the server. A object you have locked cannot be
unlocked, locked or changed by another user until you manually unlock it or until
it is automatically unlocked by the system when you complete your changes.
To lock an object in the workspace:
1. Select the object in the workspace.

2. Select Windchill ▶ File ▶ Lock .

106 PTC Windchill® Workgroup Manager for CATIA® V5 Administrator's and User's Guide
 The locked icon appears next to the locked object.

PDM Actions 107

To unlock an object, select it and then Windchill ▶ File ▶ Unlock . The icon no
longer appears next the object.

Rename
This section describes the Rename action, available in the File menu in Windchill.
It is not accessible from CATIA V5.
If you have Modify Identity access permission, you can use Rename to change a
name of an object by changing the values of the Number, Name, and Model Name
attributes. You can also rename objects that are in another user’s workspace; the
system notifies the other user that they need to synchronize their workspace with
updated information on the server.

Note
Only objects that have never been checked in can be renamed from the workspace.
Once objects have been checked in to the commonspace, they can no longer be
renamed from the workspace and Rename must be accessed from the
commonspace.
If you open a renamed file with open links, automatic updates ensure that those
links will be dynamically repaired to the new file.
For more information on how to use Rename , see the Windchill server online help.
For more information on setting attributes for Rename , see Configuring Naming
and Numbering on page 247.

Import to Workspace
Import of CAD documents and attached files is supported only via the Windchill
Workgroup Manager embedded browser, where the workspace has access to cache
(offline workspace is not supported).
The Import to Workspace wizard has two steps:
1. Select Files to Import
2. Specify Options
You can navigate to a subsequent step by clicking Next . Navigate to a preceding
step by clicking Back or clicking the numeral corresponding to a previously
completed step.

Select Files to Import

To select objects to import to a workspace, use the following procedure:
1. Select Tools ▶ Import to Workspace .

108 PTC Windchill® Workgroup Manager for CATIA® V5 Administrator's and User's Guide
 The Import to Workspace window opens at the first step, Select files to import .
2. The Target Workspace field indicates the active workspace from which you
invoked the import and into which the imported objects will be placed.
3. In the Add Dependencies field, set a rule for dependent objects to be collected
with any selected objects, either All (default), Required, or None.
4. Click the add object icon to navigate to objects you would like to import
from your local file system. When you have navigated to the object, click Open
to add it to the Files table. The Files table lists the files you have collected for
import and is described in the following table:
Column Description
(Select all rows) Use check boxes to select rows to
which to apply toolbar actions. The
top check box selects/deselects all
rows.
(Object Type Indicator) Displays object type icon
File Name Displays object file name
Size Displays the file size of the object
Last Modified Displays date and time of last modifi-
cation of the file
File Path Displays the directory path to the file
to be imported
5. Optionally, select an object and click the remove object icon to remove the
object from the table.
6. Click Next to go to the second step, Specify Options ; or click Finish to initiate
the import without specifying options.

Specify Options
The options available in the second step of import can help resolve conflicts with
objects in the target workspace or commonspace. Use the following procedure to
specify import options:
1. On the Specify Options page, the objects you selected in the first step are listed
in the Object List table, which is outlined in the following table:
Column Description
(Select all rows) Use check boxes to select rows to
which to apply toolbar actions. The
top check box selects/deselects all
rows.
(Workspace content status) (Active workspace only) Displays

PDM Actions 109

 Column Description
object local workspace status icon (if
applicable)
(Action status) Indicates if object is set for check out
(General status) Displays object general status icon (if
applicable)
(Status Messages) Displays status message icon and text
message in tooltip (if applicable)
(Object Type Indicator) Displays object type icon
File Name Displays object file name
Size Displays the file size of the object
Last Modified Displays date and time of last modifi-
cation of object
Location Displays the storage location for the
object
File Path Displays the directory path to the file
to be imported
2. In the View menu, you can select from the following alternative views of the
Object List table:

• All except Family Instances

• All
• All with conflicts
3. You can further modify the collected set of objects by selecting objects and
using toolbar controls as explained in the following table:
Control Icon Action
Invoke the Set Location window to se-
lect a database location for the se-
lected object
Add the imported object as a new
object
Add the imported object as a modified
object
Reuse an existing workspace or com-
monspace object of the same name,
rather than importing the selected
object.
Check out the selected object upon
import

110 PTC Windchill® Workgroup Manager for CATIA® V5 Administrator's and User's Guide
 Control Icon Action
Revise the selected object upon
import
Excludes selected object from the im-
port. Clicking again (while the same
object is selected) re-includes the
object.
4. Clicking the reset icon resets the Object List to its initial state.
5. You can click Back at any time to return to the Select files to import step.
6. Click Finish to commit the import of the collected objects. The imported
objects are populated in the target workspace.

Upload
This section describes the Upload action, which is available from the Tools menu in
the Windchill Workgroup Manager embedded browser, as shown in the following
graphic.

It is not accessible from CATIA V5.

PDM Actions 111

Upload stores working copies of the files you are editing in CATIA V5 to your
personal folder location on the Windchill server, without making your changes
visible to other users. Upload is only valid for new or modified files that you check
out to this workspace.
You can control the revision of a new document when you upload it by setting
certain preferences. The preference InitialRevisionParameter identifies
the file property name that shows the initial revision value to be used when
uploading a file to Windchill. This revision value is set on the first upload and is
controlled by Windchill. When the preference Revision System Attribute
is set, it identifies the name of the property in the CAD tool that shows the CAD
document’s revision.
For more information on using Upload , see the Windchill server online help.

Upload and Check In Documents Outside of

Windchill
Note
Set save_to_ws.upload=no in the wgmclient.ini file. This setting will stop
the upload when you select the Save To Workspace menu item from the Windchill
menu. As a result, this prevents “Upload failed” warning messages from appearing
when you upload data that already exists.
Typically, you accomplish this task by using the Import to Workspace on page 108
procedure. However, you can use the procedure below when you want to upload
and check in files directly from CATIA V5.
1. Open the CAD document from the disk.
2. From CATIA V5, select Windchill ▶ Save to Workspace .
A message appears stating that the document being saved to the workspace is
not checked out.
3. Navigate to the workspace using the client and select the document that needs
to be iterated with the version on the Windchill server.
4. Select Upload ( ).
From this point on all documents will as appear new in the workspace.
5. Ensure that all documents that need to be iterated with an updated version are
highlighted to reuse the content in the local workspace. Select OK .
6. Select the documents that need to be iterated with the new version and check
them out.
From this point on all documents will be marked with the symbol
(Modifications not eligible for upload) and (Modified Locally).
7. Select the document that needs to be iterated with the new version and upload
the modifications.

112 PTC Windchill® Workgroup Manager for CATIA® V5 Administrator's and User's Guide
 The document being updated is now marked with the symbols (Modification
not eligible for upload), (Modified Locally), and (Checked Out).
8. Select the documents to be iterated with the new version and check them in.
The document is now updated with the version provided.

Export List to File

This section describes the Export List To File action, which is only available from
the Windchill workspace menu. It is not accessible from CATIA V5.
Windchill ▶ File ▶ Export List to File copies objects from your workspace and
exports them to a local directory. You can format the list of objects in a .CSV, .
HTML, or .TXT file.

Managing Incomplete Dependent Objects

An incomplete dependent is a CAD Document based on incomplete information
known about a missing CATIA V5 file. For example, if you import or save an
assembly file to the workspace, the saved file may have name references to a file
that cannot be saved to the workspace (likely because the document is missing).
Therefore, a complete set of required information to complete the object does not
exist. CAD Documents with required incomplete dependent objects cannot be
uploaded or checked in. In order to check in these CAD Documents, these
incomplete dependent objects must be resolved.
If your administrator has configured your site’s preferences to show missing and
incomplete dependent objects, these objects will appear in Windchill when you
save a CATIA V5 file that references an incomplete dependent object to the
workspace. The object is listed with this icon to represent its object type.
Incomplete dependents are also listed appropriately in information page listings
such as Where Used reports.
To ignore missing and incomplete dependent objects, set the Ignore.missing.
dependents preference in the Wgmclient.ini file to Yes. Ignore Missing
Dependents can also be set through the Preference Management table in Windchill
at the site and organization level.

Note
In previous releases of Windchill Workgroup Manager for CATIA V5, incomplete
dependent objects were ignored in Windchill.
Typically, the known information includes:
• The model name
• The CAD document type (inferred by the model name extension)

PDM Actions 113

Missing information about the object that is typically defined by CATIA V5
includes:
• CAD document subtype
• Children or dependents of the object
• File-based attributes
• Whether the incomplete object is a member of a family table
Because good PDM practice does not allow incomplete data sets to be checked
into the database, Windchill Workgroup Manager for CATIA V5 provides several
strategies to help you identify and resolve incomplete objects, which include:
• Making users aware of incomplete objects in the workspace.
• Providing tools for users to resolve incomplete objects by either removing the
CATIA V5 reference or converting them to fully defined CAD documents.
• Providing tools for Administrators to prohibit or manage the creation of
incomplete objects.

Resolving Incomplete Dependents

Windchill Workgroup Manager for CATIA V5 allows you to resolve incomplete
objects in two ways:
• Resolve an incomplete dependent from its information page.
• Use the auto-resolve functionality available from the Upload or Checkin page.

Resolving Incomplete Dependents from the Information

Page
You can resolve incomplete dependents using the Replace command or using the
Add Placeholder command.

Using the Replace Command

The Replace command allows you to resolve an incomplete dependency by
replacing a missing object with an object from theWindchill database. The
command is only available from the information page of an incomplete object.
Note
While the replace command allows you to select a document to replace the
incomplete object, it does not guarantee that the object it is replaced with is the
correct dependent. If it is replaced with an incorrect dependent,CATIA V5 may still
refuse the link.
To replace an incomplete object, perform the following steps:

114 PTC Windchill® Workgroup Manager for CATIA® V5 Administrator's and User's Guide
1. From the information page of an incomplete object, select Replace from the
actions menu. The Replace page appears.
2. Enter the document’s filename in either field, depending on if the file is stored
in the active workspace or the common space.
Clicking Cancel returns you to the information page without replacing the
incomplete object.
3. Click Ok to replace the incomplete object with the selected document. All the
parents of the incomplete object in the workspace are updated to reflect the
selected object and the incomplete object is deleted.
If the parents are inCATIA V5 session, reopen the CAD parent assembly
inCATIA V5 to see the changes. To persist the changes after replacing the
incomplete object, upload the documents.

Resolving Incomplete Dependents from the Check-In

Check-In or
Upload User Interface
When objects are selected for checkin or upload, the Auto resolve incomplete
objects checkbox is also available. This is also true when objects that are added to
the list based on dependencies include incomplete dependent objects.
Note
Many dependents are required, and therefore cannot be ignored. Site administrative
policies might not allow the ignore option, or might only allow certain object types
to be ignored.
When you select the auto-resolve functionality, it offers two options:
• Update with object on server, then ignore —The system searches on the server
for an object with the same filename. If one is found, the incomplete object is
updated by the found file. The object is no longer incomplete, and is therefore
available for upload.
If no object is found to update the incomplete object, the system ignores the
incomplete dependent (which is removed from the upload list).
• Always ignore —The system will simply remove any incomplete objects from
the upload list.

PDM Actions 115

Conflict Management
The term conflict management refers to addressing or resolving the restrictions that
your PDM system can place on your retrieval, modification, and storage activities
in order to maintain the integrity of the database. Typically, with Windchill Work-
group Manager, you encounter two types of conflicts, as follows.
• Conflict upon an attempt to modify an object.
• Conflict upon attempting to perform a PDM transaction (referred to as an
event) such as check in and check out.

Conflict upon Attempt to Modify

If you attempt to modify a workspace object that is not checked-out (and also not
locked), then upon attempting a checkin, the system presents the Conflicts window,
informing you that the object is read-only because it is not checked out. You can
choose to resolve the conflict, using one of the following options:
• Check out now – Perform an immediate check out on the object, enabling you
to modify the object and later check in the modifications.
• Revise and Check Out — Replace current file with first iteration of a new
revision, checked-out to the workspace.
• Continue – Continue with modifications without checking out. (modifications
will not be eligible for checking in, and may be lost.)
If your attempt at modification involves several checked-in objects, you can
specify different resolutions of the conflict for each object, or you can use the Set
All menu to apply the same resolution to all.
The following graphic displays the Set All button on the Conflicts window:

116 PTC Windchill® Workgroup Manager for CATIA® V5 Administrator's and User's Guide
Conflict Involving a PDM Event
PDM events may cause conflicts with the database that need to be resolved. Event
management provides a way for you to check and act on log messages generated in
your authoring application or Windchill sessions. It can be accessed in the
following ways.
• Select the Event Management link in the banner at the top of a Windchill page.
• In Windchill, select Home ▶ Utilities ▶ Event Management .
• In the authoring application, select Tools ▶ Event Management .
Note
From the authoring application, only information about transactions with the
primary server is available. In the authoring application's message area, a
graphical status indicator provides status information.
• From a workspace, select Event Management from the workspace actions list.
• From Windchill Workgroup Manager, select the console status icon in the
status bar.
• In Windchill Workgroup Manager, select Tools ▶ Event Management .
In the Event Management utility window you can see the PDM events for the
named server listed chronologically in the Events table. You can access detailed
information about a particular event by clicking in the event's Actions column, and
access the Conflict Management utility window by clicking icons displayed in the
Actions column for viewing or resolving conflicts.
The next graphic displays warnings on the Conflict Management utility window.

PDM Actions 117

Icons used by the Event Management utility are described in the following table.

Event Management Icons

Icon Description
Overridable type conflict
Non-overridable type conflict (Failed)
Warning
In Progress
Pending
Retried
On Hold

The icons for actions that may be available in the Actions columns are described in
the following table.

Actions Column Icons

Icon Description
View event information

View Warnings/Conflicts

Resolve Conflicts

The Event Information utility window is accessed from event management by

clicking the information icon in the Actions column for the event in the Event
List , or by selecting the hyperlink in the event name. The Event Information page
lists the objects that have been processed for a given event. At the top of the page
is a hyperlink that returns you to the Event List . Below the hyperlink is the event
title. Next to the event title are icons for the Delete action and, if warnings or
conflicts occurred, one of the following actions, as applicable to the type of event:
• View Warning – If the event type is a warning
• View Conflicts – If the event type is a non-overridable conflict
• Resolve Conflicts – If the event type is an overridable conflict
The next graphic displays the Event Information page, indicating that the upload
action succeeded with warnings. To view the warnings, select the view conflicts
icon.

118 PTC Windchill® Workgroup Manager for CATIA® V5 Administrator's and User's Guide
The area immediately below the event title lists the event attributes, as follows:
• Event Name – The name of the event
• Workspace – The workspace from which the event originated
• Status – The status of the event, if completed, or a progress bar indicating how
close the event is to completion
• Start Date – The date and time the event began
• End Date – The date and time the event was completed
• Elapsed Time – The total time required to complete the event (if completed)
Below the attributes area is a table listing the Affected Objects in the event.
The Conflict Management utility assists you in viewing and resolving conflicts that
arise from database events. It is accessed from event management or the Event
Information utility window by clicking the view conflicts icon or the resolve
conflicts icon .
The next graphic displays the Conflict Management utility.

Objects that experienced one or more conflicts during an event are listed in the
Conflicts table, which by default has the columns described in the following table.

PDM Actions 119

Conflicts Table Columns

Column Description
(Selection) Select check boxes to select or deselect rows. Clicking the
header check box selects/deselects all rows.
(Conflict type) Displays an icon identifying the type of conflict.
Name Displays the name of the affected object, if applicable.
Retry Option Displays the default or currently applied user-selected retry
option for the conflict, if one is available.
Description Displays an explanation of the conflict.

Note
If the explanation exceeds character limits for the column,
an ellipsis (...) followed by a link "view full text below..."
appears at the end of the truncated description. Clicking the
link displays the full text of the description in the
Description field below the Conflicts table
Number Displays the number of the affected object, if applicable.
File Name Displays the file name of the affected object, if applicable.

Note
You can customize your Current View of the Conflicts table; however, setting (row)
filters is not allowed for this table. For more information, see the help available
from the Customize View List page, which appears when you select Customize
from the current view list.
In the toolbar of the Conflicts table is a menu that lists any Retry Options common
to all of the selected conflicts.
To resolve an overridable conflict, perform the following procedure:
1. Select one or more rows containing an overridable conflict.
2. Select an option from the Retry Options list in the table toolbar.
3. Select Set . The Conflicts table refreshes to display the new value in the Retry
Option column for the selected row(s).
4. Select Retry . The action is retried and a new entry is created in the Event List .
The original event's status changes to Retried . Further access to the original
event in conflict management is read-only.

120 PTC Windchill® Workgroup Manager for CATIA® V5 Administrator's and User's Guide
 7
Advanced Techniques

Working with CATIA V5 Document Links.................................................................... 123

Working with Large Assemblies ................................................................................ 124
Working with Design Tables and CATIA V5 Catalogs .................................................. 162
Working With Fixed Member Links ............................................................................ 178
Managing CATIA V5 Environments In Windchill.......................................................... 179
CATProcess Document Support ............................................................................... 187
CATAnalysis Document Support ............................................................................... 190
CATMaterial File Support ......................................................................................... 192
Working With CATIA V4 Data.................................................................................... 202
Working With Templates........................................................................................... 202
Comparing Model Iterations in CATIA V5 ................................................................... 203

This chapter discusses advanced usage of the Windchill Workgroup Manager. It

covers managing:
• Design tables
• Catalogs
• Fixed member links
• CGRs
• Design contexts
• Catia V4 data
• CATAnalysis documents
• CATProcess documents
• CATMaterial files
• All-in-One-CATParts

121
• external references
• drawings
• cache management
• logging

122 PTC Windchill® Workgroup Manager for CATIA® V5 Administrator's and User's Guide
Working with CATIA V5 Document Links
External References
A reference is created when one element of a CAD design makes use of another
element of a design as part of its definition. When all references exist inside a
single CAD model, the references are considered internal. When one model makes
use of design or construction elements of a second model, this reference is
considered to be external.
When an external reference is created and managed by Windchill, it is represented
by a reference link in Windchill.
Windchill is capable of locating all drawings referenced by a drawing model and
automatically relating them to the part of the model. In some cases, you may want
to distinguish manufacturing drawings versus conceptual drawings by using a link
in the database, rather than using the calculated relationship. The preference Create
Content Links for Drawings controls whether the auto associate action creates a link
in the database. The default value is no.

Enhanced Link Support

The Windchill Workgroup Manager for CATIA V5 provides enhanced link support.
This support allows for a broader range of dependency link detection as well as
unknown link types retaining their dependency when a structure is checked in to
Windchill.
Note
Automatic updates of links occur after Save As and Rename actions are performed
in Windchill. See sections Rename on page 108 and Save As on page 92.

CATIA V5 Links in Windchill

Link Required?
Instance Yes
Shape Yes
CCP (Cut Copy Paste) Yes
KWE (Knowledge Expert) Yes
Context No
MML (Multi-Model Link) Yes
Doc Yes
Document Yes
File Component Yes
Feature Component Yes
Sub-Catalog Yes

Advanced Techniques 123

Link Required?
Validation Yes
Template Yes
Material Yes
Image Yes

Unclassified Link Type Support

If the Windchill Workgroup Manager for CATIA V5 cannot determine a link type
for a particular document during checkin any document referenced by an
unclassified link is prevented from being removed because the CATIA API does
not guarantee that the rename will succeed.

Alternate Shape Representation Support

Any alternate shape representations associated to an object is stored in Windchill
as secondary content.

Working with Large Assemblies

CGR File Management
A CATIA Graphical Representation (CGR) is a lightweight representation that
contains only vertex and triangle surface geometry. It does not contain any design
data or properties. CGRs allow users to view very large assemblies stored in Wind-
chill more quickly without having to copy the entire assembly hierarchy to their
machines. They are useful for lightweight representations, dependents of
assemblies (when companies share structures without proprietary design data), and
alternate representations.
The following configuration needs to be set in CATIA V5 for the Windchill Work-
group Manager to handle CGR management correctly.
Server settings:
• WWGM ▶ Enable CGR Cache Support ▶ CATIA V5 ▶ Yes
• WWGM ▶ Upload CGR Files ▶ CATIA V5 ▶ Yes
CATIA V5 settings:
• The option “Work with the cache system” must be set (found at CATIA ▶ Tools
▶ Options ▶ Infrastructure ▶ Product Structure ▶ Cache Management ▶ Work
with Cache System ).
• The path to the cache location on disk must be set.

124 PTC Windchill® Workgroup Manager for CATIA® V5 Administrator's and User's Guide
• Set the Default Cache Location to the shortest possible length in order to avoid
complications with Windows 255 character path limit.
• The “Do not activate default shapes on open” setting in CATIA should not be
enabled. If enabled, this can lead to the generation of CGRs on disk not
behaving as expected and to downstream problems. The setting can be seen in
the screenshot below:

Advanced Techniques 125

• The location of CATSettings should not be moved from its default location. If
moved, the Windchill Workgroup Manager cannot locate these settings. If you
must move these settings, then keep a copy in the default location (C:
\Documents and Settings\username\Application Data\DassaultSystemes
\CATSettings).
• Restart CATIA V5 after setting up CGRs in Windchill.
Best practices for cache management using CGRs are:
• Avoiding actions that require regeneration of CGR/XML files, either in
Visualization or Design mode.
• Ensuring that CGR management and upload are enabled.
• Increasing the CATIA V5 cache size on the disk (default 500 Mb). Once
exceeded, the cache is cleared out and you must download the CGRs again.

Windchill Workgroup Manager CGR Management

The Windchill Workgroup Manager for CATIA V5 allows you to store and reuse
CGRs generated by CATIA. In order for CGRs to be correctly loaded by CATIA
V5, they must adhere to a strict naming scheme which includes the timestamp of
when the CATIA document was last saved. Each time a CATIA V5 document in
session is saved after updating the file, a new CGR needs to be generated. This
requirement can lead to CGRs being regenerated to ensure that CATIA V5 is
loading the correct CGR file.

126 PTC Windchill® Workgroup Manager for CATIA® V5 Administrator's and User's Guide
In addition to CGR files, XML documents accompany CGR files to prevent
unnecessary loading of objects into the CATIA V5 session. When CAD documents
are loaded into visualization mode the Windchill Workgroup Manager is unable to
read the information about the document without switching it into design mode.
The XML files are generated each time that the document is saved after performing
an update.

When CGRs and XML Files Generated

CGRs and XMLs can be generated on three different types of actions:
Action Description
Open of a CAD During the open of an assembly, a check is performed on each
document CATPart with the XML file to determine if there are any
pending metadata changes for the documents in session. These
metadata changes fall into two categories: system attributes
(examples: revision changes, iteration changes, lifecycle
changes, name/number changes) and file-based Attributes
(metadata changes which are tracked on the CAD document
through an attribute which is mapped to aa global attribute in
Windchill) Depending on which update is necessary the XML
file determines if new CGR files are generated on disk.
Switch a If the only updates necessary for an in session CAD document
CATPart into are for system attributes, then the update is delayed until the
Design Mode part is switched into design mode. This delay prevents loading
the documents into session when only the system attributes
have been changed.
Save to If a CATPart has been modified, then it is saved and a new
Workspace CGR and XML file is generated to reflect the changes made to
the document.
The following are the most common reasons for an update to the CAD document,
which would then cause CGRs to be regenerated:
• The CATPart was last saved with the 8.0 Windchill Workgroup Manager for
CATIA V5.
• System attribute changes, such as Revise , Lifecycle , Check In and Check Out
using only theWindchill Workgroup Manager client interface.
• Changing a global attribute value using theWindchill Workgroup Manager
client interface.
• Checking in a CAD document in without checking it out first. The iteration
value is not changed before the document is saved. When you next open this
document you must change the iteration value again. Because this is a system
attribute, it does not generate a new CGR until the CATPart is put into
visualization mode.

Advanced Techniques 127

Server-side
Server-side Generation of CGR files for CATPart
Documents
Beginning at Windchill 10.1 M010, creation of CGR files during publishing is
supported for all CATPart documents. CATProducts continue to use the existing
mechanism to flag for CGR creation.
The following is a sample configuration which is added to the wvs.
properties file for CATIA V5:
publish.cadconvert.CATIAV5=com.ptc.wvs.server.publish.CadConvertCATIAV5,
cgrall=part,useworkerdownload\=$(wt.home)$(wvs.dir.sep)auth.properties

where:
• publish.cadconvert.CATIAV5=com.ptc.wvs.server.
publish.CadConvertCATIAV5 is the required setting for publishing the
CATIA V5 viewable
• cgrall=part is the operational setting for enabling CGR part generation
• useworkerdownload\=$(wt.home)$(wvs.dir.sep)auth.
properties is the operational setting for enabling file synchronization

Part CGR Files

Windchill Workgroup Manager supports the use of CATIA Graphical
Representations (CGR) files in assemblies. To insert a CGR file contained in Wind-
chill into an assembly, you must add the CGR file to the workspace and then insert
it into the assembly from the Workspace Local Directory (WLD).
When cache management is enabled, CATIA V5 attempts to generate and load a
CGR for all CATParts present in an assembly which is loaded in-session. The
CGRs are stored in a separate cache directory specified by the user. No links to
these cached CGR files are stored in any documents. When the CGR is displayed
in the assembly, the file it represents is in Visualization Mode and none of the data
is actually loaded. If a user opens the individual part in a separate window, or
switches it to design mode in the assembly, then the data is loaded and the CGR
representation is unloaded.

Using Part CGR Files

The following options are applicable to use of CGR files.
• Open within CATIA— CATIA V5 only allows the direct use of CGR files in
the context of an assembly. CGRs themselves cannot be opened individually.
• Save within CATIA— You cannot directly save CGR files. They can only be
created or modified by performing a Save As operation on a CATPart with the
CGR output option selected.

128 PTC Windchill® Workgroup Manager for CATIA® V5 Administrator's and User's Guide
• Add to Workspace — CGR CAD documents can be individually added to a
workspace from the commonspace. CGRs have no external references, so only
the associated WTPart, if present, can be gathered via the Add to Workspace
window.
• Open in CATIA V5 / Open From Windchill — This functionality is disabled
for CGR files. The Open in action is hidden for CGR items in the Windchill
Workgroup Manager, and CGR files do not appear in the Open From Windchill
window.
• Rename — If you rename a CGR file in Windchill, the next time you attempt
to open an assembly containing the CGR, the WGM displays a message stating
that the CGR has been renamed and the new CGR name. You must update the
link via the CATIA Desk.
If an assembly containing the CGR is in session when the rename occurs, you
are prompted to close and re-open the assembly so the link can be updated.
• Save As — If a save as or a rename is performed on assemblies containing
CGR files, the links to the CGR files are updated by the managed session of
CATIA V5.
• Edit Attributes — Since CGR files do not contain metadata, editing a CGR’s
attributes in Windchill only affects the EPM document.
• Auto Associate Parts — This behavior is the same for CGR files as it is for
CATParts. The document created for a CGR file can be associated to an
existing WTPart, or a WTPart may be automatically generated during the
checkin process.

Assemblies Containing Part CGR Files

When an assembly containing references to CGR parts is initially uploaded to the
server, a CAD document is created for the CGR file in Windchill with content
category CAD Part, and the CGR file is uploaded as that model’s primary content.
You can update (check out and check in) a CGR CAD document with new content
with the same name without opening the assembly in CATIA V5 as follows:
Note
This update is best performed from a standalone browser. You cannot update the
CGR file in Windchill with a newer version without downloading the parent
CATProduct and all its dependents. These steps are only necessary to update the
CGR file itself (if you only modify Windchill attributes on the EPM document, it is
only necessary to check the CGR back in).
1. In a standalone browser, add the existing CGR file to the workspace if it is not
there.
2. Check out the CGR file in the content area.

Advanced Techniques 129

3. Check in or upload the CGR file inside or outside the workspace local
directory.

4. Select OK in the Checkin window.

The file name should have a .cgr extension, and have the same name as the one in
the workspace directory. If the file name check is successful, the CGR file is
checked in and iterated. If unsuccessful, a window appears and you must retry.

CGR Part Files in Windchill

Because CGR files contain only geometric display data, they cannot be queried for
external links or metadata. CGR CAD documents are file type CGR with subtype
CGR .
CGR references in assemblies are saved as structure links in Windchill.

130 PTC Windchill® Workgroup Manager for CATIA® V5 Administrator's and User's Guide
Assembly-Level
Assembly-Level CGRs
A CGR file represents an entire CATProduct, which loads a CGR file to be
switched to structure mode. It has no access to metadata or design information. It is
a self contained assembly all at one level, and does not work on multiple levels of
the CATIA specification tree. Assembly level CGRs are used for large data
management to decrease the load on CATIA V5, since they do not need all their
children to be loaded into the workspace. All assembly level CGRs are managed
by Windchill, since they cannot be created in native CATIA V5.
An assembly-level CGR is loaded into a standard CATIA V5 workbench. In a
product specification tree, the CGR is displayed normally but has no children
(switch to structure mode if you want to view the children). You can access a CGR
by right-clicking the product in the specification tree and navigating to CATIA ▶
Representations ▶ Manage Representations .

You are prompted if you want to add children. An additional Windchill menu
option to switch to structure mode becomes available, which can display a part
directly or as an attachment.

Advanced Techniques 131

Once you select Switch to Structure Mode , the assembly-level CGR is replaced by
the corresponding product structure, which is loaded in either visualization or
design mode (depending on whether the 'Working with Cache' setting has been
enabled). You can make CGR modifications on subassemblies and parts that are in
Structure Mode, and modify them in an assembly having subassemblies in either
structure mode or assembly-level CGR mode, as long as assembly constraints are
not being used. These modifications can be saved to the workspace.
In a workspace local directory, assembly-level CGRs reside in the secondary
content folder of their respective assemblies. An assembly with an assembly-level
CGR has its own CGR attached as secondary content on its CAD document
iteration, and the CGR is named after the assembly except for its file extension (for
example, CATPro.CGR instead of CATPro.CATProduct). This is different
from CATIA part CGRs, which are in a user-specified CATCache directory, and
from direct use CGRs, which reside in the root folder of the workspace local
directory. If you open a parent of an assembly-level CGR assembly, no structure
appears below the CGR assembly. If you switch an assembly-level CGR
subassembly from assembly-level CGR mode to structure mode, then the structure
below is visible.

Note
If you add an assembly-level CGR to a primary document on the server side, then
the CGR may become out of date in the workspace local directory. If this occurs,
refresh the workspace.

132 PTC Windchill® Workgroup Manager for CATIA® V5 Administrator's and User's Guide
Creating an Assembly-Level
Assembly-Level CGR
Create an assembly level CGR as follows:
• Set Windchill Workgroup Manager ▶ Client ▶ Assembly-level CGR parameter to
“true” in the Preference Management utility.

Note
The preference name must be set to a global attribute. When a CAD Assembly
file has that global attribute set to true, and a Theorem worker exists, the
Assembly level CGR is generated for that assembly.
• Set in the wgmclient.ini file open.assembly.cgrs to “true.”
Reset the Windchill Workgroup Manager if you edit the wgmclient.ini file.
• An additional Theorem license is necessary for CGR creation. Use the
integrated (not the standalone) Theorem Adapter to set the global attribute for
CGR creation to true. After creating the visualization information, the Theorem
adapter saves the CATProduct and attaches it as secondary content.
• Add the attribute in CATIA to match the global attribute in Windchill.

Convert CATProducts to Assembly-Level

Assembly-Level CGRs
If you set CGR creation to true and configure the Windchill visualization service
for automatic publishing, then when you check in a CATProduct a new publishing
job is registered in the publishing queue. This job publishes the CATProduct and
the secondary assembly-level CGR into the secondary content of the
EPMDocument.
If you do not set the global attribute for CATProduct conversion to true, then a
publishing job only produces a ProductView viewable file.

Advanced Techniques 133

Open a Assembly-Level
Assembly-Level CGR
You can open a CGR in Structure Mode by selecting File ▶ Open in CATIA . You
can also edit the open.assembly.cgrs client setting in the wgm.client.ini file:
if set to yes, then the adapter always attempts to open an assembly in CGR mode if
the adapter finds a CGR.
If you do not set the global attribute for CATProduct conversion to true, then a
publishing job only produces a ProductView viewable file.

Switch Display of Assembly-Level

Assembly-Level CGR to Structure Mode
The Windchill menu and Windchill toolbar in CATIA include an icon (far right in
the following toolbar) to switch all selected assemblies into Structure Mode.

Selected models are highlighted in orange in the structure tree. If an element is not
in the assembly-level CGR node, it is ignored.

The top product is the highlighted model.

Sub_Product1 is the highlighted model.

134 PTC Windchill® Workgroup Manager for CATIA® V5 Administrator's and User's Guide
Once you click the icon for switching to Structure Mode, you are presented with
three options:

1. Yes - Fetch the dependencies to the workspace before switching to Structure

Mode (this performs an Add to Workspace action to verify that the dependents
are added and synchronized to the local machine)
2. No - Skip fetching dependents and switch directly to Structure Mode
3. Cancel
The following actions are possible in Structure Mode:
Structure Mode Function Description
Save to Workspace Saves the assembly to the workspace,
updates the CGR, and attaches the CGR
as secondary content on the CAD
document for the assembly.
Undo Checkout Synchronizes the primary content and
the CGR from the previous iteration of
the assembly if it exists. If the previous
iteration of the assembly does not have
an assembly-level CGR attachment,
then the CGR is deleted from the Wind-
chill workspace local directory.

Assembly-Level
Assembly-Level CGR Mode Functions
Note
All of these actions are disabled when the CGR is the top level assembly.
The following actions are possible in Assembly-Level CGR mode:
Assembly-Level
Assembly-Level CGR Function Description
Save to Workspace Saves the assembly to the workspace,
updates the CGR, and attaches the CGR
as secondary content on the CAD
document for the assembly..
Auto Check In The dependents that were modified in
the session are saved to the workspace
(the CGR assemblies are read-only and

Advanced Techniques 135

Assembly-Level
Assembly-Level CGR Function Description
are never checked in), then the
dependencies of the top level assembly
which were checked out and modified
in the workspace are automatically
checked in.
Custom Check In The top level assembly is included in
the checkin, and you can select which
dependents should be included in the
custom checkin.
Checkout The top level assembly is included in
the checkin, and you can select which
dependents should be included in the
custom checkin.
Revise and Check Out The subcomponents are not included.
Undo Checkout The subcomponents are not included.
Update Active Model The subcomponents are not included.
Update All Models The subcomponents are not included.

Assembly-Level
Assembly-Level CGR Client and Standalone Browser
Functions
The following actions are possible in Assembly-Level CGR Client and Standalone
browser modes:
Assembly-Level
Assembly-Level CGR Client Or Description
Standalone Browser Function

Synchronization of Workspace (WGM Select Workspace ▶ Tools ▶ Synchronize

Client only) to put changed CGRs from the server
side into the local cache and the
workspace local directory.
Add to Workspace Set
IncludeDependentsOptionForOpenCol-
lector to 'None’ to add an assembly to
the workspace with an assembly-level
CGR without any dependencies - this
preference is existing server side only
(the default value is 'Required').
Save As If performed on an assembly with a
CGR file in Windchill, the CGR is
copied to the CAD document of a new
assembly, and the copied CGR is
renamed to match the new assembly.

136 PTC Windchill® Workgroup Manager for CATIA® V5 Administrator's and User's Guide
Assembly-Level
Assembly-Level CGR Client Or Description
Standalone Browser Function

Rename If performed on an assembly with a

CGR file in Windchill, the attached CGR
is renamed to match the new name.
Save To Workspace If performed on an assembly-level CGR
file in Structure mode, the Windchill
Workgroup Manager automatically
regenerates the CGR file attachment and
updates the attachment in Windchill.
Checkin If performed on an assembly-level CGR
file in Structure mode, theWindchill
Workgroup Manager automatically
regenerates the CGR file attachment and
updates the attachment in Windchill.
Update All Models The subcomponents are not included.

Assembly-Level
Assembly-Level CGR Best Practices
• Don't have an assembly-level CGR reference another assembly-level CGR.
• Keep the CGR up to date by regularly synchronizing to the latest CGR version.

Managing Cache
Windchill Workgroup Manager cache is a local repository for third-party CAD
applications contained in a specific workspace, and is used only when uploading or
downloading files to and from the server. Using cache improves performance
becauseWindchill Workgroup Manager only downloads files if the content on the
server is more recent than the content in the cache; and only uploads files when
you direct it to do so.

Advanced Techniques 137

By default, when you register Windchill servers and authoring applications, a .ws
directory is created for cache. It is located under your user profile on your local
computer. For every server location listed in the .ws directory, there are
subdirectories for each workspace, and within each workspace subdirectory, there
are subdirectories for each authoring application that is registered to that server.

Note
Working directly in cache is discouraged so that data is not accidentally corrupted.
To help avoid directly working in cache, a component on the client called the
Workspace Local Directory (WLD), is available. It is recommended you use this
component, rather than browsing to or saving directly to the caches from the CAD
application. Sample default locations for the Workspace Local Directory (WLD)are
provided below.
The cache location is defined by the environment variable PTC_WF_ROOT,
which is the client connector cache. This is where allWindchill Workgroup Manag-
er related client side information is stored. If the environment variable is not
explicitly defined, the default location is the home directory of the Windchill user.
By default, cache is not shared between Windchill Workgroup Manager and Creo
Elements/Pro 5.0.
If you are planning to run the Windchill Workgroup Manager and Creo Elements/
Pro 5.0 on the same system and also want to have the cache residing in a non-
default location, you must explicitly set the cache PTC_WF_ROOT for both these
applications to different locations. For example, one method of achieving this is to
create a start-up batch file for each application that defines the PTC_WF_ROOT
environment variable cache location and then start the program.
The default locations for theWindchill Workgroup Manager and Creo Elements/Pro
5.0 cache, and Workspace Local Directory (WLD) locations, are as follows:
• Cache location for Creo Elements/Pro 5.0—%APPDATA%\PTC
\ProENGINEER\Wildfire\.wf
• Cache location for Windchill Workgroup Manager—%APPDATA%\PTC
\ProENGINEER\Wildfire\.wwgm
• Workspace Local Directory location for Creo Elements/Pro 5.0—%
USERPROFILE%\.wf
• Workspace Local Directory location for CAD application—%USERPROFILE
%\.wwgm

138 PTC Windchill® Workgroup Manager for CATIA® V5 Administrator's and User's Guide
 Note
The Workspace Local Directory (WLD) no longer creates application-specific
subfolders for each authoring application. All primary content files reside in the
WLD folder without application sub-folders. Secondary content (attachments)
is placed in a sub-folder. As a consequence of the new arrangement, during
upgrade, an undo checkout must be performed on all workspace objects (not
necessary when upgrading to Windchill 10.0). Administrators may move the
content of any existing authoring application subfolders to the top-level WLD
and delete the application specific subfolders.
Although it is not recommended you directly access the .ws directory; there are
certain PDM actions that require you to select from it. For example, Open queries
the CAD application subdirectory in the .ws directory so you can select the
document you want to open. If desired, the location of the .ws directory can be
changed by setting the PTC_WLD_ROOT environment variable to the required
location.
Cache is managed from the Cache tab on the Server Management window (Tools ▶
Server Management ). This window describes your workspace local directory/
managing directory location, cache space used (in MB), and available disk space.
There is also an option to clear the cache. The following graphic shows the Cache
tab window.

This information is also displayed on the Cache Management window.

Advanced Techniques 139

Select Cache Tools on the Cache tab to access the Cache Management window.
The Cache Management window provides the following:
• Workspace local directory location of the active workspace for the primary
server
• Cache usage
• Path to the .ws directory
• Cache limit. The target cache limit can be set in the wgmclient.ini file
entry cache.size, or by setting the environment variable
dm_cache_limit.
• Amount of utilized disk space
• The Clear Cache button clears all cache in the inactive workspace.
The next graphic displays the Cache Management window.

CGR Cache Management

CGR Cache Management mode allows large assemblies to be opened more quickly
and use less resources.
Note
Due a native CATIA limitation, the path to the CGR Cache cannot be exactly 8
characters.

Assembly Handling
All candidate instances are opened to visualization mode one at a time following
the read. Metadata and dependency information is cached allowing models that
contain no changes to detected and not switch them into design mode. If a part
does contain changes, it is opened into design mode to apply the changes.

140 PTC Windchill® Workgroup Manager for CATIA® V5 Administrator's and User's Guide
Neutral Data Caching
Neutral cached data is used. It contains the models and metadata dependency
structure. The use of cache instead of reading from the part improves the
performance of the Workgroup Manager when handling larger assemblies. The
neutral data is stored as an XML file and referred to as the XML data cache. The
XML data cache is stored as secondary content using the primary content’s file
name followed by the version of the neutral data model with a .xml extension, for
example my_part.CATPart.L01.xml.

Configuration
The CGR cache configuration is done by setting the following preferences on the
Windchill server. The preferences can be accessed under Preference Management
at Site ▶ Utilities .

Windchill Workgroup Manager– Client

• Enable CGR Cache Support

○ All valid visualization candidates receive and process CGR file content as
long as this option is enabled.
○ Default – No
• Upload CGR files
○ Determines if CGR files are attached to the CAD Model.
○ Default – No
• Upload XML Data Cache files

Note
This preference is an XML file, located at windows/temp/<part name with time
date stamp>.xml
○ Determines whether or not XML data cache files are attached to the CAD
model.
○ Default – No
Windchill Workgroup Manager – Server
Operation ▶ CAD Data Management ▶ Content Handling ▶ Download

• CATIA V5 CGR
○ Sets the download preference for the CATIA V5 CGR content category.
○ Default – Yes
Operation ▶ CAD Data Management ▶ Content Handling ▶ Mark Out Of Date

Advanced Techniques 141

• CATIA V5 CGR
○ Sets the mark out-of-date preference for the CATIA V5 CGR content
category.
○ Default – No

Working with Design Contexts

Working with Design Contexts inside Windchill

A design context is a CAD document structure that is derived from an initial CAD
structure by application of filters and rules. In Windchill, a design context can also
be derived from a configuration context, which has in turn been derived from a part
structure. For more information on configuration contexts, see “About
Configuration Contexts” in the Windchill Help Center.
Typically, the intent of creating a design context is to bring only the essential
elements of a (possibly large or complicated) master assembly into the design
environment, to simplify or ease the process of further design development.
For more information about creating and modifying design contexts, see Creating a
New Design Context from a CAD Structure on page 146 and Editing a Design
Context Definition on page 147
To leverage top-down design methodology Windchill supports several user
workflows designed to streamline the creation and updating of design contexts
from a configuration context.

Opening a New Configuration Context in the CAD Application

1. You select a top level end-item and invoke the action to create a configuration
context.
2. The system creates a new configuration context, checks it out, and displays it
to you in the configuration context builder
• The part originally selected by you is the context part for the new
configuration context.
• The child parts of the context part are member parts of the new
configuration context.
• The filter criteria for the new configuration context is set to
○ The filter criteria values of the Product Structure Browser – if the action
to create a new configuration context was launched from the Product
Structure Browser toolbar.
○ Their default values - if the action to create a new configuration context
was not launched from the Product Structure Browser toolbar.
• You then can refine the definition of the configuration context by:

142 PTC Windchill® Workgroup Manager for CATIA® V5 Administrator's and User's Guide
 ○ Updating the filter criteria
○ Specifying include/exclude rules
• You validate the configuration context definition by examining the
resulting content displayed in the tree structure panel and the Visualization
tab.
3. You check in the configuration context, which causes the system to generate
resulting rules
4. You can then invoke the action to open the configuration context in the CAD
application (embedded browser only)
5. The system generates a design context from the configuration context. The new
design context is created in your workspace
6. The system opens the design context in the CAD application.

Opening a Modified Configuration Context in the CAD Application

1. Select the original configuration context and check it out.
2. You can make changes to the definition of the configuration context by:
• Changing the filter criteria
• Changing the include/exclude rules
• Adding or removing member parts
3. Validate the configuration context definition by examining the resulting content
displayed in the tree structure panel and the Visualization tab.
4. Check in the configuration context, which causes the system to generate
resulting rules.
5. Invoke the action to open the configuration context in the CAD application
(embedded browser only)
6. The system updates the related design context in your workspace
7. The system informs the CAD application to refresh itself.

Only One Design Context per Configuration Context

To simplify the actions required to create or update a design context from a
configuration context, a configuration context can have only one directly-related
design context.
• The first time such an action is performed, the system creates a new design
context and relates it to the configuration context.
• For subsequent times that these actions are performed, the system updates the
existing design context related to the configuration context.
The Details tab for the configuration context information page includes a hyperlink
to the related design context.

Advanced Techniques 143

The Attribute tab of the configuration context builder includes a hyperlink to the
related design context when you have selected the configuration context root node
in the tree panel.

The Open in CATIA V5Action

The Open in CATIA V5 action is accessible from the ribbon toolbar of the
configuration context builder for a checked-in configuration context:
• The Open in CATIA V5 action is only available when the Show New Design
Context Action preference is set to yes. The default value is no.
• The Open in CATIA V5 action is only available from the Windchill browser
embedded in Windchill Workgroup Manager when an active/primary
workspace has been defined. The action is greyed out in a stand
aloneWindchill browser.
• The behavior of the Open in CATIA V5 action is also dependent on the
preference Hide wizard when creating a Design Context from a Configuration
Context . When this preference is set to no, users must enter the required
information in the New Design Context or Update Design Context window
before the new or updated design context is opened in the CAD tool.
The Open in CATIA V5 action is enabled only if the given configuration context is
checked in.
Use Case 1: The configuration context does not have a related design context:
• The system creates a related design context in the workspace for the
configuration context.
For the embedded browser, the workspace is the registered workspace.
Use Case 2: The configuration context has a related design context:
• The system issues an error message in the following conditions:
○ You cannot perform this action because you do not have a workspace.
Please create a workspace and try again
○ You cannot perform this action because the user who created the design
context for this configuration context has not checked it in to the
commonspace.
○ You cannot perform this action because the design context for this
configuration context is checked out to another user.
○ You cannot perform this action because the design context for this
configuration context is not in your active workspace. (if using the
embedded browser).
○ You cannot perform this action because no active workspace is set. Please
set an active workspace and try again
• If the related design context is checked in to the common space, the system
checks it out to the registered workspace (if using the embedded browser).

144 PTC Windchill® Workgroup Manager for CATIA® V5 Administrator's and User's Guide
• The system updates the related design context in your workspace.
• The system launches the CAD application for the modified design context.

The “New/Update
“New/Update Design Context” Action
The New/Update Design Context action has nearly the same behavior as the Open
in CATIA V5 action described earlier. The main difference between the Open in
CATIA V5 action and the New/Update Design Context action is that the Open in
CATIA V5 action opens the resulting design context in the CAD application, while
the New/Update Design Context action opens it in the design context builder
window.
Note
The New/Update Design Context action is only available when the Show New
Design Context Action preference is set to Yes. The default value is set to No.
To simplify the workflow, Windchill by design reduces or eliminates the need to
show the New Design Context page with each update in the following ways:
• A Set as Default action for the Template field on the New Design Context page
lets you set a default template for subsequent creations of new design contexts
directly from configuration contexts.
• The object initialization rule (OIR) provides values for the name and file name
attributes of the new design context.
○ The out-of-the box OIR sets the name attribute for the new design context
to the same value as the name attribute for the related configuration
context.
○ The out-of-the box OIR sets file name to same as number
A name for the CAD data file that references the design context members,
the File Name can be entered using the text entry field or set equal to the
value of the Number attribute by selecting Same As Number . Same As
Number is checked by default.
• In the embedded browser, the value for the workspace is set to the registered
workspace.
• If the preference Hide wizard when creating a Design Context from a
Configuration Context is set to yes, administrator can specify that the system
should not display the New Design Context page to the users when they
perform the Open in CATIA V5 and New/Update Design Context actions. Setting
this preference means that the administrator must perform the configuration
activities via OIRs and preferences to ensure that all the required attributes
displayed in the design context create wizard get set programmatically.

Advanced Techniques 145

Creating a New Design Context from a CAD Structure
A design context is a CAD document structure that is derived from an initial CAD
structure by application of filters and rules. In Windchill, a design context can also
be derived from a configuration context, which has in turn been derived from a part
structure. For more information about configuration contexts, see the topic, “About
Configuration Contexts” in the Windchill Help Center. For more information about
design contexts and their relationship with configuration contexts, see About
Design Contexts on page 142.

Note
The New Design Context action is only available when the preference Workgroup
Manager Client ▶ Design In Context ▶ Show New Design Context Action is set to
Yes. Contact your Windchill system administrator to change these preferences. It is
not recommended to set the preference back to No, after it has been set to Yes.
To create a design context, navigate to the Structure tab on the workspace
information page of a CAD document structure or of an existing configuration
context from which you want to derive the new design context and use the
following procedure:
1. Select New/Add To ▶ New Design Context from the CAD document Structure
tab menu bar
Or
Select Design Context ▶ New from a configuration context Structure tab menu
bar
The New Design Context window opens.
2. In the fields that are available, you can accept the pre-populated values
(derived from the initial CAD structure) or specify other values by selection
from the menu for each field, as follows:
• The Windchill Context is always the same as the initial structure.
• Organization ID , if enabled at your site—You can search for a different
organization.
• Authoring Application —Select from available options.
• Type —CAD Document or sub-type
• Template Name —Select from available options, or click Default .

Note
In order to create a new design context on an assembly whose structure was
created or modified in Windchill, you must create a template and should
assign it as the value of the preference, Workgroup Manager Client ▶ Design
In Context ▶ Assembly Template Used In New Image Design Context Action
.

146 PTC Windchill® Workgroup Manager for CATIA® V5 Administrator's and User's Guide
 Upon selection of a template name, an Attributes panel opens beneath the
other fields mentioned, displaying the pre-defined attributes for the new
design context.
3. Specify the values for the template you have selected.
4. Click OK . The new design context is created in the database and the
information page for the design context opens. By default, the information
page displays the Edit Definition tab.

Note
At creation, the new design context is essentially a copy of the initial CAD
structure. Typically, the next step is to edit the definition of the design context.
For more information, see Editing a Design Context Definition on page 147.

Editing a Design Context Definition

The information page for a design context supports the same tabs as other
assembly CAD documents, with the important addition of the Edit Definition tab,
which is used to modify the definition of the design context using the various
actions provided.

Note
If the Edit Definition tab is not visible on the design context information page,
select Edit Design Context Definition from the Actions menu.
Below the action bar containing the actions, the Edit Definition tab displays the
structure of the design context in a left-side pane. Checkboxes are available next to
each subcomponent displayed in the structure, which can be used in conjunction
with the other editing tools in the action bar to define the design context. The
structure tree-table has the columns described in the following table:
Column Description
File Name Displays the structure of the design
context in tree format. Selecting a
checkbox includes its row in the
definition; clearing a checkbox excludes
its row.
Definition Rep Displays the current include/exclude
rule assigned to the object.
Resulting Rep Displays the representation rule that
results from the application of all
definition rules.
A right-side pane contains the following sub-tabs:
Sub-tab
Sub-tab Description
Attributes Displays the attributes of the selected

Advanced Techniques 147

Sub-tab
Sub-tab Description
component
Visualization Displays a representation of the design
context, as currently defined. For
example, excluding a component in the
structure pane removes that component
from the visualized image.
Rules Displays the current rules comprising
the definition of the design context

The actions on the toolbar on the Edit Definition tab are described in the following
table:
Action Description
Editing actions set

Include Rep Include selected rows at the shown

representation; that is, one of the
following representation types:
• Assembly Only
• Design Mode
• Visualization Mode
Clear Rep Remove all selected, explicit includes/
excludes for the selected representation.
The selected rows revert to being
included.
Exclude Exclude the selected rows from the
design context.
Design Context actions set

Exit Edit Mode Exit the editing mode. A Confirmation

pop-up asks if you want to save changes
before exiting.
Save Definition Save changes to the design context
definition.
Viewing actions set

Views Select default or predefined view of the

structure or select Manage Structure
Views to customize your list of views.

Display Access the following display options:

• Expand all levels of structure
• Collapse all levels of structure

148 PTC Windchill® Workgroup Manager for CATIA® V5 Administrator's and User's Guide
Action Description
• Select 2-pane display
• Select 3-pane display (places
attribute and rules information in
separate panes)
• Refresh the display of the structure
Filter actions set
Current Filter Open the Current Filter window,
displaying the configuration
specification details.
Open the Edit Filter window to enable
Edit Filter editing of the Configuration
Specification, Spatial Filter, or Attribute
Filter applied to the design context
structure.
Attribute Rules actions set

Manage Rules Open the Manage Rules window,

allowing you to create and manage
attribute rules. For more information,
see Managing Attribute Rules on page
153.
The process of editing a design context involves the use of filters (configuration
specification, spatial, or attribute–based) and rules to arrive at the intended
structure for further design work. The following features of the Edit Definition tab
assist in the editing:
• When the Attributes tab is selected, the Attributes pane displays the attributes of
the most recently selected object row in the structure tree.
• When the Visualization tab is selected, the following actions are available:
Action Description
Zoom all Zoom in on the complete assembly.
Zoom selected Zoom in on a selected part.

Set spin center Allows you to assign a spin center to the assembly.

Toggle the Allows you to toggle the automatic selection preference to do

automatic one or both of the following:
selection
○ Automatically Select from Structure to Visualization
preference
○ Automatically Select from Visualization to Structure
When both options are selected, clicking on a structure
member highlights the member in the visualization and

Advanced Techniques 149

 Action Description
clicking on a member in the visualization pane highlights its
row in the structure, expanding the structure if necessary.
Spatial filter Opens a menu to set or update box, sphere, or proximity type
of spatial filter where a component is selected. For more
information on using spatial filters, seeAbout Spatial Filters.

Note
Use of filters actually trims the structure tree (removes
components). Use of rules can exclude components from
membership in the design context, but the excluded
components remain in the structure tree (in an unselected
state).
Spatial rule Opens a menu allowing you to set or update box, sphere, or
proximity type of spatial rule when a component is selected.
For more information about using spatial rules, see the
following topics; Setting a Box Spatial Rule on page 150,
Setting a Sphere Spatial Rule on page 151, Setting a
Proximity Rule on page 152, and Updating a Spatial Rule on
page 153.
• When the Rules tab is selected, the Rules pane displays the rules applicable to
the current definition of the design context.
• Deselecting the checkbox for a member of the structure, excludes that object
from the design context. The exclusion is listed on the Rules tab described by
listing the parent-child relationships down to the particular object. Subsequent
modifications to the design context definition automatically update the rules.
For example if a component has been excluded, an “Exclude” rule is created.
Upon subsequent re-inclusion the Type field displays “Graphic,” indicating the
re-inclusion of the object.
• Excluding a parent also excludes all of its children in the structure. Re-
inclusion of a child also re-includes the parent.

Setting a Box Spatial Rule

Use the following steps to define the box spatial rule:
1. Select the spatial rule icon on the Visualization tab, then select Set Box
Spatial Rule .

150 PTC Windchill® Workgroup Manager for CATIA® V5 Administrator's and User's Guide
 The Box Spatial Rule Coordinates window opens. By default the X, Y, and Z
values for the minimum and maximum coordinates include the entire structure.
2. Enter the new X, Y, and Z coordinate values in both the minimum and
maximum coordinate input fields. You can enter zero as well as positive and
negative real numbers.

Tip
Spatial filter dimensions can be manipulated graphically using the spatial filter
volume representation in the Visualization tab.
• Click and drag the coordinate system gnomon by its origin or one of the
axis to move the entire filter volume.
• Click and drag a face of the box or sphere to increase or decrease the filter
volume. The spatial filter coordinates change as you modify the filter
volume.
Note
All six coordinate values are required. The minimum values must be smaller
than the corresponding maximum values.
3. By default, parts that are partially within the box volume are included in the
structure. Select Remove items that are partially outside the bounding box to
include only those parts that are completely within the box volume.
4. Click OK to dismiss the Box Spatial Rule Coordinates window and apply the
rule to the part structure.

Setting a Sphere Spatial Rule

Spatial rules use volumetric information to determine what components to display
or hide in a CAD document structure. Spatial rules can be used in conjunction with
other rules and filters to reduce the structure display to only those portions that are
relevant to a specific design task.
Use the following steps to define a sphere spatial rule:
1. Select the spatial rule icon on the Visualization tab, then select Set Sphere
Spatial Rule .

Advanced Techniques 151

 The Sphere Spatial Rule Coordinates window opens. By default, the radius
from the X, Y, and Z values for the sphere’s center encompasses the entire
structure.
2. Enter the X, Y, and Z coordinate values for the center point of the sphere in the
Center Coordinates input fields. You can enter zero as well as positive and
negative real numbers. All three coordinate values are required.

Tip
Spatial filter dimensions can be manipulated graphically using the spatial filter
volume representation in the Visualization tab.
•Click and drag the coordinate system gnomon by its origin or one of the
axis to move the entire filter volume.
• Click and drag a face of the box or sphere to increase or decrease the filter
volume. The spatial filter coordinates change as you modify the filter
volume.
3. Enter a positive real number for the radius of the sphere in the Distance from
Center input field.
4. By default, parts that are partially within the spherical volume are included in
the structure. Select Remove items that are partially outside the bounding
sphere to include only those parts that are completely within the sphere.
5. Click OK to dismiss the Sphere Spatial Rule Coordinates window and apply
the rule to the part structure.

Setting a Proximity Rule

Spatial rules use volumetric information to determine what components to display
or hide in a CAD document structure. Spatial rules can be used in conjunction with
other rules and filters to reduce the structure display to only those portions that are
relevant to a specific design task.
Use the following steps to define a proximity spatial rule:
1. Select the spatial rule icon on the Visualization tab, and then select Set
Proximity Spatial Rule .
The Set Proximity Spatial Rule window opens with the selected part name,
number, and version displayed in the Part field.
2. Enter 0 or a positive real number in the Proximity field. The proximity volume
is enlarged in all directions using this number.
3. By default, components that are partially within the proximity volume are
included in the structure. Select Remove items that are partially outside the
proximity region to include only those components that are completely within
the proximity volume.
4. Click OK to dismiss the Set Proximity Spatial Rule window and apply the rule
to the part structure.

152 PTC Windchill® Workgroup Manager for CATIA® V5 Administrator's and User's Guide
Updating a Spatial Rule
You can revisit your definition of a spatial rule for a design context by selecting the
spatial rule icon on the Visualization tab and then selecting Update Spatial Rule
from the menu. You are asked if you want to save any current changes. The
appropriate definition window for the type of spatial rule currently in effect is
opened, and you are allowed to update the definition. Clicking OK applies the
updated spatial rule.

Managing Attribute Rules

You can launch the Edit Definition tab either by selecting Edit Design Context
Definition from the actions menu on the information page of design context (or by
selecting the Edit tab from the Model Structure Report of a design context.) Using
the Edit Definition tab of a design context, you are able to manage attribute-based
rules that can specify what members to include or exclude in the design context
definition.
1. Select Manage Rules from the Attribute Rules toolbar action group. The
Manage Rules window opens, and the Attribute Query Expression window
opens in front of it.
2. In the Attribute Query Expression window, select a criterion for your rule from
the Criteria field menu. The criterion appears in the list area lower down,
followed by an operand field (allowing you to select either “equals,” “does not
equal,” or “Not set” as operands. In the right-most field of the list area, select
one of the values offered for the criterion you have chosen for your rule.
3. Select an action for the rule (specifying the level of representation, or to
exclude) from the Action field:
• Exclude
• Design Mode
• Visualization Mode

Advanced Techniques 153

4. Click Apply or OK to enter your specified rule in the Manage Rules window
list. (Clicking Apply allows you to add additional attribute rules and leaves the
Attribute Query Expression window open.) After you click Apply or OK , the
rules are applied. Click Close to dismiss the Manage Rules window.

Note
You can create multiple rules prior to clicking Apply or OK in the Attribute
Query Expression window. You can also delete any rule by clicking its delete
icon .
5. Once you have created an attribute rule and it appears in the Manage Rules
window, you can add more rules, edit existing rules, or remove existing rules:
• Click Add to call the Attribute Query Expression window, to create a new
rule.
• Select an existing rule and click Edit to call the Attribute Query Expression
window, populated with the selected rule, ready for your editing.
• Select an existing rule and click Remove to remove the rule from the
Manage Rules listing.

Working with Design Contexts inside CATIA

Consider the following when you launch a design context in CATIA.

Working with Excluded Objects

Unlike Creo, objects excluded in the definition of the design context are not
removed from the specification tree when the design context is opened in CATIA
and are instead prevented from loading. The exclusion status appears in two
different ways, depending on whether there are any remaining instances of the
excluded object in the design context.

154 PTC Windchill® Workgroup Manager for CATIA® V5 Administrator's and User's Guide
If additional instances of the excluded object are included in the design context, the
excluded object’s status icon displays as follows:

If all instances of the object are excluded, then the excluded object’s status icon
displays as follows:

To switch a mode for an object to include or exclude it from within CATIA, select
the object and choose a different mode from the Windchill ▶ Representation
Management menu.

Saving Context Definition Changes Back to Windchill

After making changes from the Windchill Representation Management menu or
making changes to the mode of the object in the design context, you can save those
changes to the context definition back to Windchill. To save all changes made on
the design context, click the Windchill ▶ Save to Workspace menu either through
the Windchill toolbar or the right-click menu. If you save a design context with any

Advanced Techniques 155

filters or rules applied, you must break those filters or rules through the Event
Management window. When the save completes, the set of included and excluded
objects remains the same, but the filter or rule no longer appears.
Note
To help save filters even if you change modes in CATIA, it is recommend to save
individual objects in the design context by selecting an object and using the right
click menu Windchill ▶ Save to Workspace action rather than using the Windchill ▶
Save to Workspace menu, which tries to save any changes to the design context as
well.

All-In-
All-In-One
One CATPart Support
In CATIA V5, an assembly (CATProduct) consisting of many parts can be saved
into one single part (CATPart) by selecting Tools ▶ Generate CATPart from
Product . All-In-One CATParts are useful, for example, if you want to design
surrounding parts for an assembly, and need the assembly only as a reference (or if
the assembly is frozen).

However no link exists in CATIA V5 between this All-In-One CATPart and the
CATProduct.
TheWindchill Workgroup Manager though can manage a model tree structure of
all loaded and used CATParts and CATProducts, which can be then be used to
recreate the All-In-One CATPart. In Windchill the All-In-One CATPart is stored as
an EPM document. The Windchill Workgroup Manager can generate this All-In-
One CATPart, and check the resulting CATPart into Windchill as a new EPM
document.

156 PTC Windchill® Workgroup Manager for CATIA® V5 Administrator's and User's Guide
All-In-One CATParts are supported for the following assemblies:
• Standalone CATIA V5 assembly
• CATIA V5 assembly instance (defined in assembly design table)

Note
So that All-In-One CATParts work with assembly instances, you must restrict All-
In-One generation by setting the file attribute “CREATE_ALLCATPART=False”
in the design table. You need to set a global attribute as its own column in the
design table of the assembly. For more information, refer to Specifying Names for
Instances in a CATIA V5 Design Table on page 163.

Checking In All-In-
All-In-One
One CATParts
You can check in an All-In-One CATPart in CATIA V5 in two ways:
• Windchill menu CATIA V5 ▶ Windchill ▶ Check In ▶ Check In All-in-One
CATPart
• Windchill toolbar icon
Once checked in, the All-In-One CATPart can be opened in CATIA V5 itself or
referenced under another parent assembly. The All-In-One CATPart is read only in
session.

The Windchill link displays what version of the assembly the CATPart was
synchronized with as well as the version of the assembly.

All-In-
All-In-One
One CATPart Preferences
Set the following preferences in the wgmclient.ini file for All-In-One
CATParts to work properly.
Preference Description Default
allinonecatpart.name Specifies the naming rule <CATProduct>_AllCAT-
of the All-in-One Part
CATPart. The default
option is source product
name plus AllCATPart.

Advanced Techniques 157

For example, if the product name is ABC.CATProduct, then the All-In-One
CATPart is named ABC_AllCATPart.CATPart.
Preference Description Default
allinonecatpart.creation. Enables the option of ‘No’ is the default, and
merge.all.bodies merging all the bodies of disables the merging.
each part in one body
when generating the All-
In-One CATPart from
product.
For example, starting with this parent assembly

158 PTC Windchill® Workgroup Manager for CATIA® V5 Administrator's and User's Guide
If Not Merged If Merged

Read-Only
Read-Only Areas
Description
A Read-Only Area (ROA) is a collection of data and preferences in a file system; it
is not copied to a workspace, but loaded fromCATIA V5 so that you can see the
parts. This is useful for working with large assemblies; most of the assembly can
remain in the ROA so that you do not have to download the entire assembly.
Objects from a designated ROA are loaded according to theCATIA V5 load
options, and the secondary content of the ROA will match the status of the files in
CATIA V5.

Managed vs. Unmanaged Read-Only

Read-Only Areas
Windchill Workgroup Manager supports managed and unmanaged ROAs, each
referred to by preferences in the Windchill wgmclient.ini file:
Note
Using ROAs with workspace actions (checkout, undo checkout, checkin, save to
workspace) result in error messages.
Read-Only
Read-Only Area Type Description Preference Name in
Windchill client.ini
client.ini file
Managed The objects in managed managed.read.

Advanced Techniques 159

Read-Only
Read-Only Area Type Description Preference Name in
Windchill client.ini
client.ini file
ROAs exist inside only.
Windchill. They are not area.folders
copied to the Windchill
local directory, but
information about them is
passed into Windchill
(examples: Link or
Metadata).
Objects are ignored
during PDM functions,
but Windchill still creates
and updates both relations
and links to those objects.
Unmanaged The objects in unmanaged unmanaged.read.
ROAs exist outside of only.area.folders
Windchill and are referred
to in Windchill, but no
information about these
objects are stored. When
theCATIA V5 adapter
recognizes that a
dependent is being loaded
from an unmanaged ROA
it stops processing
dependencies.
If you perform a Save to
Workspace or Checkin
action in Windchill,
theCATIA V5 documents
loaded from the
unmanaged ROA folders
are ignored. The most
common use for
unmanaged ROAs is
referencing data from an
external supplier, such as
small components or
entire CAD modules.

Setting Up Read-Only
Read-Only Areas
You can set up managed ROAs in the wgmclient.ini file with the following code:
managed.read.only.folders=C:\cad_client\work\ROA\working

160 PTC Windchill® Workgroup Manager for CATIA® V5 Administrator's and User's Guide
Managed ROAs have a link to an administrator, and must be actively managed by
populating the ROA after the documents are checked in to Windchill.
You can set up unmanaged ROAs in the wgmclient.ini file with the following
code:
unmanaged.read.only.folders=C:\cad_client\work\ROA\working
Only top level ROA folders must be specified in the preference.
Multiple directories are separated by semicolons. Example:
unmanaged.read.only.folders=C:\cad_client\work\ROA\working;
C:\cad_client\work\ROA\uroa;
C:\cad_client\work\ROA\mroa

In addition, you must perform the following steps:

1. Navigate to CATIA ▶ Tools ▶ Options ▶ General ▶ Document ▶ Other Folders
(found in the linked document localization section) ▶ Configure .

2. Add the directories listed in the unmanaged.read.only.area.folders preference to

the "Other Folders" option of the Linked Document Localization settings in
CATIA V5.
The folders added to this section MUST exactly match those listed in the
preference, or the ROA support will not function correctly. CATIA might try to
load documents from the last saved location of the link instead of the ROA,
and then the documents are processed again.
3. Move the "Other folders" option to second in the load order underneath "Folder
of the pointing document" by clicking the up button until it is in the correct
location.
4. RestartCATIA V5 and the Windchill Workgroup Manager.

Advanced Techniques 161

 CATIA V5 requires that folders be added recursively for subfolders. Do this
when adding a folder from this menu so that you can select Add Tree to add all
the subfolders.

Note
If working with a temp patch, you should also un-install and re-install the existing
Windchill Workgroup Manager client from the patched Windchill server onto any
client machine that requires the temp patch. You should also update the wgmclient.
ini file on the patch Windchill server for all the clients that are going to be using
the unmanaged.read.only.area preference.

Working With Managed Read-Only

Read-Only Areas
To create data which references information from a managed ROA:
1. Insert or reference components as you would with an unmanaged ROA.
2. After you click Save to Workspace , the inserted document is added to the
workspace as a link, which allows the content to continue to be referenced
from the managed ROA.
To work with data in Windchill when portions of the data are stored in a managed
ROA, add the document that you want to work with to the workspace as a link.
This allows dependents to be referenced in the managed ROA location if they are
present there, and prevents these documents from being modified. Dependents that
are not checked out can be modified, but not saved. You must save them
separately.

Working with Design Tables and CATIA

V5 Catalogs
Managing CATIA V5 Design Tables
A Design table is a spreadsheet, which in CATIA V5 you can use to design
multiple variations of a part or an assembly (note that an assembly is generic, but
the design table is checked in as multiprimary content). Design tables reside in the
same directory of the part in a workspace local directory.

Family tables that have had Save As or Rename performed upon them are stored in
the same sub-directory where their attachments are stored — they are no longer
stored in the same sub-directory as the generic part and its design table.

162 PTC Windchill® Workgroup Manager for CATIA® V5 Administrator's and User's Guide
Design tables are created using a Microsoft Excel spreadsheet (on Windows only)
or as a text file (on Windows or UNIX). Each row represents an instance, and
columns represent varied parameters. In Windchill, a CATIA V5 model file with an
associated design table is represented as a generic CAD document.
A family table is a family of objects when you associate a CATIA V5 model file
with an associated design table in Windchill, and is composed of the following
objects:
• Generic – A part or assembly that is used as a basis for creating instances
(variations of a generic) using a design table. Both the generic part and the
design table are the primary content for the generic CAD document.
• Instance – A variation of the generic that is defined using a design table. An
instance corresponds to the row in the design table. In Windchill, an instance is
represented as an instance CAD document.

Specifying Names for Instances in a CATIA V5 Design Table

If you want an instance to be managed in Windchill, you must specify a value in
the PartNumber parameter column for each instance that you define in the Design
Table. These PartNumber values are typically added manually to the design table.

Advanced Techniques 163

The PartNumber parameter sets the name for that instance and determines the name
of the CATIA V5 file created for that instance and the File Name attribute for the
instance CAD document created in Windchill. Instance names must be unique.

Note
If PartNumber is not specified for one or more rows in the design table, no instance
files are created, and these instances are not managed in Windchill as separate life
cycle-controlled objects. If the PartNumber is not set, a warning message appears
in the Windchill Workgroup ManagerMessage console informing you that CATIA
V5 files are not created for one or more instances in the design table.
If no PartNumber values are defined in the design table, the CATIA V5 model is
managed as a standalone CATIA V5 CAD document with no family in Windchill.
The design table file remains associated to the CAD document as part of the
primary content.
The next figure shows a CATIA Design table with the PartNumber column
specified in the design table. Note that if the PartNumber column is present in the
design table (optional), CATIA V5 uses the PartNumber column as the file name
for the CATIA V5 model files created for each instance.

The next figure illustrates how the design table is edited in Excel.

164 PTC Windchill® Workgroup Manager for CATIA® V5 Administrator's and User's Guide
Assembly Instances
When creating assembly family tables with Excel or a text file, an extra column
called PTC_IS_INSTANCE needs to be added. This additional column specifies
instances for an assembly to be exposed to Windchill.
PTC_IS_INSTANCE is set to false by default. If you change the attribute to true,
the instance is flushed to disk in the Workspace Local Directory, and then checked
in as a family table and an instance.
If you want to expose the instance configuration to Windchill, then set the server
side preference Manage model instances as family table CAD Documents to All or
Assembly . If you do not want to expose the instance to Windchill, set this
preference to Part or Disable .

Modifying Instance Files Independently

You can check out and check in Windchill family table instances independently of
any other instances in the family table. By setting the
independently.modify.instances preference to yes, the design table
regenerates (and reiterates) only the instances which have been modified.
Change this preference as follows:
1. Navigate to the Preference Management utility in Windchill.
2. Select Windchill Workgroup Manager ▶ Client ▶ Independently Modify Instances
▶ CATIA V5 . The following window displays:

Advanced Techniques 165

3. Change the independently.modify.instances preference from No to
Yes .
The generic can now be checked out and added to a workspace independent of its
instances. By selecting Checkin or Save to Workspace in Windchill, changes to the
family table generic part are iterated, and the instances that have been affected are
added to the workspace and regenerated to disk. You can still regenerate all the
instances of a modified design table by selecting Revise .
Note
Design tables must be checked in completely before you attempt to add any
instance or generic to an assembly. After the family is created in Windchill, add the
desired instance to your workspace, and then add the instance to your assembly
using CATIA V5 by browsing to and selecting the instance from the workspace
local directory.

Viewing Information on the Design Table in Windchill

After you check in or upload the generic CATIA V5 model with the associated
design table, you can see it in the workspace in Windchill Workgroup Manager. To
view detailed information on objects in Windchill, open the information page for
the CAD document and check the Content table.
The next figure shows the Content table on the information page of a CAD
document managed in Windchill. Notice that the table lists both the generic and the
design table as the primary content for the CAD document.

166 PTC Windchill® Workgroup Manager for CATIA® V5 Administrator's and User's Guide
Do Not Manage As Family Tables
If you disable the Manage model instances as family table CAD Documents
preference, you disable support for design tables when the preference has been set
for parts to be associated with a design table. In this case, these parts are processed
as regular parts. From CATIA to Windchill, such tables are still family tables, but
have no instances.
You can change the Manage model instances as family table CAD Documents
preference in the Preference Management utility (available from Windchill ▶ Site ▶
Utilities ). This preference has the following settings:
• All (default)—Part and assembly instances are published as CAD document
instances.
• Assembly —Enables managing instances defined in the assembly as managed
functional instances. Only assembly instances are published as CAD document
instances.
• Part —Enables managing instances that are defined in parts as managed
functional instances. Only part instances are published as CAD document
instances.
• Disable —Instances are not published as CAD document instances.

Advanced Techniques 167

Rules for Using Save to Workspace
Consider these rules for saving the design table to the workspace using the Save to
Workspace action:

• When you first save a generic to the workspace, Windchill Workgroup Manag-
er creates new CAD documents in the workspace – for the generic CATIA V5
model and for each instance in the design table that has a unique value for the
PartNumber column. Windchill Workgroup Manager creates separate CATIA
V5 model files in the workspace for each instance according to the PartNumber
column in the design table.
• When you save a design table or an assembly to the workspace, the design
table is saved with the CATIA V5 file.

Note
If you have not updated the generic CATIA V5 model with the latest Design
Table, saving the generic overwrites the design table file that was previously
saved.
• By default, Save to Workspace uploads objects after saving.

Rules for Uploading and Checking In Design Table Objects

Consider these rules for using Upload and Check In with design table objects:
• To check in changes that you made to the design table, you must first save it to
the workspace by saving the generic CATIA V5 model to the workspace.
• When you check in a modified member of a design table, you must check in
the generic and all instances. If independently.modify.instances is
set to Yes, then only modified instances are checked in. See Modifying
Instance Files Independently on page 165 for more information.
• New instances are collected and included on checkin.
• Instances deleted from the design table when editing the generic are collected
and removed from the workspace upon checkin.
• A design table file is required for checking in the generic.
• Attempting to upload or check in any design table member that is not checked
out results in a conflict. You are provided with several choices to resolve the
conflict so you can continue the upload or checkin process.
• If you Save to Workspace and Upload in CATIA V5, but Checkin to Windchill,
you may have problems updating metadata if you use the autonumber feature
and check out large objects on the fly. To avoid this, perform a Save to
Workspace , Upload , and Checkin all in CATIA V5.

168 PTC Windchill® Workgroup Manager for CATIA® V5 Administrator's and User's Guide
Rules for Adding CATIA V5 Models with an Associated
Design Table to a Workspace
Consider these rules for using Add to Workspace :
• Any member of a CATIA V5 part family in Windchill can be individually
selected for the Add to Workspace action. For example, you can choose to add
the generic CATIA V5 model or a specific instance defined in the design table
to the workspace.
• If you want to add an instance to the workspace, the generic must always be
included as a required dependent.
• When you use Add to Workspace , the genericCATIA V5 model file and the
design table are added to the workspace.
• If you check out an instance when adding it to the workspace, then the entire
family (generic and all other instances) are added to the workspace and
checked out as well. If independently.modify.instances is set to
Yes, then only instances to be modified are checked out. See Modifying
Instance Files Independently on page 165 for more information.

Rules for Opening CATIA V5 Models with an Associated

Design Table from the Workspace or from CATIA V5
Consider these rules:
• When you open a generic CATIA V5 CAD document from the workspace, it
opens the model in CATIA V5.

Note
If you want to view or modify the design table, you must do it from CATIA V5.
• If an instance CAD document is not in the workspace, the system attributes
created by the Windchill Workgroup Manager may not be up to date.
• If you select a generic CATIA V5 CAD document to open and the generic is
not in the workspace, the generic and all instances are added to the workspace.
• If you select an instance, and the instance is not in the workspace, then the
instance and its generic CAD document must be added to the workspace.

Rules for Using Check Out

Consider these rules for using Check Out :
• By default, when you check out a generic CATIA V5 CAD document, all
instances are also checked out.
• You can make changes to the attributes in Windchill without checking out
individual CAD document.

Advanced Techniques 169

• When you check out a generic, the design table and the CATIA V5 model file
are added to the workspace as the primary content.
• When you check out a design table, all instances such as generic part, design
table, and instance part are checked out into the workspace.

Rules for Using Undo Checkout

Consider these rules for using the Undo Checkout action:
• By default, all members of the design table are selected when you perform an
Undo Checkout action. You cannot exclude any member from the selection.
• When you perform an undo checkout action, CAD documents created for the
new instances are removed from the workspace.
• Undo checkout can cause new files (for a generic, that includes a design table
and instances) to be downloaded. You may be prompted to replace the model in
session. If this occurs, all members of the design table must be replaced or
none of them.

Rules for Using Revise

Consider these rules for using the Revise action:
• The Revise action maintains synchronization among the CAD document of the
generic part, the design table file associated with the generic part, and the CAD
documents of individual family members.
• You are not required to revise the generic part and/or other family members if
you selected an individual instance to be revised. However, PTC recommends
that you revise the entire family together.
• Your administrator can set a server-side preference that determines whether the
entire family is included in the Revise action. By default, the revise collector
preference for family is set to All , and the entire family is included for the
Revise operation.

Rules for Removing from Workspace

Consider these rules for using the Remove action:
• You can select a generic or an instance to remove from a workspace.
• When you select an instance, the generic is collected as a required dependent.
When you select a generic, the instances are collected as well.
• When you remove a generic or instance, any modified instances from that
design table are also removed.

170 PTC Windchill® Workgroup Manager for CATIA® V5 Administrator's and User's Guide
• Removing a generic also removes the CATIA V5 model file and its design table
from the workspace local directory.
• Removing a generic CATIA V5 CAD document from a workspace attempts to
close the generic CATIA V5 model and any instances currently open in the
CATIA V5 session.

Rules for Editing Attributes

Windchill distinguishes two types of attributes:
• Non-file-based attribute—Windchill attribute that is not visible or modifiable in
the authoring application. Although its value can be added, modified, or
deleted through Windchill, it is not passed to the CATIA V5 model file, and,
therefore, is not accessible in CATIA V5. You can edit non-file-based attributes
on family members only in Windchill.
• File-based attribute— Windchill attribute that you can edit only from CATIA
V5 (you cannot edit configuration specific properties using the Windchill
workspace Edit Attributes command).

Managing CATIA V5 Catalogs

A catalog is a CATIA V5 document that keeps a list of references to other CATIA
parts and features. A typical CATIA document is a generic family table with
specific instances within a library context, with a <server>/<workspace>/<CAD-
specific folder>file structure. In practice, catalogs behave like large assemblies.
Use catalogs to insert their parts and features into other CATIA V5 documents.
Catalogs provide the ability to manage and access their part standards in a
centralized location, such as Windchill. Catalogs are tightly integrated with most of
the CATIA V5 workbenches, including but not limited to assembly design,
electrical design, electrical harness, and piping design. You can add catalog
members that are managed by Windchill to a product by using the catalog browser
in a Windchill Workgroup Manager enabled instance of CATIA V5. In effect,
Windchill uses catalogs to synchronize CATIA V5 documents with CATIA V5
documents that are not in Windchill.
When you insert or instantiate a component from a catalog in the catalog browser,
the Windchill Workgroup Manager checks if the component (using the CATIA V5
file as a checking mechanism) exists in Windchill. If the component with same file
name exists in Windchill, then that component is downloaded and opened to your
local workspace. If the component does not share the same file name, then that
component is created as a new one in your workspace, and checked in with other
new and modified designs.

Advanced Techniques 171

Shared Workspace Setup
Administrators first set up a catalog in their local workspace directory in a shared
location, and then users add the administered catalog in the shared local workspace
directory to their list of favorites, as shown in the diagram below:

The workflow is as follows:

1. An administrator checks in the catalog with the catalog members.
2. A user modifies the catalog members by accessing the catalog, adding a
catalog part to the workspace, or inserting an instance from the catalog that
does not iterate.
3. A user changes the catalog by changing an attribute or revision of a catalog
member, which puts the user and administrator workspaces out of sync.
4. An administrator manually or automatically updates the catalog.

An administrator can modify the shared location of the local workspace for the
catalog by setting the Windows environment variable PTC_WLD_ROOT to a
common location on the network, and replicate it by either a shared master location
or a configuration of the shared workspace for local users. More than one shared
location is possible.

172 PTC Windchill® Workgroup Manager for CATIA® V5 Administrator's and User's Guide
To update a catalog, administrators can do one of the following:
• Automatic — ensure that the shared workspace of the catalog is the same as the
local workspace on the workspace local directory of the administrator’s client
machine. See the Automatic Update section below for details.
• Manual — make changes to and check in the catalog and its members within
the shared workspace directory

If a catalog component is opened and changed outside a shared workspace

directory, then File ▶ Update must also be performed in Windchill for the
catalogs to synchronize in the different directories.

Advanced Techniques 173

To control access, administrators can define where the shared workspace is located
on the network as follows:
1. Determine the location of the workspace local directory by setting
PTC_WLD_ROOT on the computer that is importing the catalog into Windchill.
2. Open the catalog using a Windchill Workgroup Manager enhanced session of
CATIA V5.
3. Check in the catalog to the desired location in Windchill.
After the catalog and its dependents have been imported into Windchill, you can
set up access to the workspace in which the catalog was imported.
For example, if the environment variable is set to the following parameter:
PTC_WLD_ROOT=c:\WLD, then the folder that is to be shared across the network
would be: C:\WLD\.ws\<Server Path>\<Workspace Name.CATIAV5>.
The permissions on this folder must be set up so that users have enough access to
add this catalog to their favorites in CATIA.

End User Setup

After an administrator has created the shared workspace, you can add the shared
catalog to your list of favorites as follows:
1. Select CATIA ▶ Tools ▶ Options ▶ Infrastructure ▶ Catalog Editor . The following
window displays:

174 PTC Windchill® Workgroup Manager for CATIA® V5 Administrator's and User's Guide
2. Click .
3. Navigate to the shared location, and then select the catalog file.
4. Close and then restart CATIA V5 to confirm the change.
After the restart, use the catalog browser to navigate to the managed catalog.

Checkin
An administrator is responsible for checking in catalogs. Checking in a catalog is
initiated through the Windchill menu of a Windchill Workgroup Manager enabled
instance of CATIA V5. Upon checkin, any family table CATParts contained in the
catalog have instances resolved to a file. Metadata is not stored on CATIA V5
catalogs, and thus attributes are not associated with catalogs.
Catalogs with both normal and family table CATParts are supported. If a catalog
contains any part families, the families have their instances resolved and the
generic and instances are checked into Windchill. In Windchill, the catalog has a
reference link to the generic table of the family.
Catalogs are stored in Windchill as a life cycle-managed document. Any members
contained in the catalog are stored in Windchill as an EPMDocument, and are
considered a required dependent. Relationships between the catalog and its
members are managed in Windchill by a reference link between the
EPMDocument of the catalog,and the EPMDocument catalog member. Keywords

Advanced Techniques 175

used by CATIA V5 catalogs are not managed in Windchill. You can externally
reference catalogs by a managed copy of CATIA V5, and check them in as a design
reference.
Since catalogs contain large amounts of parts and families, you can expect the
checkin to take a substantial amount of time. However, copying the catalog and its
dependents to the workspace local directory before performing the checkin can
reduce the time.

Checkout
An administrator must initiate a checkout through theWindchill Workgroup Man-
ager client, the Windchill Workgroup Manager embedded browser, or aWindchill
Workgroup Manager enabled instance of CATIA V5. Checking out a catalog or
adding a catalog to the workspace adds the entire catalog to the shared workspace.
Catalogs generally contain many CAD documents, and checkouts take longer than
many similarly sized assemblies.
Since catalogs are very large sets of data, PTC recommends that you do not
remove a catalog and its members from the shared workspace. If catalog members
are changed in Windchill, update from either CATIA V5 or theWindchill Work-
group Manager client.

Automatic Update
An administrator should initiate an update from the client on the shared workspace
if members of a catalog have been changed in Windchill. Updating refreshes the
workspace with the latest version of any of the documents in that workspace.
You can automatically download any updates of a catalog and its members in
Windchill to a workspace by setting up a script that initiates automatic
synchronization between Windchill and the shared catalog folder. Follow these
steps:
1. Manually run theWindchill Workgroup Manager after adding the following
arguments in the command: -catalog_xml_file -username
<username>-password <password>.
The catalog.xml file is generated in the directory of Windchill Workgroup
Manager client (for example, C:\Program Files\PTC\wgm), and the password is
encrypted.
The XML file looks this:
<catalog_data.xml>
Please specify server name
<server_name value="vm91m040upgrade"/>
Please specify server URL
<server_url value="http://vm91m040upgrade.i-cubed.com/Windchill>
Please specify workspace name
<workspace_name value="mtb-upgrade1"/>
Please specify workspace context

176 PTC Windchill® Workgroup Manager for CATIA® V5 Administrator's and User's Guide
 <workspace_context value="Save As/Rename FT Project"/>
This is the encrypted username
<username value="egD+FRtdURLg6JhNeSmxL5EM3bPI/JPhNj4ywJlYyGO3
+DglXgxKEHozDXllAj/ghqyOyvMBSeANkkUkO1rUWd14SIaB5Qj0FUCtZNbf
684EbW6t7sPY1aJVeQNMTrf4QqJcT8QA5d5dWnl/
xnwQRbhZZsShLZjq7/MZHe3fcTQ="/>
This is the encrypted password
<password value="bi3nh2kxHRIVRGZZvfY6yHrYv1WCf1XT/mBdxoT0P4Rxbx9S8
gbitV0mtwOk9gptkDEjcu63qGPw7BVCu87Te42BKsMIqu/
lxQZeuOg0UtYd02WBsRqH2x3a
QspVW2ea8U9iPPQgZF2EPfJ+e306IaWh2J7TjWkO59luh58IHNY="/>
Please specify the catalog(s) name(s) used
<catalogs>
<catalog value="300-Catalog-xls-Catalog.catalog"/>
</catalogs>
</catalog_data.xml>

2. Modify the XML file as follows by filling in values for the following XML
elements (value=””):
*server_name – Server name, as it appears in the server registry window
*server_url – Server URL as it appears in the server registry window
*workspace_name – Workspace name, as it appears in the server registry
window
*workspace_context – Context name in which the workspace is created
if needed
*catalog– Name of the catalog object that needs to be added to the shared
workspace. Duplicate this tag to specify additional catalogs if needed in the
same shared workspace. For example, change an empty generated line
<server_name value="" /> to <server_name
value="myservername"/>
3. Set up the scheduled task. When specifying the command to run to the
scheduler in UNIX and Windows, provide the standard run command for the
Windchill Workgroup Manager client with additional argument:
-catalog_update.

Best Practices
If you are an administrator:
1. Make changes and check in the catalog and its members within the shared
workspace directory. The catalog is updated without having to update out-of-
sync components.
2. Synchronize the catalog, either manually or automatically.
3. Retrieve the catalog in the CAD tool.

Advanced Techniques 177

4. Manually or automatically update the content from the CAD tool to the shared
workspace for the catalog.
5. Copy the catalog and its dependents to the workspace local directory before
performing a check in to reduce the time it takes to complete a checkin.
If you are a user:
1. Do not use more than one catalog inside a workspace.
2. Insert or instantiate a catalog member.
• If the component has the same file name in Windchill, then the catalog
member is downloaded and opened from the local workspace.
• If the component does not have the same file name in Windchill, then the
catalog member is created and opened as new in the local workspace.
3. Check in the modified catalog members to Windchill.

Working With Fixed Member Links

Fixed member links are a form of updating the placement of CATIA V5 parts in an
assembly. Specifically, it involves setting the transformation matrix in Windchill
and determining if the parts are eligible in CATIA.

A fixed member link does not have a constraint in CATIA V5. A part in CATIA V5
is constrained if it cannot move.

178 PTC Windchill® Workgroup Manager for CATIA® V5 Administrator's and User's Guide
If the member link is fixed and has no constraints, then it can be used to build and
iterate assemblies.

Managing CATIA V5 Environments In

Windchill
This section describes configuring CATIA V5 environment management with
Windchill. A number of commonly used third party environment management
software utilities, such as myV5 and FlexPlus, can be used to insure the integrity of
each environment you in which you work. The environment created by these third
party applications can be exposed to Windchill through a configurable
environment variable.
With Windchill Workgroup Manager, you can associate documents stored in
Windchill with a CATIA V5 environments managed by these third party software
utilities to ensure that the document is opened and saved to Windchill in its
appropriate environment.
Use the following steps to configure Windchill Workgroup Manager to support
multiple environments:

Advanced Techniques 179

Step 1: Configure Windchill Workgroup Manager Preferences
You must set the following preferences in the Preference Management table in
Windchill so that Windchill Workgroup Manager can support multiple CATIA V5
environments:
Preference Description Notes
Enable Environment Specifies the string to Must be set to Yes to
Management control whether to enable enable environment
managing environment management.
information or not.
Environment The value of the string
Management Parameter defines the name of the
Windchill attribute which
displays the environment
information.
Managed Environment The environment variable If you use the FlexPlus
Variable used by the third party tool, you must enter
environment management V5_PRJ.
tools to specify the
current environment.

Step 2: Create your Environment Management Parameter Attribute

If you or your administrator have not already created the attribute to be used in the
Environment Management Parameter preference, use the type and attribute
management utility to create and associate it to CAD Documents:

Note
You may need administrative permissions to perform this task.
1. From Windchill, click the Type and Attribute Management link from Site ▶
Utilities or Organizations ▶ Utilities
2. In the Manage Global Attributes window, click the new attribute icon .
The New Attribute window appears.
3. In the Name field, enter the value you entered in the Environment Management
Parameter preference.
4. Select String from the Data Type list.
5. In the Logical Identifier field, enter a name to identify the attribute in external
configuration and property files. It is often the same as the attribute name and
should be unique across all attributes in the system.
6. Click OK .
The attribute definition appears in edit mode.
7. Enter a Description .

180 PTC Windchill® Workgroup Manager for CATIA® V5 Administrator's and User's Guide
8. Click Save or OK to save your changes.
The attribute has been created. Next, associate it to CAD Documents .
9. Under the Manage Types pane, expand EPM Document ▶ CAD Document .
10. Right click CAD Document and click Edit .
11. In the Attributes tab, click the New Attribute icon .
12. In the Internal Name field, enter an internal name and click Next .
13. Under Global Attributes , find and check the attribute you created earlier.
14. Click Finish .
15. The attribute is added to CAD Documents .

Using Environment Management

After completing the above procedure, when documents are checked in, the
environment associated with the document is visible from theCATIA V5 Properties
window, under the Product tab, using the attribute you created. The environment is
also visible in the document information page. When a document without an
associated environment is opened in CATIA V5, it is automatically associated with
the environment it was opened into.

Note
Currently it is not possible for a specific environment to be launched directly from
the Windchill Workgroup Manager. In order to start a specific environment, you
must use your third party environment management software utility to start CATIA
V5, then load CATIA V5 data from Windchill.

Advanced Techniques 181

182 PTC Windchill® Workgroup Manager for CATIA® V5 Administrator's and User's Guide
If the document is opened in an incorrect environment, you are notified that it is in
the incorrect environment and further modifications will be ignored. The document
is marked as read only in the CATIA V5 session to prevent you from saving in the
wrong environment.

If you continue to make changes, and attempt to Save to Workspace or Check in

the document, the below error appears, and the document remains modified and
read only in the CATIA V5 session.

If CATIA V5 is launched using a third party environment tool, but no environment

is selected, then the following warning message appears:

The following optional attributes can be set in the Preference Management table in
Windchill:
Preference Description Notes
Save data with active When saving a document, Set this preference to No
environment controls whether to asso- if you prefer to manually
ciate documents which set the environment of
have not been associated CAD Documents that are
with an environment to not currently associated
the active (or running) with an environment.
CATIA V5environment.
Allow to save in different When opening a docu-
environment ment into an environment

Advanced Techniques 183

Preference Description Notes
different from the one to
which it is associated,
controls whether to only
prompt the user that the
document is opened in the
wrong environment, or to
prompt and prevent sav-
ing the document from
that environment.

Configuring myV5 for Use with Windchill Environment Management

The following procedure demonstrates the basic configuration steps required to use
myV5 to manage CATIA V5 with Windchill:
1. For each CATIA V5 release registered in the Windchill Workgroup Manager,
create an environment file to load when starting the Windchill Workgroup
Manager.
The following example can be used as a template. Substitute the following
entries into the template:
[OS]
For 64 bit systems, enter x86e_win64. For 32 bit systems, enter
i486_nt.
[PTC_WF_ROOT]
If the environment variable PTC_WF_ROOT is used, substitute that value.
If not, the default location of <APPDATA>\PTC\ProENGINEER
\Wildfire\ should be used.
[Release]
Enter the CATIA V5 release number.
[OSDS]
For 64 bit systems, enter winb64. For 32 bit systems, enter intel_a.
[ManagedEnvironmentVariable]
In addition to these attributes, enter the attribute name you defined in the
Environment Management Parameter in Windchill to track the environment
name.

Note
Line breaks and extra spaces have been inserted into the below example to
improve readability.
!----------------------------------------------------------

184 PTC Windchill® Workgroup Manager for CATIA® V5 Administrator's and User's Guide
 ! DASSAULT SYSTEMES - V5 ENVIRONMENT FILE
!----------------------------------------------------------
! MODE : User
! TYPE : CATIA
! TMSTMP : 1306184211
! ARGS : -cs CATIA -a user -icon yes -menu yes
!----------------------------------------------------------

CATInstallPath=[PTC_WF_ROOT]\.wwgm\.cadadapters\[OS]\cv5R[Release]\[OSDS]
CATDLLPath=[PTC_WF_ROOT]\.wwgm\.cadadapters\[OS]\cv5R[Release]\[OSDS]\code\bin
CATICPath=[PTC_WF_ROOT]\.wwgm\.cadadapters\[OS]\cv5R[Release]\[OSDS]\code\productIC
CATCommandPath=[PTC_WF_ROOT]\.wwgm\.cadadapters\[OS]\cv5R[Release]\[OSDS]\code\command
CATDictionaryPath=[PTC_WF_ROOT]\.wwgm\.cadadapters\[OS]\cv5R[Release]\[OSDS]\
code\dictionary
CATDocView=[PTC_WF_ROOT]\.wwgm\.cadadapters\[OS]\cv5R[Release]\[OSDS]\doc
CATReffilesPath=[PTC_WF_ROOT]\.wwgm\.cadadapters\[OS]\cv5R[Release]\[OSDS]\reffiles
CATFontPath=[PTC_WF_ROOT]\.wwgm\.cadadapters\[OS]\cv5R[Release]\[OSDS]\resources\fonts
CATGalaxyPath=[PTC_WF_ROOT]\.wwgm\.cadadapters\[OS]\cv5R[Release]\[OSDS]\
resources\galaxy
CATGraphicPath=[PTC_WF_ROOT]\.wwgm\.cadadapters\[OS]\cv5R[Release]\[OSDS]\
resources\graphic;
C:\CAD\Dassault Systemes\B[Release]\[OSDS]\resources\graphic\icons;
[PTC_WF_ROOT]\.wwgm\.cadadapters\[OS]\cv5R[Release]\[OSDS]\resources\graphic\icons;
C:\CAD\Dassault Systemes\B[Release]\[OSDS]\resources\graphic\figures;
[PTC_WF_ROOT]\.wwgm\.cadadapters\[OS]\cv5R[Release]\[OSDS]\resources\graphic\figures;
C:\CAD\Dassault Systemes\B[Release]\[OSDS]\resources\graphic\splashscreens;
[PTC_WF_ROOT]\.wwgm\.cadadapters\[OS]\cv5R[Release]\[OSDS]\resources\
graphic\splashscreens;C:\CAD\Dassault Systemes\B[Release]\[OSDS]\resources\
graphic\symbols;[PTC_WF_ROOT]\.wwgm\.cadadapters\[OS]\cv5R[Release]\[OSDS]\
resources\graphic\symbols;C:\CAD\Dassault Systemes\B[Release]\[OSDS]\
resources\graphic\textures;[PTC_WF_ROOT]\.wwgm\.cadadapters\[OS]\cv5R[Release]\
[OSDS]\resources\graphic\textures
CATMsgCatalogPath=[PTC_WF_ROOT]\.wwgm\.cadadapters\[OS]\cv5R[Release]\
[OSDS]\resources\msgcatalog
CATFeatureCatalogPath=[PTC_WF_ROOT]\.wwgm\.cadadapters\[OS]\cv5R[Release]\
[OSDS]\resources\featurecatalog
CATDefaultCollectionStandard=[PTC_WF_ROOT]\.wwgm\.cadadapters\[OS]\cv5R[Release]\
[OSDS]\resources\standard
CATKnowledgePath=[PTC_WF_ROOT]\.wwgm\.cadadapters\[OS]\cv5R[Release]\
[OSDS]\resources\knowledge
CATStartupPath=[PTC_WF_ROOT]\.wwgm\.cadadapters\[OS]\cv5R[Release]\[OSDS]\startup
CATW3ResourcesPath=[PTC_WF_ROOT]\.wwgm\.cadadapters\[OS]\cv5R[Release]\[OSDS]\docs
[ManagedEnvironmentVariable]=[[ManagedEnvironmentVariable]]
PATH=[PTC_WF_ROOT]\.wwgm\.cadadapters\[OS]\cv5R[Release]\[OSDS]\code\bin;
[PTC_WF_ROOT]\.wwgm\.cadadapters\[OS]\cv5R[Release]\[OSDS]\code\command;
%JAVA_HOME%\bin;%PATH%

Note
The managed environment variable should be in brackets in order to read in the
value set in the myV5.xml file for the environment name.
2. Repeat for each CATIA V5 release registered.
3. Once you have created all your environment files, configure the myV5.xml
file, located in the base installation directory by default, to create a Windchill

Advanced Techniques 185

 Workgroup Manager launchable environment for each environment you wish
to be able to launch with Windchill Workgroup Manager for CATIA V5.
Open myV5.xml using a text editor and set the following required attributes
within an <Environment> tag for each environment you wish to be able to
launch with the Windchill Workgroup Manager for CATIA V5:
addon
Set this to check to make this a checkable environment add on.
env
Enter the path to the correct Windchill Workgroup Manager environment
file for the given CATIA V5 release created in step 4 below.
name
Enter the name of the environment add on you wish to display in the add
on section.
4. Within the <Setvar> tag, set the following attributes:
name
Enter the attribute name you defined in the Environment Management
Parameter.
value
Enter the name for this specific environment.
The following example can be used as a template:
<Environment addon="check" env=""C:\myV5.1.2.15\WGM_R19.txt""
icon="icons\I_wc_wgm.gif" name="WWGM"/>
<Setvar name="[ManagedEnvironmentVariable]" value="CompanyAR19"/>

Configuring FlexPlus for Use with Windchill Environment Management

The following procedure demonstrates the basic configuration steps required to use
FlexPlus to manage CATIA V5 with Windchill:

Note
To use FlexPlus with Windchill, you must set the Managed Environment Variable
preference in Windchill to V5_PRJ.
1. Launch the FlexPlus administration utility, located in the base installation
directory by default.
2. Click the CAA & Applications tab.
3. From the CAA Management tab, enter the following values:
a. Name —Enter the name presented to the user when launching an
environment.

186 PTC Windchill® Workgroup Manager for CATIA® V5 Administrator's and User's Guide
 b. EnvName —Select each environment from the drop down menu that you
wish to be able to launch with the Windchill Workgroup Manager for CAT-
IA V5.
c. MSWin32 —Enter <PTC_WF_ROOT>\.wwgm\.cadadapters\<OS>
\cv5R$V5_REL, where:
i. <PTC_WF_ROOT> is the location used in the environment variable
PTC_WF_ROOT. If not used, the default location of
<APPDATA>\PTC\ProENGINEER\Wildfire\ should be used.
and
ii. <OS> is x86e_win64 for 64 bit systems and i486_nt for 32 bit
systems.

4. Click Save .

CATProcess Document Support

CATProcess documents represent machining processes in CATIA V5, and can store
parameters and link to assemblies and other parts.

CATProcess Document Types

CATProcess files are stored in Windchill as documents in the ‘Manufacturing’
category. The top level element in all CATProcess files is the Process Product
Resource (PPR). The PPR points to the list of processes as well as the product list
and any referred resources, as illustrated in the following diagram.

Advanced Techniques 187

Metadata is stored in the CATProcess file using document attributes. They are
displayed in the document tree, but you can also find them by right-clicking a
process and going to the properties tab and selecting Specific .

CATProcess Links
In CATIA V5, CATProcess links are of the Document type. The links are at the
component level and do not specify features within a component. In Windchill,
CATProcess links are stored as Manufacturing Reference links.
CATProduct and CATPart are the required dependents of a CATProcess. When
adding a CATProcess file to the workspace, the related CATProduct and CATPart
are also brought to the workspace. The association or disassociation of
CATProcess part is supported. The default is disassociated.
If you modify a CATProcess on a design assembly and cause the design assembly
to be marked as modified, then you are asked to check in the CATAnalysis,
CATProduct, and CATPart. If you do, then the CATAnalysis, CATProduct, and
CATPart is saved in Windchill properly. Follow these steps:
1. Open the CATProcess and the corresponding design assembly or part from
Windchill into CATIA V5.
2. Make geometry changes to the part that is modifying the CATProcess.
3. Update the CATProcess if it is not updated automatically.
4. Click Save or Checkin .

188 PTC Windchill® Workgroup Manager for CATIA® V5 Administrator's and User's Guide
Save As or Rename
You can perform a Save As or Rename on a CATProcess dependent from Wind-
chill, but you must manually update any links from the CATProcess to dependents
that you saved or renamed. When you open such a CATProcess file that requires an
update, a message appears with instructions on how to update these links.
Due to a native CATIA V5 limitation, using Edit ▶ Link cannot fix a broken link
manually. This limitation applies only to CATProcess documents.

Synchronization
Attributes changes made in Windchill or your workspace can be propagated into a
CATIA V5 session if CATAnalysis is loaded. You can verify the updated attribute
in the property form, the entry under Parameter of the CATProcess and formula
window.

Exposing Manufacturing Information to MPMLink

You can expose the manufacturing information of a CATProcess in session upon
Save to Workspace and Checkin . This XML information is attached as secondary
content of the CATProcess file, and can be imported to MPMLink.

Advanced Techniques 189

CATAnalysis Document Support
CATAnalysis documents store parameters for performing physical simulations on
parts and assemblies, including links to the CATParts or CATProducts on which
the simulation is run. CATAnalysis files are stored in Windchill as documents with
category ‘Analysis’. Windchill visualization of CATAnalysis documents is not
supported.

CATAnalysis Process Document Types

Type Support
CATAnalysis Maps to document category Analysis in
Windchill
CATAnalysisResults Not supported
CATAnalysisComputations Not supported
CATAnalysisExport Not supported

The top-level element in all CATAnalysis documents is the Analysis Manager. The
Analysis Manager contains the Links Manager and the user-defined datasets for
performing simulations. The Links Manager manages the links to all dependent
CATParts and CATProducts as well as links to auxiliary content such as
CATAnalysisComputations files if present.

190 PTC Windchill® Workgroup Manager for CATIA® V5 Administrator's and User's Guide
Metadata is stored in the top-level Analysis Manager container. However CATIA
V5 does not display parameters in the structure tree nor are the parameters
viewable from the properties menu of the Analysis Manager. To view the
parameters, select the Analysis Manager in the structure tree and navigate to CATIA
▶ Tools ▶ Formula menu to view the Windchill system parameters.

CATAnalysis Links
In CATIA V5, CATAnalysis links are of type ‘Doc’. In Windchill, CATAnalysis
links are stored as Analysis Reference links in Windchill. The links are at the
component level and do not specify features within a component. Links to
unmanaged types, such as CATAnalysisResults, are not managed by the Windchill
Workgroup Manager or stored in Windchill.
The relationship between CATAnalysis and related design references (CATProduct
and CATPart) is structure. CATProduct and CATPart are the required dependents
of CATAnalysis. This means adding a CATAnalysis file to the workspace brings
the related CATProduct and CATPart to the workspaceas well.

Check In
If you modify a CATAnalysis on a design assembly and cause the design assembly
to be marked as modified, then you are asked to check in the CATAnalysis,
CATProduct, and CATPart. If you do, then the CATAnalysis, CATProduct, and
CATPart is saved in Windchillproperly. Related CATIA V5 parts are checked in as
well if they are modified.
You can perform Save As or Rename functions on a CATAnalysis dependent from
Windchill, but you must manually update any broken links from the CATAnalysis
to the dependents that have been renamed.
Check in a CATAnalysis file as follows:
1. Select File ▶ Open on the CATAnalysis file from outside the workspace local
directory.
2. In the workspace local directory, create a directory with the same name as the
CATAnalysis file with the suffix .dir.
3. In an open session of CATAnalysis, set the export manager for the results,
computations and export files to the new .dir directory.
4. Compute the analysis.
5. Select Windchill ▶ Save to Workspace .
6. Select Actions ▶ Edit Attachments in the workspace local directory.
7. Click Add Attachment .
8. Add the results file as an attachment category that is downloaded automatically
upon addition to a workspace (for example, CATIA V5 CGR.)
9. Click Apply .

Advanced Techniques 191

10. Repeat steps 8 and 9 for the computations and/or export files.
11. Click OK to finish editing attachments.
12. Check in the CATAnalysis and its dependents from the workspace.
After check in, the results, computations and export files are automatically
downloaded to the workspace local directory into the content directory when you
add the CATAnalysis to the workspace. Verify this as follows:
1. Close the CATAnalysis from CATIA V5.
2. Remove the files from the workspace.
3. Verify that all the files are removed from the workspace local directory (delete
the files, if they have not already been removed).
4. Click Open in CATIA V5 on the CATAnalysis from the commonspace.
5. Verify that the links are not broken and are pointing to the content directory
within the workspace local directory.

Best Practices
PTC recommends that you keep the CATAnalysisResults and
CATAnalysisComputation files outside of the workspace local directory.
1. Set the analysis setting in options to the current CATAnalysis folder.
2. Put the CATAnalysis and its dependents in a different directory (outside of
workspace local directory) than its related CATAnalysisResults and
CATAnalysisComputations files.
3. Put the CATAnalysisResults and CATAnalysisComputations files outside of a
child directory of the CATAnalysis path.
4. Select File ▶ Open on the CATAnalysis file.
5. Select Windchill ▶ Save to Workspace (or Windchill ▶ Check In ▶ Auto Check In
) on the CATAnalysis file.

Synchronization
The attributes changes made in Windchill or the workspace can be propagated into
a CATIA V5 session if CATAnalysis is loaded.

CATMaterial File Support

CATMaterial (CATIA Material Specification), also known as the CATIA Material
Library, has the file extension of .CATMaterial. In native CATIA V5, it can be
created and modified through the Infrastructure ▶ Material Library workbench. The
following image formats are supported: .tif, .jpg, .bmp, .rgb, .pic, .psd, .png, .tga, .
hdr, and .exr. CATMaterial is used to apply material for mechanical and electrical
design.

192 PTC Windchill® Workgroup Manager for CATIA® V5 Administrator's and User's Guide
Two additional types of link support has been introduced with CATMaterial file
support. Below is a description of the new link types which are reported in Wind-
chill. In CATIA V5, CATMaterial is linked to image files through an “Image” link
which is maintained when saved into Windchill. In Windchill, two links are
available:
Link Description
Material Between the CAD document and
CATMaterial when selecting the “link
to file” option when applying the
material.
Image Between CAD document and an
external image file which represents the
texture of the material if you do not
select the “link to file” option and the
texture image file exists. You can also
use it to link two supporting texture
image files.

Setting Up CATMaterial with Windchill

CATMaterial and its texture image files are managed downstream in Windchillfrom
a Managed Read Only Area (MROA). For more information on Managed Read
Only Areas, see Read-Only Areas on page 159.
Once the CATMaterial files have been populated into Windchill, you must make
them available through a central location for users downstream. The checked in
copies of the CATMaterial files and of the supporting image files should be copied
from the administrator workspace, a central location that is referenced by users
during design. PTC recommends that the location be a common location for all
users — users must define this location either in the preferences on the server or in
the wgmclient.ini file.

Advanced Techniques 193

1. Create a dedicated workspace to attach and check in CATMaterial to Windchill.

194 PTC Windchill® Workgroup Manager for CATIA® V5 Administrator's and User's Guide
2. Check in the CATMaterial to the workspace.

3. Save in the network the workspace local directory corresponding to the

CATMaterial.

Advanced Techniques 195

Using CATMaterial with Windchill
When you apply material, the CATMaterial library and texture image files are
accessed from an MROA without being downloaded to your local workspace.
When you Check In or Save to Workspace the CAD documents, the CATMaterial
and image files are added as links in the local workspace.
1. Use the following preference in your wgmclient.ini file to define the
network location from which the CATMaterial and supporting image files are
referenced.
managed.read.only.area.folders=<shared workspace directory>\MATERIALS

OR
Use the Managed Read Only Area Folders preference in the Windchill
Preference Management utility. You only need to define the top level folder
where the CATMaterial files reside, all the subfolders are included.
2. Set the CATMaterial network directory in other folders.

Note
You must enter all subdirectories in the search order if any are present in the
network location. Do this by clicking the Add Tree button to recursively add all
subfolders to the search path.
3. Set the default material catalog path to point to the .CATMaterial file from
the shared workspace directory. While not mandatory in Windchill, it facilitates
access to the CATMaterial file from the shared directory in CATIA V5 when

196 PTC Windchill® Workgroup Manager for CATIA® V5 Administrator's and User's Guide
 you want to apply the material. Otherwise, you need to browse the directory
each time you open the CATMaterial catalog.

Advanced Techniques 197

Working With CATMaterial Files
To apply CATMaterial to a CAD document, navigate to the default material catalog
and apply material to the part.

You can insert the material either with a material link to the CATMaterial file, or
with an image link to a supporting texture image file in a Managed Read Only
Area. With CATIA ▶ Edit ▶ Links you can see that the CATPart refers to the
CATMaterial catalog from the shared workspace

198 PTC Windchill® Workgroup Manager for CATIA® V5 Administrator's and User's Guide
If you have used a material link to the CATMaterial file, two documents are in the
CATIA V5 session: the CATPart and the CATMaterial..

Advanced Techniques 199

Save to Workspace on the CATPart causes the CATPart to be saved to the
workspace, and the CATMaterial and texture files to be added to the workspace as
links.

Also, the dynamic documents page for the CATPart points to the CATMaterial as a
reference.

200 PTC Windchill® Workgroup Manager for CATIA® V5 Administrator's and User's Guide
If you have used an image link to the CATMaterial file, then only the CATPart is in
the CATIA session.

Save to Workspace on the CATPart causes the CATPart referenced texture image
file to be added to the workspace as a link. Also, the dynamic documents page for
the CATPart points to the CATMaterial as an image file.

Advanced Techniques 201

Working With CATIA V4 Data
You can work with data populated by the CATIA V4 Windchill Workgroup Manag-
er and use the data with assemblies without needing CATIA V4 as the authoring
application. The following PDM actions are supported:
• Open from Windchill
• Insert and Replace (from the information page)
• Save to Workspace
• Check In (Auto and Custom)
• Check Out
• Revise and Check Out
• Undo Checkout
• Update (All and Current)
• Representation Management (Include, Exclude, Switch)
• Save As and Rename
In Windchill, the extension for CATIA V4 file names is .model. Existing CATIA
V4 data will maintain its authoring application as CATIA V4.

Working With Templates

Windchill Workgroup Manager for CATIA V5 supports templates and template
links. You navigate to the template in the commonspace and instantiate the
template in CATIA V5. In Windchill, the template is represented by links.
Templates can link an analysis, a process, and a drawing, and have either a .
CATPart or .CATProduct extension. They are used for starting CATIA V5 projects
from scratch.

202 PTC Windchill® Workgroup Manager for CATIA® V5 Administrator's and User's Guide
A template is an EPMDocument type in the Windchill Workgroup Manager, and
has an assembly subtcategory that makes Windchill see template links as doctypes.

Comparing Model Iterations in CATIA V5

You can launch a comparison in CATIA V5 of different versions and iterations of
parts and assemblies stored in Windchill. This comparison opens the base model in
CATIA (either the latest version selected or the version in the workspace) and
creates a CATProduct in the CATIA session. Each version of the document
selected for comparison is inserted in order to utilize comparison tools in the DMU
Space Analysis workbench in CATIA V5.
Compare model iterations as follows:

Advanced Techniques 203

1. Navigate to the information page in the commonspace of the model in the
workspace local directory that you wish to compare versions.
2. Select the History Tab.
3. Check the version and iteration you want to compare and click the Compare
Content icon.

Note
If there are any model versions present in the active workspace, those versions
are utilized as the base model. If you would like to use a different version,
remove the existing active versions from your workspace or use a different
workspace for comparison. If you do not have anything in the workspace, the
latest iteration is added there and used as the base model.

Once initiated, Windchill:

204 PTC Windchill® Workgroup Manager for CATIA® V5 Administrator's and User's Guide
1. Opens the base model iteration in CATIA V5.
2. Creates a CATProduct in a CATIA V5 session that contains the base model and
the selected iterations for comparison using the tools available in the DMU
Space Analysis workbench.
3. Puts the additional iterations in a wgm_compare folder.
4. Changes the active workbench in CATIA into the DMU space analysis
workbench. The comparison fails if this workbench is not available.
Note
By default the additional iterations are put in the temp directory. If you want to
specify the location of this folder, change the system environment variable
PTC_WGM_CM_TEMP on your machine (you must restart CATIA V5 and Wind-
chill Workgroup Manager for the change to take effect).
Theresult is two open windows in CATIA V5. One window has the base model
version for editing purposes in the workspace, and another has a temporary top
level assembly called CompareTopModel with the base model iteration on the
top of the specification tree and the selected iterations below.

Advanced Techniques 205

 8
Administration and Configuration

CAD Worker Setup .................................................................................................. 208

Using a File Synchronization-Capable Worker with Windchill Workgroup
Manager.............................................................................................................. 208
Installing and Configuring CATIA V5 .......................................................................... 214
Configuring Theorem Worker.................................................................................... 226
Configuring Business Practices ................................................................................ 246
Performance Considerations .................................................................................... 295
System Configuration Recommendations .................................................................. 298
Client and Server Logging ........................................................................................ 299
Enabling Debug Logging in Windchill Workgroup Manager Client ................................ 301

This chapter is intended for administrators. It covers the information necessary for
setting up and configuring Windchill Workgroup Manager for CATIA V5. It may
be useful to refer to the following Windchill documents for more information:
• Windchill Customization Guide
• Windchill Enterprise Administration Guide
• Windchill Specialized Administration Guide
These guides are located at PTC Reference Documents.
This chapter also covers other recommendations for performance tuning and
setting up a desirable Windchill folder structure.

Note
Refer to Preferences on page 305 for more information about preferences.

207
CAD Worker Setup
It is recommended that administrators use the following major sequence for setup:
1. Windchill server
2. CAD worker
3. Windchill Workgroup Manager
For details on CAD Worker setup, see the Windchill Visualization Services Guide,
located at the PTC Reference Documents site.

Using a File Synchronization-Capable

Synchronization-Capable
Worker with Windchill Workgroup
Manager
These instructions apply if you are using the CATIA V5 file synchronization-
capable worker. This configuration uses the Windchill Workgroup Manager to
synchronize Windchill attributes with the attribute values in the CAD files prior to
publishing Creo View viewables.
The following is an example of the configuration changes needed to tell Windchill
Visualization Services to use file synchronization for publishing data. This general
concept applies to all file synchronization-capable workers.
Note
Multiple-aliased (using the dAPI -DA argument) workers on the same host
machine are not currently supported for any non-Creo Parametric worker that is
configured for file synchronization.
Perform the following steps to enable the feature for the other file synchronization-
capable workers. Note the differences in the command string for each of the file
synchronization-capable workers:
1. Append the useworkerdownload variable to the publish.cadconvert.
<worker_name> variable in the wvs.properties file using the
xconfmanager utility. This tells the publisher to use the worker for the file
download (useworkerdownload) and that the username and password to give
the worker can be found in the auth.properties file in the Windchill
directory.
From a Windchill shell, execute the following commands:
a. To display the current value of the publish.
cadconvert<worker_name> variable:
xconfmanager -d publish.cadconvert.<worker_name>

208 PTC Windchill® Workgroup Manager for CATIA® V5 Administrator's and User's Guide
 b. Append the useworkerdownload variable definition to the publish.
cadconvert<worker_name> variable:
useworkerdownload=$(wt.home)$(wvs.dir.sep)auth.properties

Use a comma (,) separator when appending the new value.

For CATIA V5:
xconfmanager -s
publish.cadconvert.CATIAV5=com.ptc.wvs.server.publish.CadConvert
CATIAV5,useworkerdownload=$(wt.home)$(wvs.dir.sep)auth.properties
-t <Windchill>\codebase\wvs.properties -p

where <Windchill> is the location where Windchill is installed.

2. The publish.cadconvert.<worker_name> variable edited in the previous
step references the auth.properties file. At this time, the file does not
exist and must be created using the following steps:
a. In the above examples, Windchill Visualization Services looks for the
auth.properties file in the Windchill directory, but, if desired, you
can define a new location for this file. For security reasons, the file should
not be located in the codebase directory.
b. Create the auth.properties file using a text editor of your choice.
c. Add an authentication variable that includes a user name and password
value. This is the only entry in this file.
auth=<username>:<password>

Replace <username> and <password> with valid values. The specified user
name must have read access to the Windchill objects to be published
through Windchill Visualization Services, and it must have the
authorization to download the content from Windchill.
d. Save your changes and close the auth.properties file.
3. Restart the Windchill server.

Configuring the Worker

In order to synchronize the values of properties shared between an authoring
application and Windchill during viewable generation, the following components
need to be installed on the worker system:
• The authoring application
• The applicable Creo View adapter—For installation information, see the PTC
Creo View MCAD Adapter Installation and Configuration Guide.
• Windchill Workgroup Manager—For installation information, see Installing the
Windchill Workgroup Manager on page 25.

Administration and Configuration 209

Post-Installation
Post-Installation Configuration of the Worker on Windows
After the Windchill Workgroup Manager is installed, two system-level
environment variables need to be defined:
1. Copy the PTC_WGM_HOME environment variable definition from the user-
level environment settings to the system-level environment settings. The value
for this setting is the directory where the Windchill Workgroup Manager is
installed.
2. Remove the PTC_WGM_HOME environment variable definition from the
user-level environment setting.
3. Create a new system-level environment variable called PTC_WF_ROOT. Set
the variable value to a directory to which the system-level account has write
access.
4. Restart the worker machine after defining these two environment variables to
allow the new settings to take effect in the system environment.
Register the authoring application with Windchill Workgroup Manager. For more
information, see Registering a CAD Application on page 48. Do not register the
Windchill server with the Windchill Workgroup Manager.
Optionally, you can configure

Configuring the GS Worker Daemon Service Properties

Edit the GS Worker Daemon service properties to provide system access, which is
necessary for file synchronization to function properly:
1. In the GS Worker Daemon Properties window, select the Log On tab.
2. Set Log On As to Local System Account and click OK .
3. On the Services panel, select Stop if the service is running .
4. Restart the service in order for the changes to take effect.

Configuring the Creo View Adapter for HTTPS

Because the worker runs in the background, message windows that arise during
communication with the server should be avoided. In an HTTPS environment, for
example, certificates should be loaded and pre-accepted in order for the worker
system to avoid acceptance windows.

210 PTC Windchill® Workgroup Manager for CATIA® V5 Administrator's and User's Guide
Accepting Certificates on Windows
For the Windows worker to publish data, the GS Worker Daemon service must be
configured with the specific logon information of a user who can log on to the
local host and accept certificates from the Windchill server:
1. In Windows, select Start ▶ Control Panel ▶ Administrative Tools . Once the
Administrative Tools window opens, double-click the Services icon. The
Services window opens.
2. View the properties of the GS Worker Daemon.
3. Return to the GS Worker Daemon Services window. Under the General tab,
click Stop .
4. Under the Log On tab, select This account and enter the user logon and
password information.
5. Return to the General tab and click Start to restart the service.
6. Open the Windchill Workgroup Manager and browse to the Windchill server.
7. Install (accept) the security certificate for the secure site.
8. Click Exit to exit the Windchill Workgroup Manager.
9. See Configuring the GS Worker Daemon Service Properties on page 210 for
the steps to configure the worker on the server.

Using a Windchill Workgroup Manager Remote Worker

System Installation
The basic requirement for publishing with file sync enabled on a remote worker
machine is that there should not be any server registered with the Windchill Work-
group Manager. However, when the Windchill Workgroup Manager is installed
from a server, this condition is satisfied due to automatic server registration. As a
result, server-side publishing cannot proceed until you complete the following
steps:
1. After installing the Windchill Workgroup Manager client on the worker
machine from a Windchill server, edit the wgmclient.ini file located at
<WGM_INSTALL_DIR> to comment-out the server entry:
#Default server URL.
#default.server.url=<server_url>
2. Ensure that the “Start application” option is not selected to launch Windchill
Workgroup Manager after completion of the installation.

Configuring Multiple File Sync Workers

This section provides instructions on setting up multiple Windchill CATIA V5
CAD Workers. The following variables are used in this procedure:

Administration and Configuration 211

<TS_INST>
Theorem installation folder
<PVIEW_WORKING_DIR>
Theorem CADverter setup folder
<WGM_HOME>
Windchill Workgroup Manager installation folder
<CATIAV5>
CATIA V5 application installation folder
<APPDATA>
Windows application data folder
<RELEASE>
CATIA V5 release number being used

Configuring Multiple CATIA V5 Workers

1. Decide on a worker machine alias for each worker required on a single
machine, such as: catiaworker_1, catiaworker_2, and
catiaworker_3.
2. From the worker machine, use the catia5_pv_config utility to create
several identical configurations, one for each required worker, with a relevant
name, such as: catia5_setup1, catia5_setup2, and
catia5_setup3.

Note
Ensure that the Enable WWGM file synchronization support checkbox is
selected.
3. Edit each catia5worker.bat script and add the relevant -DA <alias>
as the first argument after the <TS_INST>\bin
\catia5r<release>_pv.cmd in the worker monitor command line. For
example:
<TS_INST>\i486_nt\obj\workermonitor" -UH -s "<TS_INST>
\bin\catia5r19_pv.cmd" -DA catiaworker_1 -vt -r...

4. Edit each worker script and add the following commands. For example, for
catiaworker_1:
set PVIEW_WORKING_DIR=D:\Theorem\cadworkers\catia5_setup1
set PTC_WF_CACHE=%PVIEW_WORKING_DIR%\.wgm
set PTC_WF_ROOT=%PVIEW_WORKING_DIR%\.wgm\wf_root
set PTC_WGM_STARTUP_DIR=%PVIEW_WORKING_DIR%\.wgm\uwgm_logs
set PTC_WLD_ROOT=%PVIEW_WORKING_DIR%\.wgm\wld_root
set VC_LOG_DIR=%PVIEW_WORKING_DIR%\.wgm\uwgm_logs
set PTC_WGM_ROOT=%PVIEW_WORKING_DIR%\.wgm\wgm_root
set PTC_WGM_XML_TEMP=%PVIEW_WORKING_DIR%\.wgm\XML

212 PTC Windchill® Workgroup Manager for CATIA® V5 Administrator's and User's Guide
 set TEMP=%PVIEW_WORKING_DIR%

Note
You need to remove the existing line setting the PTC_WF_ROOT,
PTC_WGM_STARTUP_DIR, and PTC_WLD_ROOT variables.
5. Configure the Windchill server so that each of the worker aliases is resolved to
the relevant worker host name alias. Edit the
%SystemRoot%\System32\drivers\etc\hosts file and adding an
entry such as:
[worker-ip-addr] [hostname] [alias-name_1] [alias-name_2] [alias-name_3] [etc]

For example:
123.456.789.1 catiaworker catiaworker_1 catiaworker_2 catiaworker_3

6. Configure a worker definition for each worker using the Worker Agent
Configuration Wizard, adding each aliased worker (using the alias name for the
worker host name) as a separate worker, each with one instance.

Windchill Workgroup Manager Configuration for Multiple File Sync

Enabled Workers
1. Install the Windchill Workgroup Manager client build in the chosen location.
For example: C:\Program Files (x86)\PTC\wgm.
2. Create a batch file in each of the worker setup folders to run the different Wind-
chill Workgroup Manager environments with the contents shown below:
a. For the first worker configuration, create batch file WWGM_Setup1.bat:
set PVIEW_WORKING_DIR=D:\Theorem\cadworkers\catia5_setup1
set PTC_WF_CACHE=%PVIEW_WORKING_DIR%\.wgm\wf_cache
set PTC_WF_ROOT=%PVIEW_WORKING_DIR%\.wgm\wf_root
set PTC_WGM_STARTUP_DIR=%PVIEW_WORKING_DIR%\.wgm\uwgm_logs
set PTC_WLD_ROOT=%PVIEW_WORKING_DIR%\.wgm\wld_root
set VC_LOG_DIR=%PVIEW_WORKING_DIR%\.wgm\uwgm_logs
set PTC_WGM_ROOT=%PVIEW_WORKING_DIR%\.wgm\wgm_root
set PTC_WGM_XML_TEMP=%PVIEW_WORKING_DIR%\.wgm\XML
“[WGM_HOME]\bin\uwgm_client.js”

b. For the second worker configuration, copy WWGM_Setup1.bat to the

second worker setup folder and edit the first line for the new location
accordingly. For example:
set PVIEW_WORKING_DIR=D:\Theorem\cadworkers\catia5_setup2

c. Repeat for each additional worker configuration.

3. Register CATIA V5 for each worker’s Windchill Workgroup Manager
configuration. This creates unique PTC_WF_ROOT and PTC_WGM_ROOT
content in each worker setup folder.

Administration and Configuration 213

 To register CATIA V5 for the first worker’s Windchill Workgroup Manager
configuration:
a. Run the Windchill Workgroup Manager using the batch file
WWGM_Setup1.bat

Note
For Windows 7 and Windows Vista, run as an administrator.
b. Select the desired CATIA V5 version and click Register .

Note
If registering manually, the default startup command must be used.

c. Click Close .
d. Register your server.
e. Close the Windchill Workgroup Manager client.
f. Update the startup user’s CATIA V5 environment file (the Windchill Work-
group Manager client application registration process for each new worker
configuration resets this CATIA V5 environment file):
i. Edit the common Windchill Workgroup Manager for CATIA V5
environment file to use the PTC_WF_ROOT variable set in the
catia5worker.bat
ii. Open the Windchill Workgroup Manager for CATIA V5 environment
file (the default location is
%APPDATA%\ \DassaultSystemes\CATEnv
\WGM_10.0_CATIA_V5_R<Release>.txt).
iii. Replace all references to the PTC_WF_ROOT location (for example:
D:\Theorem\cadworkers\catia5_setup1\.wgm\wf_root
) with the environment variable %PTC_WF_ROOT%.
Repeat for each additional worker configuration.

Installing and Configuring CATIA V5

This section describes how to install and configure CATIA V5.

214 PTC Windchill® Workgroup Manager for CATIA® V5 Administrator's and User's Guide
For installation of CATIA V5 R19, R20, R21, and 5-6R2012, the following
conditions are required:
CATIA V5 Prerequisites
Version
R19
• Microsoft Visual Studio 2005
• KB926601 (this is Service Pack 1 and must be installed
first)
• KB937122
• KB935225
• KB946310
• Java SE Runtime Environment 1.6_02
R20
• Microsoft Visual Studio 2005
• KB926601 (this is Service Pack 1 and must be installed
first)
• KB937122
• KB935225
• KB935935
• KB946310
• KB932232 (Windows Vista only)
• Sun Version 6 Update 14
R21 and 5- Microsoft Visual Studio .Net 2008 SP1 including C/C++
6R2012 compilers, with following patches:
• KB967211
• KB968338
• KB971672
• KB957912
• KB969394
• KB960075-v2
• KB975919
• KB979335

Setting the CAA RADE Enviroment

This section describes how to set the CAA RADE environment for the License
Manager.

Administration and Configuration 215

1. Select Start ▶ All Programs ▶ CAA RADE ▶ Tools ▶ RADE License Manager
V5RXX .
2. Locate and select your available license:

3. Click Apply and close the window.

Installing CATIA V5
Complete the following steps to install CATIA V5.
1. Insert disk 1 and launch setup.exe from the disk.
2. Click Next and set the destination folder:

216 PTC Windchill® Workgroup Manager for CATIA® V5 Administrator's and User's Guide
3. Click Next .
4. Select the complete or custom option depending upon your license:

5. Click Next .
6. Set your Orbix values:

7. Continue clicking Next and accept the default options. When you reach the
final step, click Install . Continue following the instructions until the installation
is complete.
Note
The same CATIA V5 RADE software is used for both the Windows 64 bit and
32 bit platforms. On a Windows 64 bit platform the RADE software cannot be
installed in the same location as the client and API software. You must choose
another location for the installation directory (for example: B19_RADE).

Administration and Configuration 217

Installing CATIA CAA API
To install the CATIA CAA API, insert disk 1 and follow the instructions to install
all the software.
Note
The same CATIA V5 RADE software is used for both the Windows 64 bit and 32
bit platforms. On a Windows 64 bit platform the RADE software cannot be
installed in the same location as the client and API software. You must choose
another location for the installation directory (example: B19_RADE).

Installing CAA RADE

Complete the following steps to install the CAA RADE:
1. Insert the CAA RADE CD and proceed with the installation (setup.exe).
2. Click Next ▶ Next ▶ Next .
3. Choose the location for the environment files.
4. Choose the complete installation.
Note
The same CATIA V5 RADE software is used for both the Windows 64 bit and
32 bit platforms. On a Windows 64 bit platform the RADE software cannot be
installed in the same location as the client and API software. You must choose
another location for the installation directory (example: B19_RADE).
5. Select No Server Setup as the TCK setup type and click Next .
6. Click Install and then Finish to complete the installation. Disregard the warning
message related to the executable ssh.exe path.

Configuring the CAA Development Environment

Complete the following steps to configure the CAA development environment:

218 PTC Windchill® Workgroup Manager for CATIA® V5 Administrator's and User's Guide
1. Launch the CAA V5 Development Environment Setup using the setup utility,
located under
<client_loadpoint>\BXX\intel_a\code\bin\CATVBTSetup.
exe.

Note
The default location for a 64-bit platform might be different:
<client_loadpoint>\BXX_RADE\ intel_a\code\bin
\CATVBTSetup.exe.
2. Check the following CATIA CAA development components to be installed:
MKMK, CodeGenerator, and Workspace Manager:

3. Click Install and then OK . Close the window.

Creating a CAA V5 Workspace in Visual Studio

Complete the following steps to create a CAA V5 workspace in Microsoft Visual
Studio:
1. Launch Visual Studio.
2. From the main menu select File ▶ New CAA V5 Workspace . A message appears;
click OK .

Administration and Configuration 219

3. Select a directory to save your workspace.

220 PTC Windchill® Workgroup Manager for CATIA® V5 Administrator's and User's Guide
4. Choose your correct TOP Level (V5R19_B19 for CATIA V5 R19
environment, V5R20_B20 for CATIA V5 R20 environment, and so on) from
the lists.

5. Create a new generic framework.

Administration and Configuration 221

6. Name the framework (for example, V5B19Framework), and then select
Implementation and Development .

222 PTC Windchill® Workgroup Manager for CATIA® V5 Administrator's and User's Guide
7. Select OK and then File ▶ Exit .
8. Restart Visual Studio to open the new workspace.

Building and Placing Abstraction Libraries

PTC provides a utility to generate the necessary CATIA libraries. Launch the
utility by double-clicking the CATIA_V5_Builder.exe file, located under
<windchill_loadpoint>\codebase\install\uwgm
\Catia5Builder\Windows.
1. Run the executable file.
2. Click Next .
3. Select the installation directory (example: \Catia5Builder) and then click Next .
4. Select the CATIA V5 release (example: CATIA V5 R19 x64) and then click
Next .

Administration and Configuration 223

5. Retrieve the tck_init.bat file located in the RADE installation (…
\Dassault Systemes\B19_RADE\intel_a\code\command
\tck_init.bat).

Note
As required by Dassault Systemes, the CATIA V5 abstraction files need to be
built with the CAA RADE tool and APIs at the same service pack level that the
client is running. If you build the abstraction files with a different service pack
level than that of the client, then the configuration is not supported and
undesirable results might occur.
6. Click Next
7. Select the CAA RADE tool level (example: V5R19_B19 for R19) and then
click Next .
8. Identify the location of CAADir.txt located in the client installation folder
(example: Dassault Systemes\B19\CAADir.txt) and then click Next .
9. Click Install .

10. When the installation is complete, click Done .

224 PTC Windchill® Workgroup Manager for CATIA® V5 Administrator's and User's Guide
 When the installation process is complete, a ZIP file containing the libraries is
created in the installation folder. For V5R19 on a 64-bit platform, the file is
uwgm_client.x86e_win64.cv5absR19.zip.
11. Replace the existing empty file in the Windchill load point with the newly
created one:
<windchill_loadpoint>\codebase\install\uwgm
\catiav5_bundles \uwgm_client.x86e_win64.cv5absR19.
zip.

Reinstalling and Configuring CATIA V5 After a Patch

or Maintenance Release
This section describes how to reinstall and configure CATIA V5 after applying a
patch to the Windchill server or updating the Windchill client after a maintenance
release.
After applying a patch or a maintenance release, complete the following steps:
1. Rebuild the CATIA V5 abstraction library files.
Run the patched Abstraction Builder executable file, located under
<Install Point>/codebase/install/uwgm/Catia5Builder/
<Operating System>/VM/.
Note
If you are reinstalling because of a patch, then the patch installer creates a
backup of the old (unpatched) Abstraction Builder executable in the same
location. If you are reinstalling because of a maintenance release, then this
backed up version of the Abstraction Builder is not available.
2. Clear the Java Plug-In cache on the client machine.
WXP 32–bit
32–bit WXP 64–bit
64–bit

a. From the Windows Start menu, a. From the Windows Start menu, se-
select Settings ▶ Control Panel ▶ lect Settings ▶ Control Panel ▶
Java . View x86 Control Panel Icons ▶
b. Select General ▶ Temporary Inter- Java .
net Files ▶ Settings b. Select General ▶ Temporary Inter-
c. Click Delete net Files ▶ Settings

d. Click OK to confirm. c. Click Delete

d. Click OK to confirm.
3. Reinstall the Windchill Workgroup Manager client.
If you are reinstalling because of a patch, then you must reinstall the client
from the Windchill server onto any client machine that requires the patch.

Administration and Configuration 225

Configuring Theorem Worker
This section describes how to configure the Theorem worker for Creo View
visualizations of CATIA V5 data.
Note
After configuring the Theorem worker, you can configure the publishing process to
provide a file format selection menu when an object is published manually. To do
this, change the Windchill Visualization Services Publish Rules default to
CATIAV5, and create a visualization configuration to load the Publish Rules XML
file. For details, see “Using Publish Rules” and “Creating Publish Rules” PTC
Windchill Visualization Services Guide

Downloading and Installing Theorem Worker

Complete the following steps to download and install Theorem worker:
1. Request a license for Theorem Worker from [email protected]. For more
information, see Configuring the Theorem Worker License on page 228.
2. If Windchill File System (WFS) is running on the machine where you will
install the Theorem worker, you must turn it off:
a. Go to the Control Panel in Windows.
b. Select Administrative Tools ▶ Services .
c. Under Services (Local) , right-click PTC WFS Controller and select
Properties .
d. In the Startup type field, select Disabled .
e. Under Service status, click Stop .
f. Click OK .
3. Download the Theorem Adapter from http://www.theoremsolutions.com/info/
ptc_adapters.htm.
4. Unzip the downloaded CD to a temporary location.
5. Run Autorun.exe.
6. Select Install CADverter .
7. Follow the installation steps, accepting the default values until the Installation
Summary step:

226 PTC Windchill® Workgroup Manager for CATIA® V5 Administrator's and User's Guide
8. Deselect all components for installation that begin with CATIA V5 Rxx -> except
for CATIA V5 Rxx -> ProductView .
9. Enter the correct installation path for CATIA V5 when prompted (example: C:
\Program Files\Dassault Systemes\B24):

10. Launch the installation by clicking Install .

Administration and Configuration 227

Configuring the Theorem Worker License
A license is required to use Theorem adapters, which can be requested at
[email protected]. You need to provide your worker host name and ID. You
can find your host by typing the command lmutil lmhostid from the FLEXlm
directory of the Theorem adapter.
If the output returns several host IDs, then use the last one only.
Once you receive your license, configure it as follows:
1. Set your system environment variable on the worker machine to:
THEOREM_LICENSE_FILE=7601@ <license host machine>.
2. Use the FLEXlm License Manager tool in the control panel to find your host
ID by entering the following command: lmutil lmhostid

If the output returns several host IDs, use the last one only.
3. Use the FLEXlm License Manager tool in the control panel to point to your
license file.

228 PTC Windchill® Workgroup Manager for CATIA® V5 Administrator's and User's Guide
4. Click Start under the Control tab. .

Administration and Configuration 229

5. Click Status to verify that the license server is running.

Configuring the Windchill Server-Side

Server-Side CAD Agent for
Theorem Worker
This section describes how to configure the Windchill server-side CAD agent of
Theorem Worker.
1. On the Windchill server-side, navigate to Site ▶ Utilities ▶ Worker Agent
Administration and then click Configure .
In various releases on Windchill, the Agent Administrator may also be called
Worker Agent Administrator, CAD Agent Administrator, or Publishing Agent
Administrator.

2. Click Add Worker in the Worker Configuration window.

230 PTC Windchill® Workgroup Manager for CATIA® V5 Administrator's and User's Guide
3. Enter the CAD worker host machine and the data type (CATIA V5, not
CATIA) to be handled by this worker, and then click Next .

4. Specify if the CAD worker is be located on the same machine as the Windchill
server, a different Windows machine, or a different UNIX machine, and then
click Next .

Administration and Configuration 231

5. Enter the CAD worker startup command as created during the CAD worker
configuration (Setup directory\catia5iworker.bat), and then click
Next .

Note
For SUN UNIX, use the command syntax: /home/<user>/Theorem/
catia5_setup/catia5worker.
For HP UNIX, use the command syntax: nohup/apps/home<user>/
Theorem/catia5_setup/catia5worker.
6. Click Next . If you are using a remote worker on a different Windows machine
(not applicable for UNIX), specify the worker daemon port. "601" is the
default, and does not need to be changed.

232 PTC Windchill® Workgroup Manager for CATIA® V5 Administrator's and User's Guide
 a. Specify the common file system configuration. This can be accomplished
by using a network file system such as Microsoft Windows Networking, or
NFS, UNC path, or with standard FTP (for UNIX).

Note
In this configuration, the Windchill Machine Path indicates that access
from the Windchill server to the common file system is accomplished using
the FTP command under the pview directory. The <worker machine>
path is the location of the common file system on the worker. The above
two locations should be the same. In this configuration, test the FTP access
to the common file system from the Windchill server by entering the FTP
path in a web browser and viewing the location from the browser.
Click Next .

Administration and Configuration 233

7. Click Apply .

8. The window refreshes to display the first step in Worker Configuration Wizard.
Click Save File .

9. Click Reload Worker Agent .

234 PTC Windchill® Workgroup Manager for CATIA® V5 Administrator's and User's Guide
10. Click Return to Worker Agent Administration .

Configuring the Client-Side

Client-Side CAD Agent for Theorem
Worker
This section describes how to configure the client side of Theorem Worker. This is
particularly useful when the worker and Windchill server are on two different
machines.
1. Run bin\catia5_pv_config.exe from your Theorem adapter
installation directory.

Administration and Configuration 235

2. Confirm your desired client and server versions.
3. Confirm your desired CATIA version.
4. Enter your server host name (example: icenter01.ptcnet.ptc.com).
5. Enter your server port. The default is 5600, but you can verify it from the
“Error! Hyperlink reference not valid. Port” entry.
6. Click Test Server . A worker definition for CATIA V5 for the client machine
must be present in the Windchill CAD agent.
If the test fails, check to see if you can access the server from a web browser, or
access the shared \\vmworker\Theorem directory. If not, verify with your
administrator if the IP addresses for the worker and server are set correctly on
the DNS server.
7. Select the optional File Sync capability through the Windchill Workgroup Man-
ager component. If File Sync is selected, specify the Windchill Workgroup
Manager installation directory, and leave the File Sync DLL to the default path.
Note
Run this step only if you have an existing installation of the Windchill Work-
group Manager and a full version of CATIA V5 installed. Do not select File
Sync during your first setup.
8. Click Exit and then Yes .
9. Copy
<Theorem install directory>\catia5_setup
\debug_options.txt to the Theorem install directory.

236 PTC Windchill® Workgroup Manager for CATIA® V5 Administrator's and User's Guide
 Note
You can find Theorem run time log files at
<User Profiles>\<user>\Local Settings\Temp under the names
tscprogressyj* and tscsummaryyj.

Configuring Theorem Worker — Run as a Service

(Optional)
Optionally, you can configure the Theorem worker to run automatically as a
service.
When you run the Theorem worker as a service, you should be aware of the
following:
• When publishing CATDrawings that include raster views, it is more likely for
errors to occur that prevent the representation from being generated. You can
prevent raster views in CATDrawings from being regenerated when the
Theorem worker publishes the CATDrawing. To do this, set the lock.
raster.drawing.views.on.publish preference to Yes. When this
preference is set to yes, the existing raster view is retained, and the system does
not attempt to generate a new one. For more information, see Frequently Used
Preferences: wgmclient.ini File on page 329.
• If any errors occur, the error messages are recorded in a log. To view these
messages, you must check the log. You can find the log in the Theorem worker
installation directory.
Before you begin, the Theorem worker and server must already be configured as
described earlier in this section.
1. On the client machine where the Theorem worker is installed, open a command
prompt.
2. Change the directory to
<Theorem installation location>\i486\obj, and then enter the
following:
WorkerDaemon.exe -install
3. Access the Windows Services window (services.msc) and confirm that
GS Worker Daemon is listed with a startup type of Automatic . If it is not listed,
confirm that the Theorem worker has been configured.
4. View the properties of the GS Worker Daemon service. On the Log On tab,
select This account . Enter the user name and password for the Windows user
account that installed the Windchill Workgroup Manager and Theorem worker
software.
5. From a command line, enter set. This command shows all environment
variables. Make a note of the HOMEDRIVE and HOMEPATH settings.

Administration and Configuration 237

6. From the catia5_setup directory in the Theorem installation location, open
the catia5worker.bat file.
7. Set the HOMEDRIVE and HOMEPATH environment variables to match the
settings that you noted.
For example:
set HOMEDRIVE=C:
set HOMEPATH=\users\ptcuser
8. Reboot the client machine, but do not log in. The Theorem worker now runs
automatically as a service.

Note
You can log on to the worker if necessary. However, do not attempt to run the
WorkerDaemon.exe manually while the service is also running.
9. Optionally, configure publishing to provide a file format selection menu when
an object is published manually. To do this, change the Windchill Visualization
Services Publish Rules default to CATIAV5, and create a visualization
configuration to load the Publish Rules XML file. For details, see “Using
Publish Rules” and “Creating Publish Rules” PTC Windchill Visualization
Services Guide.

Configuring Theorem Worker — File

Synchronization (Optional)
File synchronization for the Theorem Worker is an optional step.
With file synchronization configured, CAD data is synchronized with the Wind-
chill Workgroup Manager during the publishing process to reflect any pending
changes from Windchill (such as PTC_REVISION or
PTC_WM_LIFECYCLE_STATE). The resulting viewable reflects the implied
updates to the file and is then stored as a representation in Windchill.
Before you begin, the Theorem worker and client must already be configured for
file synchronization as described earlier in this section.
Before beginning the file synchronization configuration process, ensure you have
gathered the necessary information for the following variables:
Variable Description
Worker Specify whether the worker is on the same machine as the Wind-
Location chill server or a different (Windows or UNIX) machine.
Worker Specify the command (with the path local to the host) which starts
Execution
Command

238 PTC Windchill® Workgroup Manager for CATIA® V5 Administrator's and User's Guide
Variable Description
the worker executable as well as a timeout command.

Note
Use the following syntax for UNIX:
•
SUN UNIX — /home/<user>/Theorem/catia5_-
setup/catia5worker
• HP UNIX — nohup/apps/home/<user>/Theorem/
catia5_setup/catia5worker
Worker If you use a remote worker on a different Windows machine (not
Daemon Port applicable to UNIX), the default port number the worker daemon
running on the host listens to is 601.
Common File Specify the common file system with a network file system, such
System as Microsoft Windows Networking, NFS, UNC path, or FTP (for
UNIX). The Windchill machine path indicating that from the
Windchill server the access to the common file system is
accomplished with the FTP command (pview directory) should
be the same path as worker machine’s path in the common file
system.

1. Log in to the Windchill server and stop the method server, Tomcat, and
Apache.
2. Clear the Tomcat servlet cache and delete the contents of the
C:\ptc\<build number>\tomcat\work\Catalina directory.
3. Create or place a file called auth.properties under
C:\ptc\<build number>\Windchill.

Note
This file should contain the line auth=<user name>:<password>
without any additional spaces or lines. The credentials that you enter will be
used for Windchill publishing, so read access is required for all the data.
4. Back up C:\ptc\<build number>\Windchill\site.xconf. You
need to turn off file synchronization for test cases.
Note
To turn off file synchronization again later, restore the backed up
site.xconf file and then run xconfmanager-fp from the Windchill
command line.
5. Add the lines below to site.xconf file before the ending
</Configuration>:
<Property name="publish.cadconvert.UG" overridable= "true"
targetFile="codebase/wvs.properties"
value="com.ptc.wvs.server.publish.CadConvertUG,assytype=topdown,

Administration and Configuration 239

 repiba=additional_reps,useworkerdownload=$(wt.home)$(wvs.dir.sep)
auth.properties"/>

<Property name="publish.cadconvert.SOLIDWORKS" overridable="true"

targetFile="codebase/wvs.properties"
value="com.ptc.wvs.server.publish.CadConvertSOLIDWORKS,useworkerdownload=
$(wt.home)$(wvs.dir.sep)auth.properties"/>

<Property name="publish.cadconvert.INVENTOR" overridable="true"

targetFile="codebase/wvs.properties"
value="com.ptc.wvs.server.publish.CadConvertINVENTOR,useworkerdownload=
$(wt.home)$(wvs.dir.sep)auth.properties"/>

<Property name="publish.cadconvert.CATIA" overridable="true"

targetFile="codebase/wvs.properties"
value="com.ptc.wvs.server.publish.CadConvertCATIA,
useworkerdownload=$(wt.home)$(wvs.dir.sep)auth.properties"/>

<Property name="publish.cadconvert.CATIAV5" overridable="true"

targetFile="codebase/wvs.properties"
value="com.ptc.wvs.server.publish.CadConvertCATIAV5,useworkerdownload=
$(wt.home)$(wvs.dir.sep)auth.properties"/>

<Property name="publish.service.enabled" overridable="true"

targetFile="codebase/wvs.properties"
value="true"/>

<Property name="publish.usesPublishRules" overridable="true"

targetFile="codebase/wvs.properties"
value="PROE CADDS5 UG SOLIDWORKS CATIAV4 ARBORTEXT"/>
6. Save the site.xconf file and run xconfmanager-fp from the Windchill
command line.
7. Fix spaces in the file names for file synchronization:
a. Edit the Windchill\codebase\agent.ini file.
b. Under the worker heading that corresponds to the CATIA V5 worker, enter
noencoding=false.
8. Start Apache, Tomcat, and the method server.
9. Verify that the C:\Theorem\recipe\catia5_pv.pvr file contains the
following lines. If not, add them below the final adapter* line.
adapter/WWGMDllName=catia5adapter_loader
adapter/WWGMCadHandleSupported=0
adapter/WWGMCadHandleOption=0
adapter/windchillMethod=3

240 PTC Windchill® Workgroup Manager for CATIA® V5 Administrator's and User's Guide
10. Install the Windchill Workgroup Manager client on the worker machine and
register CATIA V5 Rxx.

Note
Do not register a server.
If you have UNIX, then the
<installpoint>\Theorem\catia5_setup\catia5worker
directory must contain the following information:
#!/bin/csh -f
# Start-up script for Catia5 R17 OA
echo Launching catia5_pv in worker mode
setenv PVIEW_HOME "/apps/home/hpuxtest/theorem"
if ($?LD_LIBRARY_PATH) then
setenv LD_LIBRARY_PATH
"$PTC_WGM_HOME/hpux_pa64/obj32/:$LD_LIBRARY_PATH"
else
setenv LD_LIBRARY_PATH "$PTC_WGM_HOME/hpux_pa64/obj32/"
endif
setenv THEOREM_LICENSE_FILE "7601@<license server>"
cd "/apps/home/<user>/Theorem/catia5_setup"
"$PVIEW_HOME/hpux11_pa32/obj/workermonitor" -UH -s
"$PVIEW_HOME/scripts/catia5r17_pv.csh" -vt -r
"/apps/home/<user>/Theorem/catia5_setup/catia5_pv.rcp" -EW CATIAV5 -
CSfilesync.i-cubed.com 5600 $*:q &
11. For Windows only, run the following commands in the worker:
Start>Run>cmd
CD C:\Theorem\i486_nt\obj
WorkerDaemon.exe <port number>

Note
The worker daemon can be also installed as a Windows service. For more
information, see Configuring Theorem Worker — Run as a Service (Optional)
on page 237.
12. Log on to the Windchill server as an administrator and then navigate to Site ▶
Utilities ▶ Worker Agent Administration . Perform the following steps:
a. Select the Start verbose workers checkbox.
b. Click Start worker (the green flag icon) next to the CATIA V5 worker
name. The flag turns red and the status reads Available when it is running.
13. Make sure that no errors appear in the command prompt on the worker
machine.

Administration and Configuration 241

Configuring the CATIA V5 Object Adapter
This section describes how to configure the CATIA V5 object adapter for recipe
files.

Controlling The Output

Three files control the output that the object adapter generates:
1. Creo View recipe file
2. Theorem configuration file
3. Theorem mask file
Converting CATIA V5 data to Creo View format takes place in two stages. First
geometry data is read from the CATIA V5 files, and then second the geometry is
converted into Creo View viewable data.
The recipe file has limited control over the output that the converter generates.
Although many options in the recipe file are available, most of the configuration
options should be included in the Theorem configuration and mask files. Recipe
file settings do not have any influence on the output.
In a recipe file, the configuration file is identified as
adapter/ConfigFile=D:\\PTC\\icenterv01-workers\
\catiav5r19\\theoremconfig.txt
A typical configuration file looks like this:
mask D:\PTC\icenterv01-workers\catiav5r19\theoremmask.txt
progress_file D:\PTC\icenterv01-workers\catiav5r19\progressfile.log
The line that begins with ‘mask’ defines the mask file. The content of the mask file
defines layer and entity masks, and defines which entities and layers get converted.
A typical mask file looks like this:
ON SOLID
ON SKIN

242 PTC Windchill® Workgroup Manager for CATIA® V5 Administrator's and User's Guide
OFF CURVE
OFF LAY 3

In this example solid and surface are converted, curves are not converted, and
geometry on layer 3 does not get converted.

Theorem Configuration File Options

A CADverter configuration file is referenced by the CATIA V5 Creo View adapter
recipe file. It is created as an ASCII simple text file with each option being written
on a separate line within the file. Options that have two values (such as
progress_file <filename>) are entered on separate lines within the file.
The file is stored anywhere on the file system, and referenced by the recipe file
using its absolute file location and name.
Below is a sample configuration file:
progress_file
C:\temp\auditlog.txt
off_ditto
mask
C:\temp\cadverter_maskfile.txt
read_pmi
read_captures

The following configuration options are possible:

Option Description
progress_file <filename> Directs the translation audit file output to the file
named <filename>.
off_ditto Removes all assembly information and converts
the data as if it had been created in a single part.
convert_surfaces Forces the NURBS surface representation of all
surfaces to be read instead of the natural format,
which is read by default. This option is often used
to overcome problems associated with reading the
standard surface representation.
convert_curves Forces the NURBS surface representation of all
curves to be read instead of the natural format,
which is read by default. This option is often used
to overcome problems associated with reading the
standard curve representation.
mask <mask_filename> Use the contents of the mask file to limit the data
that is read from CATIA V5. Using this option
with specific keywords entered in the mask file
enables the user to only read selected entity types
or data from specific layers rather than the default
method of reading the complete file.

Administration and Configuration 243

read_cgr Forces the translator to read the tessellated CATIA
Graphical Representation (CGR) representation of
the geometry instead of the default method of
reading the BREP representation.
read_pmi Forces the translator to read any Product
Manufacturing Information (PMI) such as 3D
dimensions and annotations created with the CAT-
IA V5 Functional Tolerance and Annotations
(FTA) module as part of the translation process.
This option requires an additional CATIA V5 Creo
View PMI license.
read_captures Forces the translator to read any Captures and 3D
Sections created with the CATIA V5 Functional
Tolerance and Annotations (FTA) module as part
of the translation process. This option requires an
additional CATIA V5 Creo View PMI license.

Large Assembly Processing Best Practices

Processing large CATIA V5 assemblies often requires access to large amounts of
resources. This can be a combination of both available disk space as well as
memory resources, and can be compounded by the CATIA V5 API methodology of
accessing assembly data. PTC recommends the following steps for working with
large assemblies (all described later in the section):
1. Use the minimum memory mode recipe setting.
2. Enable CATIA V5 Cache Mode and ensure that the assembly has been
accessed at least once to generate the cached CGR files. (For assistance with
this setting, refer to your CATIA V5 online help.)
3. If items 1 and 2 are insufficient, consider using a Windows 64-bit version of
both CATIA V5 and the CATIA V5 Creo View adapter.
4. Enable longer time-outs in the WVS.properties file.

Minimum Memory Mode

The default method for assembly processing reads a CATIA V5 assembly and its
entire geometry contents into memory, before writing out all of the data to Creo
View. A more efficient way of processing the data has been provided through the
minimum memory conversion mode, which is selected in the PTC recipe editor.
This mechanism reads the assembly data then processes each .CATPart file
referenced by the assembly on a part-by-part basis.
Set the minimum memory option as follows:
1. Launch the recipe editor by entering rcpedit.exe <recipe file name>
in the command line.

244 PTC Windchill® Workgroup Manager for CATIA® V5 Administrator's and User's Guide
 The recipe editor appears.
2. Under Advanced , select the Theorem tab and set the conversion mode to
Minimum Memory .

3. Save the recipe file.

Once saved, the translator can take advantage of this setting by referring to the
new recipe file on the command line, as in the following example:
catiar19_pv.cmd <input file> -r <recipe file name>

Enable CATIA V5 Cache Mode (CGR Cache)

Optimize the memory usage of CATIA V5 by enabling the CATIA cache (CGR
cache mode). It is important that the CGR cache is up to date before you start
publishing large assemblies. Otherwise CATIA V5 must generate the CGR files
while it is loading the assembly and you lose the memory efficiency that you are
trying to achieve.
If CGR file management is enabled forCATIA V5 data management in Windchill,
the cache is up to date if using the file synchronization method when publishing.
This method downloads the required CATIA V5 files through a temporary
workspace, downloads the required CGR files and places them in the local CGR
cache.

Administration and Configuration 245

If CGR files are not managed in Windchill or if the file synchronization method is
not used for publishing, then another method needs to be used to keep the CGR
cache up to date. You can implement a released CGR cache that is shared between
the Windchill Workgroup Manager users and the CATIA V5 worker.
You also need to make sure the cache mode is enabled for the CATIA V5 session
that is being used for the publication of the assemblies. When working with CGR
files ensure that the CATCache folder location is in a relatively short path, because
the folder structure created by CATIA V5 can exceed the windows maximum path
limit. (This is due to the relatively long WLD path created has to be replicated
inside of the CATCache folder for CGR creation.)

Run the Object Adapter on 64-Bit

64-Bit Windows
If minimum memory mode and CGR cache mode still is not enough to publish
large assemblies, install the object adapter on a Windows 64-bit platform. CATIA
V5, Windchill Workgroup Manager, and Object Adapter are all available on the
Windows 64-bit platform. A combination of CGR cache, minimum memory mode
and file synchronization can be configured on Windows 64 bit.

Enable Longer Timeouts in the WVS.properties

WVS.properties File
For very large assemblies and components the default timeout values in the
wvs.properties file may not be long enough. Below are the properties from
the wvs.properties file that influence worker timeout values:
• publish.cadtimeout.assembly=3600
• publish.cadtimeout.component=600
• publish.cadtimeout.drawing=600
The values are in seconds. If the CATIA V5 worker times out on large publishing
jobs, then increase the value of these properties. Edit these values through the
site.xconf file and use xconfmanager –p to propagate the settings.

Configuring Business Practices

This section describes how an administrator configures Windchill and the CAD
application to suit a company's business requirements. A part is a database object
that represents a physical component or assembly in the product structure of a
manufactured product.
A part is used as the container for all information that describes or defines that
component (for example, CAD models, worksheets, drawings, and document
images). The object is then used to construct product structures in Windchill.
Specifically, the database object type is wt.part.WTPart. For simplicity, in
Windchill this is displayed to the user as part. For the purposes of this section, the
term “part” is used to refer to this object type.

246 PTC Windchill® Workgroup Manager for CATIA® V5 Administrator's and User's Guide
Configuring Naming and Numbering
You can specify how newly-created CAD documents (EPMDocuments) and Parts
(WTParts) are named and numbered using a set of standard policies. It is also
possible to customize the CAD Document naming service to address more
advanced naming and numbering requirements.

Automatic Numbering of File Names

Historically, automatic numbering of new CAD files in Windchill Workgroup Man-
ager was done only from the New CAD Document option available from the
Workspace UI. For many users this proved to be a cumbersome process. The
preferred method of creating new CAD files is to use File ▶ New in the CAD tool;
but the inability to populate Windchill PDMLink auto-generated numbers in the
File ▶ New action restricted the use of Windchill PDMLink automatic numbering.
Beginning at Windchill Workgroup Manager 10.1, automatic numbering is
supported in third-party CAD tools using File ▶ New . When the CAD tool is
connected to the Windchill Workgroup Manager, and there is an active server
registered, then the new file name is generated from the Windchill PDMLink
automatic numbering generator. Depending upon the differences in your CAD tool,
the number might be populated either during initial creation or during first save.
For information about the specific behavior of your CAD tool, see the section
below.

Note
By default, auto-numbering is enabled when creating a new CAD document in
CATIA V5. If you want to disable this support, set enable.auto.
numbering.on.new.document.in.CATIA.session preference to No.
For more information, see Frequently Used Preferences: wgmclient.ini File on
page 329.

Use of the Soft Type Parameter Preference when Auto-numbering

Auto-numbering
Files
In the Windchill Preference Management utility, the Soft Type Parameter
preference identifies the file property name that defines the soft type to be used
when uploading a file to Windchill. The preference default is
UPLOAD_SOFT_TYPE. This property assigns a specific soft type to a file or a
template. The soft type is set on first upload, and does not change after that.
To set this preference, navigate to Site ▶ Utilities ▶ Preference Management and
select Operation ▶ Upload Operation ▶ Upload ▶ Soft Type Parameter .
This attribute must be set prior to applying automatic numbering. Once automatic
numbering has been applied, changing the soft type parameter does not change the
number that has already been allocated as the file name. The best practice is either
to set the Soft Type Parameter in templates, so that there is no reliance on the user
to set it; or to use the New CAD Document feature in the Workspace UI.

Administration and Configuration 247

Policy-Managed
Policy-Managed Naming and Numbering
Windchill Workgroup Manager supports four policies to determine how newly
created objects are named and numbered.
• Automatic numbering
• Name-driven
• Parameter-driven
• Custom
These policies are only utilized during the initial creation of parts and CAD
documents. These policies are used during upload of new CAD data (when a new
CAD document can be created based on a model file), and auto-associate (when a
new part is created for a CAD document); if the policy is changed at a later date,
existing data is not affected. The CAD document number is provided by the
automatic CAD document number generator (by using the standard Windchill
number generator, through customization, or selecting CATIA ▶ File ▶ New ).
These policies can be used together to drive the naming and numbering behavior.
For example, automatic numbering can be used with customization to form a
numbering policy. The four policies can be described as follows:
• Automatic numbering
○ Automatic numbering is the default numbering policy.
○ When using auto-associate to create new parts, the part number is provided
by the part number generator.
○ When using auto-associate to create new parts, the default value for the part
name is copied from the associated CAD document name. If a file
extension is present in the CAD document name, it can be optionally
dropped from the part name controlled by a preference.
○ The CAD document and part name field can be edited using Rename .
New CAD documents must be created in the CAD application. If no
attribute mapping exists, then the Windchill name is automatically set to the
file name. The user can then use Rename in the workspace to allocate a
different value prior to checkin.
○ In the Rename action window, the number field cannot be edited , unless
automatic numbering is disabled or the override preference is set by the
administrator that allows users to override the automatic numbering
sequence and manually enter a value in the number field.
• Name-driven
○ When automatic numbering is disabled, the name-driven policy comes into
effect.

248 PTC Windchill® Workgroup Manager for CATIA® V5 Administrator's and User's Guide
 ○ The Windchill CAD number is copied from the CAD model file name (the
file extension can be dropped and is controlled by the Windchill preference,
Upload Drop Number File Extension ). The Windchill number is propagated
to the CAD environment and stored in a property in the CAD file called
PTC_WM_NAME.
○ The Windchill CAD document name is also copied from the CAD model
file name. The Windchill number is propagated to the CAD environment
and stored in a property in the CAD file called PTC_WM_NAME.
○ If you use Workspace Rename to set the Windchill Name or Number
attribute for a new CAD document, its value is pushed from Windchill to
the CAD environment and stored in a property in the CAD file called
PTC_WM_NAME or PTC_WM_NUMBER, respectively.
○ The default value for the part number is copied from the CAD document
number (the file extension can be dropped and is controlled by the Wind-
chill Auto Associate Truncate Number File Extension preference).
○ The CAD document and part Number field can be edited using Rename . If
parts are auto-created from CAD documents, then the user does not get the
chance to specify a part number. If parts are created manually, the user has
the option to specify number during creation (assuming automatic
numbering is disabled). If a CAD document is created in the CAD
application, it has no ability to define the Windchill CAD document
number. Even if the PTC_WM_NAME attribute is created prior to saving
to the workspace, it is overwritten by the Windchill file number. The user
must then use Rename in the workspace to allocate a different value prior
to checkin.
• Parameter-driven
○ Parameter-driven naming and numbering is where Windchill name and
number attributes are mapped to existing properties in the CAD file.
○ The CAD document number is copied from the value of the CAD
application property identified by the Windchill Numbering Parameter
preference.
○ The value for the CAD document name is copied from the CAD
application property identified by the Windchill Naming Parameter
preference.
○ The value for the part number is copied from the value of the soft attribute
identified by the Windchill preference, AutoAssociate Numbering
Parameter.
○ The value for the part name is copied from the value of the soft attribute
identified by the Windchill preference, AutoAssociate Naming Parameter.

Administration and Configuration 249

 ○ The CAD document and part name and number fields can be edited by the
user using Rename . The new value is pushed from Windchill to the CAD
environment and stored on a property in the CAD file.
• Custom
The Object Initialization Rules Administration utility, available from the
Utilities page, provides a way to specify default values for the attributes and
display constraints on attributes of a specific object type. The default values
and attribute constraints are then used when Windchill creates objects of that
type. Each object initialization rule (OIR) can contain default values and
constraints for one object type. The rules only apply on object creation and do
not change or set values for existing objects. Rules can be set up to provide
automatic number generation as well as to provide custom behavior. Object
initialization rules are set per Windchill context, allowing different naming/
numbering rules to be applied to different contexts.
For more information, see the Windchill Specialized Administration Guide,
located at PTC Reference Documents site.
Note
Regardless of the naming and numbering policy used, when creating a new
object, system uniqueness constraints require that the CAD document attributes
Number and File Name must both be unique within a Windchill organization or
project.

Identifying the Current Naming and Numbering Policy

Use the following algorithm to understand which policy is currently set in the
system (for a particular container and class of object):
• If automatic numbering is set in the object initialization rules, then that is the
policy.
• If custom behavior is implemented in the object initialization rules, then that is
the policy.
• If neither automatic numbering nor custom behavior is set, but the parameter-
driven properties are set in the Preference Management utility, then policy is
parameter-driven.
• If the number is not set by automatic numbering, custom behavior, or
parameters, then numbering is name-driven. This is set in the Object
Initialization Rules Administration utility.

Windchill Preferences for Naming and Numbering

The following preferences control parameter-driven naming and numbering policy
when using Windchill Workgroup Manager. By default, these properties have no
value:

250 PTC Windchill® Workgroup Manager for CATIA® V5 Administrator's and User's Guide
• AutoAssociate Naming Parameter = <String Parameter>
• AutoAssociate Numbering Parameter = <String Parameter>
Note
The Numbering parameter cannot be used with Design table parts that have more
than one level of nested instances. If the numbering parameter is used with such
parts, upload fails with a valid number uniqueness exception. When the numbering
parameter is used with Design table parts that have only one level of instances,
values of this parameter need to be different for each instance. You can do this by
adding this parameter as a Design table column and providing a different number
value for each instance.
When set to Yes (default is No ), the following properties omit the file extensions
from name and number attributes when creating parts using Auto Associate Parts
(such as CATPart or CATProduct):
• AutoAssociate Drop Name File Extension
• AutoAssociate Drop Number File Extension
When set to Yes (the default is No ), the following properties omit file extensions
from name and number attributes for new CAD documents during upload:
• Upload Drop Name File Extension
• Upload Drop Number File Extension

Customizing the Naming Service

The naming service uses the Windchill service delegate mechanism to allow you to
specify the following for the new CAD document to be created:
• Set a number for the CAD document.
• Set a name for the CAD document.
Note
The naming service is for the upload action only.
Note
Naming service customization in upload can be used before Windchill 10.0 to
generate name and number using custom code. However, before Windchill 10.0,
parameters will not be available in an upload request to use in naming service
customization.
The order of precedence used by the system for naming policies and
customizations is as follows:
• Name

Administration and Configuration 251

 1. Naming service customization.
2. Parameter set for naming (Naming parameter).
3. File name (the Upload Drop Name File Extension preference ) is effective
only if name is assigned based on file name (CAD name).
• Number
1. Naming service customization.
2. Parameter set for numbering (Numbering parameter).
3. File name (the Upload Drop Number File Extension preference) is effective
only if name is assigned based on file name (CAD Name).
If the standard Windchill naming and numbering policies do not address your
company's needs, you can customize the service to assign a name and number to a
CAD document based on this custom logic. Use the following steps to customize
the naming service:
1. Create a Java class that implements the interface
EPMDocumentNamingDelegate. The interface definition is as follows:
package com.ptc.windchill.uwgm.proesrv.c11n;
public interface EPMDocumentNamingDelegate
{
public void validateDocumentIdentifier

(DocIdentifier docIdentifier);
}

The definition of Class DocIdentifier is as follows:

package com.ptc.windchill.uwgm.proesrv.c11n;
import java.util.HashMap;
public class DocIdentifier
{
private String m_modelName;

private String m_docName;

private String m_docNumber;

private HashMap m_parameters;

public DocIdentifier(String modelName, String docName,

String docNumber, HashMap params)

{m_modelName = modelName;m_docName=

docName;
m_docNumber= docNumber;m_parameters= params; }
/** get the CAD Name for the model **/

252 PTC Windchill® Workgroup Manager for CATIA® V5 Administrator's and User's Guide
 public String getModelName()
{return m_modelName;}
/** get the EPMDocument name for the model **/
public String getDocName()
{return m_docName;}
/** set the EPMDocument name for the model **/
public void setDocName(String docname)
{m_docName = docname;}
/** set the EPMDocument number for the model **/
public void setDocNumber(String docnumber)
{m_docNumber = docnumber;}
/** get the EPMDocument number for the model **/
public String getDocNumber()
{return m_docNumber;}
/** get the Pro/E designated parameters for the model.

These are name-value pairs indexed by the name **/

public HashMap getParameters()
{return m_parameters;}
}

2. In the new class, implement the business logic for naming/numbering CAD
documents (EPMDocument) using the following method:
public void validateDocumentIdentifier(DocIdentifier docIdentifier)

• The DocumentIdentifier object has the CAD document name and number
information for the CAD document that is created by the upload service.
Use the following command to get the CAD Name of the CAD document
that this DocIdentifier object represents.
DocIdentifier.getModelName()

• The CAD application-designated parameters can be used to set CAD

document numbering/naming.
Use the following command to get the associated parameters.
DocIdentifier.getParameters()

Use the set methods on the DocIdentifier to set the new name/number
values. The Upload Service uses these suggestions if they are feasible. The
sample implementation can be found at the following location:
<Windchill home>/codebase/com/ptc/windchill/uwgm/proesrv/

c11n/EPMDefaultDocumentNamingDelegate.java

Administration and Configuration 253

3. Edit the site.xconf file (found in <Windchill>) to add following property
to indicate availability of customization service on the server:
<Service context="default" name="com.ptc.windchill.uwgm.proesrv.c11n.

EPMDocumentNamingDelegate" targetFile="codebase/service.properties">
<Option cardinality="singleton" requestor="wt.epm.EPMDocument"

serviceClass="com.ptc.windchill.uwgm.proesrv.c11n.EPMDefaultDocument

NamingDelegate"/>
</Service>

Then use the xconfmanager tool to apply the changes to the

service.properties file:
xconfmanager –p

Use the path of your class in place of the value of serviceClass (that is, replace
the following with the path to your class):
com.ptc.windchill.uwgm.proesrv.c11n.EPMDefaultDocumentNami ngDelegate

4. Restart the method server.

Configuring Collection
When users perform PDM actions, the Windchill collection feature allows them to
collect additional objects to be acted upon according to their relationship to an
initially selected object. The administrator determines what appears in the
collection user interface. The following collection modes are supported:
• Collecting all dependents at the time the collector is launched with a seed
object (up- front) such that selection actions are enabled or disabled depending
on what is selected.
• Collecting only the required dependents of a seed object at the time the
collector is launched.
• Collecting dependents incrementally when an object is selected and an action
clicked.
The first two listed modes can be accomplished on the Basic tab of the action page,
while the incremental selection is performed on the Advanced tab.

254 PTC Windchill® Workgroup Manager for CATIA® V5 Administrator's and User's Guide
The system provides default settings that apply to both tabs. You can tailor the
collection process by setting one or more specific preferences that determine the
default object collection that is performed when an action is initiated.
All preferences related to the collector can be set by Sites , Products , Projects , or
Organizations in Windchill preference management. The collector infrastructure
allows each specific action (for example, Check In or Edit Attributes ) to specify a
default collection for the action, as well as a default display for the Advanced tab.
The preference is set in the Preference Management utility under a node specific to
the action. For example, the preferences for collection at Check In :

Because only a subset of these preferences might be relevant for a specific action,
not all preferences are required to exist for each action.

Note
A particular preference can be overridden by each individual user (if not locked at
the Organization or Site level by the administrator). See the client and server
preferences section for more information.

Administration and Configuration 255

Enabling As Stored Configurations
The As Stored configuration is created at checkin. When more than one CAD
document or a CAD document is checked in from the workspace, the As Stored
configuration is created. The As Stored configuration is a snapshot of the
workspace at the time of checkin. You can use the As Stored configuration in the
following ways:
• Reload the workspace the same way as the iteration is modified when the user
works with (or references) the checked-in iteration in the future.
• Retrieve the assembly using the As Stored configuration.
By default, Create As Stored is set to Yes in the Preference Management utility.
Create As Stored specifies to create an As Stored configuration upon checkin.
As Stored is particularly useful when working with drawings and assemblies. It
allows the Workgroup Manager user to retrieve an assembly or drawing using the
same related components “as it was stored” with at the point of checkin (as
opposed to retrieving latest versions of all related parts that might have been
modified independently of the parent drawing/assemblies during design
developments). This is useful in order to get back to a known configuration of a
drawing or assembly. Baselines also achieve the same result of recording specific
configuration of versions/iterations. However, a baseline is a more formal method
of capturing a configuration, which is a conscious decision to create a separate
managed object that captures a particular configuration of components rather than
just as they were stored. Often As Stored configuration is used to generate a
baseline at a later date, e.g. to create a baseline of a set of drawings/assemblies that
need to be reviewed at a design review. You would use the As Stored configuration
since Latest might pick up some later versions of the underlying parts that have not
been detailed in the drawing yet or some that might cause the assembly to fail upon
regeneration.
Note that As Stored only considers data in the workspace at the time of checkin.
For example, if you are checking in an assembly that has 10 components and only
5 of those components are present in the workspace, then your As Stored
configuration contains only those 5 parts. The other 5 parts are retrieved according
to the Latest configuration.

Configuring Auto Associate Parts

Auto Associate Parts is used to automatically create relationships between CAD
documents and Windchill parts. After performing Auto Associate Parts , one of two
results occurs:
• New parts are created, or existing parts are linked to the CAD document.
• A product structure is created that is the Windchill equivalent of the CAD
model structure.

256 PTC Windchill® Workgroup Manager for CATIA® V5 Administrator's and User's Guide
Once associated, the CAD document structure drives the part product structure. An
administrator customizes the Auto Associate Parts behavior by setting various
preferences in the Preference Management utility.
Association is done through linking the CAD document to the associated part.
There are two types of links involved in this process:
• Owner link, includes the build rule. By default, drives the creation of the
product structure and the publishing of attributes to parts.
• Content link, includes the build rule plus the build history (describes).
A CAD document can only have one Owner link attached to it.
The term “owner” pertains to active association, and the term “content” refers to
passive association.
Note
For information about customizing auto associate, enabling support for custom
parts, customizing the parameters in the download service, or customizing the
HTML client object selection page, see the “Customizations for PDM” chapter of
the Windchill Customization Guide, or search for “Customizations for PDM" in
the Windchill Help Center.
The following preferences allow administrators to customize the behavior of auto
associate. These values can be set at the site or organization level. An individual
user cannot change any of them unless privileges are granted by the administrator.
The following table describes setting some general preferences for Auto Associate
Parts :

General Preferences

Preference Definition Default Preference

Value Category
Auto Associate When set to Yes , truncates No Auto Associate
Truncate Name the file extension from the
File Extension CAD filename in the part
name when a new part is
created.
Auto Associate When set to Yes , truncates No Auto Associate
Truncate Number the file extension from the
File Extension CAD filename in the part
number when a new part is
created. Valid for all auto
associate actions.
Set Revision For When set to Yes , sets the No Auto Associate
Part revision of a part to match
the revision of the CAD
document, keeping revisions

Administration and Configuration 257

General Preferences (continued)
Preference Definition Default Preference
Value Category
in sync.
Auto Associate Identifies the soft attribute in Auto Associate
Naming the CAD document that
Parameter holds the name for a created
part.
For example,
pref=user_name
_for_part; user adds
attribute to models;
CADDOCuser
_name_for
_part=
mypartname.
Auto Associate Parts creates
mypartname.
This preference is CAD
application-
specific.
Auto Associate Identifies the soft attribute in Auto Associate
Numbering the CAD document that
Parameter holds the number for part
auto-associate search or for
creation of a new part. This
preference is CAD
application-specific.
Part Master Class Allows search for a No Disallow
for Search customer-defined part or Structure CAD
part subclass instead of a Document
standard part. Also defines Types
the part class or subclass for
new part creation.

The following table lists the preferences to identify which CAD document types
cannot be an owner:
Preference Definition Default Value Preference
Category
Disallow Product Lists CAD and CAD Auto Associate
Structure for CAD dynamic document DRAWING
Document Types types that cannot
form Owner links,

258 PTC Windchill® Workgroup Manager for CATIA® V5 Administrator's and User's Guide
Preference Definition Default Value Preference
Category
so structure and
representation links
are disallowed.
Disallow Product Lists CAD and Format Auto Associate
Structure Links for dynamic document
CAD Document types that cannot
Types form Owner links,
so structure and
representation links
are disallowed.
Disallow Structure Lists CAD Auto Associate
CAD Document document types
Types that cannot drive
product structure.
Disallow Structure Lists CAD Format Auto Associate
CAD Document document types
Types that cannot drive
product structure.

The following table describes the list of CAD document sub-types that cannot be
actively associated:
Preference Description Default Value Preference
Category
Disallow Product Set when a CAD Auto Associate
Structure document type
CAD Document allows creation of
Sub-types
Sub-types an Owner link, but
a subtype of that
CAD document
does not exist.
Disallow Product Set when a CAD XREF Auto Associate
Structure CAD document type
Document Sub- allows creation of
types an Owner link, but
a subtype of that
CAD document
does not. For
example, external
reference drawings
in AutoCAD.
Disallow Product Set when a CAD — Auto Associate
Structure CAD document type
Document Sub- allows creation of

Administration and Configuration 259

Preference Description Default Value Preference
Category
types an Owner link, but
a subtype of that
CAD document
does not.
Disallow Structure Lists CAD — Auto Associate
CAD Document document subtypes
Sub-types
Sub-types that cannot drive
product structure.

The following table lists the preferences that define where a newly created part is
stored:

Store Part With CAD Document

Preference Description Default Preference

Value Category
Store New Parts Specifies the location of No Store New Parts
with CAD newly created parts to be the with CAD
Documents same as the location of their Documents
associated CAD documents.
The following table lists preferences related to search results that do not match:

Create Part When Part Search Result Is Not Found

Preference Description Default Preference

Value Category
Create Associate Determines whether a part Yes Auto Associate
New Part is created and associated if
the auto-associate search
does not find a matching
part in Windchill.
When set to Yes, if a
matching part is not found
upon checkin, then a new
one is created.
When set to No , if a
matching part is not found,
then a new one is not
created. The checkin action
is not blocked.
The following table lists link preferences that are created upon checkin:

260 PTC Windchill® Workgroup Manager for CATIA® V5 Administrator's and User's Guide
Action-Specific
Action-Specific Preferences

Preference Description Default Preference

Value Category
Create Alternate Allows a link of the next No Auto Associate
Link On Check In available type to be created
if the part already has an
Owner link.

Configuring Revision
Administrators can configure how the system behaves during a revision operation
by setting preferences in the Windchill Preference Management utility to control
the following:
• Allow revision to a level other than the next in the revision scheme.
• Create or maintain passive associations during a revision action.
• Synchronize revision levels of dynamic documents and parts during an auto-
associate action.

Configuring the Ability to Set a Revision Level

A key-value pair in the Windchill preference system allows an administrator to
enable users to set a higher revision level than the next label in the revision
scheme.
When set to Yes (the default), the Allow Override On Create CAD Document
preference adds a Set Revision option to the New Revision user interface that
allows the user to skip one or more levels of revision during a revise operation.
When set to No , the object is revised to a default target or the next revision in the
series.

Configuring the Revision of Associated Items

You can configure how content links are carried forward to new revisions of
associated (linked) objects. Using the xconf file, modify
<Windchill>/codebase/wt.properties, which contains the following
key-value pairing:
Key = wt.vc.struct.copyDescribeLinkOnRevise
Values: No or Yes (default).

Administration and Configuration 261

With wt.vc.struct.copyDescribeLinkOnRevise set to the default
value of Yes , the system behaves as follows for the revision of a dynamic
document or part with a content association.
• There is only one link: iteration-to-iteration.
• If only the dynamic document is revised, then the link is not carried forward.
The new version of the dynamic document does not have an association to the
existing versions of the part (because the existing part version might be
released, and the content version of the part should not change without a check
out or revise).
• If only the part is revised, both the new and the old version of the part have a
link to the existing version of the dynamic document.
• If both the dynamic document and part are revised during the same revision,
the new versions have a new content link between them, and the old versions
maintain their existing link.
When wt.vc.struct.copyDescribeLinkOnRevise is set to No , the
system behaves the same as when it is set to Yes , with the following exception:
• If both the dynamic document and part are revised during the same revision,
then regardless of the settings in the user interface, revise acts as if the dynamic
document and part are being revised alone.

Rules for New Versions

The following rules are applied to new versions:
• By default, all new versions should be created in the same location (context
and folder) as the original.
• If there is a user interface, the user can override the default location and choose
to place the new version somewhere else.
• For Windchill, the team and life cycle are determined by the object initiation
rules of the context.
• The view of new parts defaults to the same view as the original.

Synchronizing Revision Levels during Auto Associate

A key-value pair in the Windchill preference system allows you to set the behavior
for the revision of CAD documents and parts during the Auto Associate Parts
operation.
The auto associate Set Revision For Part key can be set to either Yes or No. With
this property set to Yes, the revision of a part is set to that of the actively associated
CAD document during a revise action.

262 PTC Windchill® Workgroup Manager for CATIA® V5 Administrator's and User's Guide
Auto Associate Parts attempts to set the part revision to match that of the CAD
document when the following situations both apply:
• An active association is to be created between the part and the CAD document
• The Auto Associate Parts action creates a new part for association. A matching
revision cannot be set to the working copy of a part. Even if the part is initially
checked in, because Auto Associate Parts checks out the part before creating an
active association, a matching revision is not set to such an existing part.
The following rules apply to both the Auto Associate Parts and Associate (revising
both part and CAD document) actions when Set Revision For Part is set to Yes .
• A revision matching that of the CAD document is set to the part when the CAD
document revision is higher than that of the part.
• A revision matching that of the CAD document is not set to the part if:
○ The CAD document revision is lower than the part.
○ The CAD document and part revisions do not belong to the same revision
series.
If Set Revision For Part is set to No , Auto Associate Parts continues without trying
to set a revision level.

Configuring Attributes
Note
For purposes of clarity in discussing attribute management, it is the standard of this
guide to refer to Windchill attributes as attributes and to refer to CAD application
attributes, properties, and parameters as parameters.
Attributes are entities that define properties of objects, such as CAD files or Wind-
chill business objects. They always consist of a name and value, for example, Life
Cycle State can be assigned the value, In Work .
In Windchill, there are two types of attributes: hard and soft. The system attributes
that are hard-coded into Windchill, are therefore available by default. System
attributes are typically defined for a set of characteristics that most business objects
share, such as name or number. User-defined attributes, are not hard-coded;
therefore are not available by default. The user defines soft attributes, for example,
COLOR or LENGTH, for individual objects or classes of objects. CAD
applications have analogous entities, variously called properties, parameters, or
attributes, that can be mapped to Windchill attributes so that their values are
communicated between Windchill and the CAD application, if desired.

Administration and Configuration 263

Administrators configure attributes and parameters so they are published
(viewable) in the CAD application and Windchill. This section describes:
• Attribute and parameter types.
• Configuring attributes and parameters so they are published from Windchill to
the CAD application.
• Adding new CAD application parameters.
• Managing system attributes and parameters.
• Customizing existing Windchill attributes to create additional CAD parameters.
• Ensuring that user-defined CAD application parameters are recognized in
Windchill.
• Mapping attributes and parameters.

Attribute and Parameter Types

There are three main categories of attribute or parameters when working with
Windchill Workgroup Manager:
• Windchill default system attributes.
• authoring application parameters.
• custom parameters.
Note
No authoring application parameters are exposed to Windchill through Windchill
Workgroup Manager.

Windchill Default System Attributes

The set of Windchill default system attributes are automatically published in the
authoring application when a CAD part or drawing is checked in or saved in Wind-
chill. These are used to support required authoring application system parameters,
such as revision. Because Windchill writes these to the authoring application, they
cannot be modified. The information on these attributes always comes from the
Windchill system, and therefore is always up-to-date (for example, Revision
reflects the Windchill revision).
A list of the attributes provided by Windchill is listed in the following table.

Windchill Default System Attributes

Windchill Attribute Description

PTC_WM_REVISION
• String Type
• Initial value the first revision corresponding to
the default context of the Workspace. This
should be set to Yes whether or not the server

264 PTC Windchill® Workgroup Manager for CATIA® V5 Administrator's and User's Guide
Windchill Default System Attributes (continued)
Windchill Attribute Description
is online or offline.
• Corresponds to the string used for just the
Windchill version of the CAD document. By
default this is usually, A, B, C, etc.
• If the user modifies the value, then upon the
next retrieval or update, the value is overridden
by the system
• Predicted upon save for new objects.
• Should be set to the current CAD document
revision when setting upon check out for an
existing object.
PTC_WM_PART_NAME
• String Type
• Initial value: Not Applicable. This system
attribute should never be created on initial
creation of the CAD document.
• Corresponds to the string used for the name of
the actively associated part to this model’s
CAD document.
• May be created and set before the initial auto-
association if the naming policy is set to use a
custom parameter. Otherwise, the value is
ignored and set upon Save.
• For new or existing CAD documents, if the
user associates, then the system parameter
should be available to be updated upon next
retrieval in or save from the authoring
application.
• When checking out an existing CAD
document, the system parameter should reflect
the name of the CAD document’s actively
associated part. If none exists, then the system
parameter is not created in the authoring
application.
PTC_WM_PART_NUM-
• String Type
BER
• Initial value: Not Applicable. This system
parameter should never be created on initial
creation of the CAD document.
• Corresponds to the string used for the number

Administration and Configuration 265

Windchill Default System Attributes (continued)
Windchill Attribute Description
of the actively associated part to this model’s
CAD document.
• May be created and set before the initial auto-
association if the naming policy is set to use a
custom parameter. Otherwise, the value is
ignored and set upon Update.
• This attribute is not predicted. For new or
existing CAD documents, if the user
associates, then the system parameter should
be available to be updated upon next retrieval
in or save from the authoring application.
• When checking out an existing CAD
document, the system parameter reflects the
number of the CAD document’s actively
associated part. If none exists, then the system
parameter should not be created in the
authoring application.
PTC_WM_NUMBER
• String Type
• Initial value should be set according to the
naming policies. That is, if the policy is set to:
○ CAD Model Name, then the initial value
should be based on CAD file name. The
number will contain the extension based on
a preference.
○ Auto-numbering, then the initial value
should be generated by taking a number
from the PTC automatic numbering
system.
○ CAD attribute, then the initial value should
be based on the CAD property that is
defining the number.
○ Custom naming/numbering application,
then the initial value should be generated
by taking a number from the customer-
defined automatic numbering system.
If the server is offline, and the system
cannot predict the number (due to
automatic numbering mechanisms not
being available), then the initial value is

266 PTC Windchill® Workgroup Manager for CATIA® V5 Administrator's and User's Guide
Windchill Default System Attributes (continued)
Windchill Attribute Description
denoted by a white space.
• Corresponds to the string used for the number
of this model’s CAD document.
• May be created and set before the initial save if
the naming policy is set to use a custom
parameter. Otherwise, the value will be ignored
and set upon initial save or a subsequent
retrieval.
• Predicted upon save for new objects.
• Should be set to the current CAD document
number when setting upon check out for an
existing object.
PTC_WM_NAME
• String Type
• Initial value should be set according to the
naming policies. That is, if the policy is set to:
○ CAD Model Name, then the initial value
should be based on CAD file name. The
name will contain the extension based on a
preference to keep the extension.
○ Auto-numbering, then the initial value
should be based on CAD file name. The
name will contain the extension based on a
preference to keep the extension.
○ CAD Attribute, then the initial value
should be based on the CAD property that
is defining the name.
○ Custom naming or numbering application,
then the initial value should be based on
CAD file name. The name will contain the
extension based on a preference to keep the
extension.
○ The initial value should be able to be set
whether the server is online or offline.
• Corresponds to the string used for the name of
this model’s CAD document
• May be created and set before the initial save if
the naming policy is set to use a custom
parameter. Otherwise, the value will be ignored
and set upon initial save or a subsequent

Administration and Configuration 267

Windchill Default System Attributes (continued)
Windchill Attribute Description
retrieval.
• Predicted upon save for new objects.
• Should be set to the current CAD document
name when setting upon check out for an
existing object.
PTC_WM_
• String Type
ORGANIZATION_ID
• Initial value should be:
○ Predict: Set according to be the
organization identifier of the context of the
workspace.
○ Offline: Set according to be the
organization identifier of the context of the
workspace.
• Corresponds to the CAD document’s
organization identifier
• Predicted upon save for new objects
• Should be set to the current CAD document
organization identifier when setting upon
check out for an existing object.
PTC_WM_ITERATION
• String Type
• Initial value should be predicted and set to 1
whether the server is online or offline.
• Corresponds to the CAD document iteration.
• Predict for both new and existing. Upon check
out, the value should be predicted to be the
iteration after the current CAD document
iteration.
PTC_WM_LIFECYCLE
• String Type
• Initial value should be set according to be the
object initialization rules of the context of the
workspace. This should be Yes whether the
server is online or offline. For more
information on object initialization rules, refer
to Identifying the Current Naming and
Numbering Policy on page 250.
• Corresponds to the name of the CAD
document’s life cycle.

268 PTC Windchill® Workgroup Manager for CATIA® V5 Administrator's and User's Guide
Windchill Default System Attributes (continued)
Windchill Attribute Description
• Predicted upon save for new objects.
• Should be set to the current CAD document
life cycle when setting upon check out for an
existing object.
PTC_WM_LIFECYCLE
• String Type
_STATE
• Initial value should be set according to be the
object initialization rules of the context of the
workspace. Should take the initial state of the
default life cycle. Initial value should be set
whether the server is online or offline.
• Corresponds to the name of the CAD
document’s life cycle state.
• Predicted upon save for new objects.
• Should be set to the current CAD document
life cycle state when setting upon check out for
an existing object.
PTC_WM_IS_DRAWING
• Boolean Type
• Initial value should be set according to CAD
Adapter’s declaration of the CAD document
type or Model Descriptor. If it is set to be a
drawing, then the Boolean is set to Yes ,
otherwise it is No .
• Set to Yes if the CAD document is a drawing.
• The value should not change once the object is
checked in.

Custom Parameters
Custom parameters are created by the CAD administrator in the CAD application
on the Product tab, and need to be mapped in Windchill using the Type and
Attribute Management utility so that they are recognized in Windchill and
published in the authoring application. For more information on mapping, refer to
Attribute and Parameter Types on page 264.
To access the Product page, go to the File menu in your authoring application.

Administration and Configuration 269

Configuring Attributes and Parameters
To ensure attributes and parameters are published in Windchill, they need to be
configured in Windchill and the authoring application. If a CAD drawing or part
has been checked in or saved in Windchill, the Properties page displays the
authoring application default parameters. These parameters are read-only; however
if required by your company, they can be modified. To modify these parameters,
the Windchill administrator modifies a preference in the Preference Management
utility in Windchill, and maps it to the authoring application preference. Mapping
is performed so that the preference is recognized between Windchill and the
authoring application. For more information about mapping, refer to Attribute and
Parameter Types on page 264.
Before you have created a CAD document and before it is checked in, you can set
up attributes ahead of time in the Preference Management utility. For example, for
naming and numbering you can go to the authoring application list in Set
Preference window and set up the attributes you plan to use.
If a user creates a authoring application parameter that conflicts in type with a
Windchill system attribute, then this user-created parameter should be deleted and
the system parameter of the correct type should be created by the Windchill
administrator. In this way, there is no conflict between the authoring application
and Windchill , and the parameter is published to the authoring application user
interface.
For example, in the Preference Management utility, locate the preference called
PTC_WM_REVISION.

Select the set preference icon to display the Set Preference window for this
preference:

270 PTC Windchill® Workgroup Manager for CATIA® V5 Administrator's and User's Guide
If you want to change the default Windchill preference value for your authoring
application, select it from the Client menu. For example, set
PTC_WM_REVISION=XYZ. The CAD modeled system parameter, XYZ, is
available for revision in the authoring application.

Adding New Authoring Application Parameters

Default system parameters are pushed from Windchill when a CAD part or
drawing is saved or checked in, and they appear on the page discussed below. You
can keep these parameters, change them, or create new ones. Use the following
process to access the page to add a new parameter.
To add new parameters, select the Product tab on the Properties window (right-
click object name in the Specification Tree ▶ Properties ).
Note
Hyperlinks are not supported and not valid for mapping.
The following is a list of standard parameter names that can be mapped either to a
custom parameter name or a standard Windchill system attribute (using the server-
side preferences mapping functionality) to put the values of the Windchill system
attribute into a parameter. The labels that should be used are listed in the next table.

CATIA V5 Default Parameters

Parameter Name Description

CAT:ACTIVE_BOM
CAT DEFINITION Populates the Definition text field.
CAT:DESCINST
CAT:DESCREF Populates the Description text field.
CAT:
DRAW_COMMENT
CAT:DRAW_RESPON

Administration and Configuration 271

CATIA V5 Default Parameters (continued)
Parameter Name Description
CAT:NOMENCLATURE Populates the Nomenclature text field
CAT:PART_NR Populates the Part Number text field.
CAT:REVISION Populates the Revision text field.
CAT:SOURCE Populates the Source list choices (Unknown, Made,
Bought) text field.

Default system parameters are created from the Product tab of the Properties
window (right-click object name in the Specification Tree ▶ Properties ).

Standard Authoring Application System Parameters

Authoring application parameters must use identical syntax to its comparable
Windchill attributes, or an error occurs on upload. In order to prevent errors that
may occur when the user manually tries to keep the values for, for example, model
number and name of their CAD models, in sync with the Windchill standard
attributes, the system provides the ability to map a Windchill system attribute to a
authoring application parameter.

Customizing Existing Windchill Attributes

To create more authoring application parameters, Windchill provides a server-side
delegate that can be used to customize the system parameters added to the CAD
file upon download. This is referred to as extending the Windchill system attribute.
Upon Add to Workspace , the system queries Windchill for system parameters.
After the administrator changes the server-side delegate code by adding to it (or
commenting out what is there), the authoring application publishes the new
parameter.
Windchill provides a sample delegate that creates all the authoring application
optional system parameters. These are reserved as a convenience, so that modified
or new authoring application parameters can easily be mapped. The administrator
locates the delegate and modifies it according to company requirements. The list of
reserved Windchill attributes is listed below.
• SP_WM_PART_REV
○ String Type
○ Corresponds to the string used for just the Windchill Version of the actively
associated WTPart.
• SP_WM_PART_ITERATION
○ String Type
○ Corresponds to the number used for just the Windchill Iteration of the
actively associated WTPart.

272 PTC Windchill® Workgroup Manager for CATIA® V5 Administrator's and User's Guide
• SP_WM_PROJECT
○ String Type
○ Corresponds to the name of the Team of the CAD document.
• SP_WM_VIEW
○ String Type
○ Corresponds to the label of the View of the actively associated WTPart.
• SP_WM_PART_LIFECYCLE
○ String Type
○ Corresponds to the name of the actively associated WTPart’s lifecycle.
• SP_WM_PART_TYPE
○ String Type
○ Corresponds to the soft attribute name of the actively associated WTPart.
• SP_WM_PART_LC_STATE
○ String Type
○ Corresponds to the name of the actively associated WTPart’s current
lifecycle state.

Editing the Delegate

Windchill provides a server-side delegate that can be used to insert parameters into
a authoring application part upon download. This mechanism can be used to pass
information from the server down to the authoring application, where it can be
used like any other authoring application parameter (for example, to place
information on drawing forms). Parameters beginning with PTC or PROI are
regarded as reserved system parameters and cannot be propagated by the
customization. If they are added in the customization, they are ignored by the
download service.

Note
The customized parameters are provided to the client upon download and are not
updated in the CAD application session after a Windchill operation (for example,
check in). For example, if a customized parameter is assigned the value of the
CAD document number, its value is provided to the client upon download. If the
CAD document is later renumbered, the value in the authoring application session
or the client cache is not automatically updated. The Windchill service delegate
mechanism is used to allow the customization.

Administration and Configuration 273

The following steps explain the customization process:
1. Create a Java class that implements the interface ModeledAttributesDelegate.
The interface definition is as follows:
package com.ptc.windchill.uwgm.proesrv.c11n;

import java.util.Collection;

import java.util.HashMap;

import wt.util.WTException;

public interface ModeledAttributesDelegate

// getAvailableAttributes() returns

// HashMap<String, Object> which contains

// HashMap<Attribute name, Attribute type>

HashMap getAvailableAttributes();

// getModeledAttributes(Collection docs) returns

// HashMap<input object, HashMap<Attribute name,

Attribute value>>

HashMap getModeledAttributes(Collection docs)

throws WTException;

Please see a sample implementation located at:

<Windchill home>/codebase/com/ptc/windchill/uwgm/proesrv/c11n/

274 PTC Windchill® Workgroup Manager for CATIA® V5 Administrator's and User's Guide
 DefaultModeledAttributesDelegate.java
2. Edit the site.xconf file (found in <Windchill>) to add the following
property to indicate availability of customization service on the server:
<Service context="default"

name="com.ptc.windchill.uwgm.proesrv.c11n.ModeledAttributesDelegate"

targetFile="codebase/service.properties">

<Option cardinality="singleton"

requestor="java.lang.Object"

serviceClass="com.ptc.windchill.uwgm.proesrv.c11n.DefaultModeled

AttributesDelegate"/>

</Service>

Use the path of your class in place of value of serviceClass (that is,
replace
com.ptc.windchill.uwgm.proesrv.c11n.Default

ModeledAttributesDelegate

with the path to your class)

3. Then use the xconfmanager tool to apply the changes to
service.properties file.
Runxconfmanager -p
4. Restart Windchill.

Mapping User-defined
User-defined Authoring Application Parameters
By default, user-defined CAD parameters are mapped to Windchill attributes with
the same name. The administrator defines the ability for authoring applications to
access parameters that are mapped to Windchill attributes. Errors and conflicts may
occur upon upload if a parameter from a CAD document is trying to be mapped to
a soft attribute in Windchill with a type mismatch or constraint violation. Because
Windchill attributes are pushed to the CAD document upon download, only
attributes that have changed since content upload are modified on check out or
download. The user may set changes to user-defined attributes into the authoring
application using Update .
• PTC supports mapping of soft attributes to authoring application parameters of
the following types:

Administration and Configuration 275

 ○ Real Number
○ String
○ Boolean
○ Integer
• If these types are not used, then the parameters are not published in the
authoring application.

Mapping Attributes and Parameters

In order to set up the parameters so that they are published in the authoring
application user interface, the administrator maps them in Type and Attribute
Management . For more information on Type and Attribute Management , refer to
the Windchill Help Center located on the Windchill server.
The following list details information about case-sensitivity when setting up
authoring application parameters that need to be recognized in Windchill:
• Windchill is case-sensitive in its handling of attributes; but not all authoring
applications are.
• If the authoring application does not support case-sensitive attribute names,
then they should be handled as the value in all upper case characters, regardless
of how they are shown in the authoring application.
• Windchill soft attribute Name is case-sensitive; therefore, when creating an soft
attribute to map to a authoring application parameter that does not support
case-sensitive attributes, then the name must be in all uppercase characters or
the administrator must explicitly map the name of the soft attribute to the name
of the CAD parameter.
• Your authoring application does not support case-sensitive parameters;
however, it does support mixed-case parameters. This means that the user
cannot create a parameter named Cost, cost, or COST, but the user can type
COST, Cost, or cost.
The administrator sets up an attribute on the authoring application side in the
Properties window. Then, in Windchill, under Site ▶ Utilities ▶ Type and Attribute
Management , the administrator maps this attribute. Use the following process to
map attributes and parameters:
1. Check out CAD Document soft type using the next steps.
a. From Manage Types , expand the EPM Document soft type.
b. Select CAD Document .
c. From the Actions pull-down select the edit icon. The CAD Document soft
type is ready to be modified as shown in the next graphic.

276 PTC Windchill® Workgroup Manager for CATIA® V5 Administrator's and User's Guide
2. You can choose to create a new attribute at this point. Use the next steps to
create a new attribute.
3. Click the new attribute icon on the Attributes tab.
4. The New Attribute window is comprised of three steps:
a. Define Attributes
b. Choose Global Attribute
c. Set Properties

Enter the information on each step, and click Next . When finished, click OK to
create the new attribute. You are returned to the Manage Types window, with the
information page for the attribute appearing in the right pane.

Administration and Configuration 277

Define Attributes
1. Specify an Internal Name for the object. This is a required field.
2. Select the attribute Type . Not every type of attribute can be created on every
type. Only those attribute types that can be created on the type are displayed.
• Global —Global attributes can have zero or more values for an attribute. In
previous releases, global attributes were known as instance-based
attributes. The global attribute set is created using the Manage Global
Attributes window.
• Alias —Alias attributes are an alias for a attribute on a related object. They
can have zero to many values.
• Calculated —Calculated attributes are derived from the values of other
attributes using formulas. They can have zero to many values.

Choose Global Attribute

For global attribute types, select from the Global Attributes table the global
attribute upon which you want to base the new attribute. The global attribute set is
made up of the attributes defined in the Manage Global Attributes window. The
data type for global attribute types is determined by the data type of the selected
global attribute.

Set Properties
Enter the property values for the attribute. The available properties can differ
depending on the combination of attribute type and data type, or on the global
attribute definition. Certain properties are required and must be specified before the
attribute can be created. Most properties on an attribute can be specified or edited
after the attribute is created, on the attribute information page.

Setting the Attribute in Windchill

To map the attribute in Windchill complete the following.
1. Click the information icon next to the attribute you want mapped.

278 PTC Windchill® Workgroup Manager for CATIA® V5 Administrator's and User's Guide
2. Enter the desired value next to the Authoring Application you want the
attribute mapped against.

Administration and Configuration 279

 Note
Multiple mappings can be set by using the pipe (|) key to separate the
mappings.
The syntax for block specific attribute mapping in the Windchill type manager
is as follows: <block name><separator><attribute name> (where <separator>
is the / character)
For example:
TitleBlock/Name
3. Save your updates.

Setting the Attribute in the Authoring Application

To complete mapping this parameter use the following procedure.
1. Open the authoring application and navigate to File ▶ Properties ▶ Product .
2. Create a parameter with the exact same name as the one you created in
Windchill.

280 PTC Windchill® Workgroup Manager for CATIA® V5 Administrator's and User's Guide
3. Select Add . The Define other properties window opens.
4. Type in the exact same name as you did in Windchill, and give it the same
value.
5. Select OK .
6. The parameter and its corresponding value is added.
This attribute is now recognized in Windchill with the Windchill attribute name
when you upload or check in a CAD part or drawing.

Soft Typing CAD Documents

In CATIA V5 you can create restricted value parameters that use definitions from a
restriction definition file. The restriction definition file defines the parameter name,
type, value, range of values and a default. This feature is useful because it allows
to set an attribute for a specific object-type and thaen set a specific range of
acceptable values.

Constraining Attributes
The Windchill counterpart to restricted value parameters is the soft typing feature.
Soft typing is accessible through the Type and Attribute Management utility and
allows to add constraints (such as a value or range of values) to an instance-based
attribute. Additionally you can use the Type and Attribute Management utility to
add attributes to the EPMDocument type and its soft types: both the CAD
document and dynamic document (Arbortext document) soft types
For CAD documents, there is one system-provided soft type, the CAD Document,
that an administrator can modify to add attributes that can have different values for
each iteration of the of the object that an administrator can modify. This soft type
cannot be deleted. It can also be subtyped. Additional soft types are related to CAD
Documents:
• CAD Document Master soft type (on CAD Document Master type)
Attributes added to this soft type have only one value for all iterations.
Changing the value of an attribute on a CAD Document Master soft type
changes that value for all iterations. This type of attribute is the Windchill
equivalent of a Pro/INTRALINK non-versioned attribute.
• CAD Document Uses Link soft type
Attributes that are added to this soft type are specific to the use of an iteration
of an object. For example, if there are four bolts of the same type (bolt.prt) in
an assembly, and each bolt needs to be tightened to a specific torque, you can
add torque to the Uses Link soft type and then apply a different value to each

Administration and Configuration 281

 occurrence of the bolt in the assembly. (In contrast, if you add this attribute to
the CAD Document soft type instead, then all bolts in all assemblies would
have the same torque wherever they are used.)
• CAD Document Reference Link soft type (on CAD Document Reference Link
type)
Attributes that are added to this soft type apply to reference links (again, not to
the document itself).

Flexible Soft Typing

The term “flexible” soft typing refers to the ability to specify certain CAD
document types or subtypes be created when a CAD model is initially checked into
Windchill. Combined with the ability to specify what Windchill part soft type is
created auto association (based on the CAD document sub type), it streamlines the
process of attribute segmentation among appropriate sub types.
For example, with administrative privileges you can access the Type and Attribute
Management utility, select the CAD Document subtype, and using a right-mouse-
button command create a new subtype for the CAD Document subtype.

Implicit Parameter-to-
Parameter-to-Attribute
Attribute Mapping
Implicit mapping occurs when the authoring application parameter uses the exact
syntax as its Windchill attribute. This makes the parameter publish automatically in
the authoring application.
For example, a CAD document has a set of soft attributes that are published to the
authoring application. From this set, use the soft attribute Name and map it to the
NAME of the parameter in the authoring application. The soft-types that used in
this case are:
• EPMDocument
• EPMMemberLink
• EPMReferenceLink

282 PTC Windchill® Workgroup Manager for CATIA® V5 Administrator's and User's Guide
If Name is the same by a case-sensitive evaluation, the two are implicitly mapped.
Other parameters are not be added to the CAD document, unless they are explicitly
mapped. For example, in the authoring application, if the administrator has created
a soft attribute with the name, Cost , then the user must also create the soft attribute
with the name Cost so it is implicitly mapped. If the authoring application user
creates COST, it will not be mapped.
If the authoring application does not support case-sensitive parameter names, the
name is treated in all uppercase characters. For example, if the authoring
application treats Cost and COST the same, then Windchill receives and handles
this attribute as COST. The Windchill soft attribute name must also be COST.
Note
Although the user may create a authoring application parameter called Cost, it is
passed to Windchill as Cost. Therefore, ensure the authoring application parameter
name is in all uppercase so that it is implicitly mapped in Windchill. Other
properties are not added to the CAD document, unless they are explicitly mapped.
If a mapped parameter is inconsistent with its corresponding soft attribute, the
following occurs.
• Type
If the two are not the same type then a warning is given to the user upon
upload; but upload continues. The value is not pushed to the CAD document.
• Units
If the quantity of measure is different between the attribute and the parameter,
then the CAD document receives an error upon upload. The user is notified to
check in the CAD document.

Explicit Property-to-
Property-to-Attribute
Attribute Mapping
Explicit mapping occurs when you use Windchill to match a parameter with a soft
attribute. This is done in the Type and Attribute Management utility, which has an
Attribute Mapping tab where you map the soft attributes. You can add, modify, and
remove the mappings. If you change the mappings, it does not affect the existing
CAD documents.
Similar to implicitly mapped parameters, the values from the CAD application are
added to the CAD document upon upload, and the values of soft attributes set in
Windchill are reflected in the CAD file upon download.

Administration and Configuration 283

Mapping Properties and Parameters with Units
Mapping properties and parameters with units is done by setting the Enable
Support for Parameters or Properties with Units preference in the Preference
Management utility to yes:

284 PTC Windchill® Workgroup Manager for CATIA® V5 Administrator's and User's Guide
The following is an example in CATIA and in Windchill.

Administration and Configuration 285

Exposing CATIA Properties to Windchill
You can expose many properties from a CATIA V5 model, so that they can be
mapped as parameters in CATIA V5, and as IBA attributes in Windchill.
You can expose native CATIA V5 attributes (examples: Component, Instance
Name, Product, Part Number, Revision, Definition, Nomenclature, Source,
Description) by mapping them to predefined values.
For example, the following attributes are mappable to Windchill from the Mass tab
of the CATIA V5 Properties Form:

286 PTC Windchill® Workgroup Manager for CATIA® V5 Administrator's and User's Guide
CATIA Attributes Mappable Windchill IBA
Attributes
CAT:MASS
CAT:VOLUME
CAT:DENSITY
CAT:SURFACE_AREA
CAT:
CENTER_OF_GRAVITY_X
CAT:
CENTER_OF_GRAVITY_Y
CAT:CENTER_OF_GRAVITY_Z
CAT:INERTIA_MATRIX_XX
CAT:INERTIA_MATRIX_XY
CAT:INERTIA_MATRIX_XZ
CAT:INERTIA_MATRIX_YX
CAT:INERTIA_MATRIX_YY
CAT:INERTIA_MATRIX_YZ
CAT:INERTIA_MATRIX_ZX
CAT:INERTIA_MATRIX_ZZ
CAT:INERTIA_MATRIX_ZY

You can expose these properties for the main part body or for all parts. To expose
the properties for only the main part body, set
expose.mass.properties.only.main.body=Yes in the wgmclient.ini
file.

Administration and Configuration 287

To map such attributes, either set expose.physical.properties=Yes in
the wgmclient.ini file, or use the type and attribute management (Site ▶ Utilities ▶
Type and Attribute Management ) utility to define the attribute and then map it into
Windchill, as in the following example:

Exposing Extensive Design Information

This feature extracts CATIA V5 information from Windchill and puts it in an XML
file for downstream customization use in Windchill, outside CATIA V5. This
feature can expose three different types of design information from CATIA
components into the XML file, including the parameter information on geometrical
sets, the text notes from annotations sets, and the inertia properties of specific part
bodies.
The information is collected using the following preferences:
1. The expose.parameters.under.geometrical.set.from.
specification.tree preference in the wgmclient.ini file determines how
parameter values are exposed under geometrical sets from a CATIA V5
specification tree.
This preference has the following options:

288 PTC Windchill® Workgroup Manager for CATIA® V5 Administrator's and User's Guide
 Option Description
None Does not expose any parameters under
any geometrical set from the specifi-
cation tree
(Specific geometrical set) For a single geometrical set, use *\
\<name of set>\\*
For multiple geometrical sets, use a
semicolon as in the following exam-
ple: *\\<name of set 1>\\*;*\\<name
of set 2>\\*, *\\<name of set 3>\\*
All Exposes all the parameters under any
geometrical set from the specification
tree
The expose.annotation.text.notes.from.specification.
tree preference in the wgmclient.ini file controls whether to expose text notes
under annotations sets from the specification tree upon Save to Workspace or
Checkin.
This preference has the following options:
Option Description
No Does not expose annotation note text
from the specification tree
Yes Exposes annotation note text from the
specification tree
2. The expose.measure.inertia.property preference in the
wgmclient.ini file controls whether to expose measure inertia property on the
main part body upon Save to Workspace or Checkin. If you wish to expose this
property, specify the object that is expected to be measured. The result of the
calculation is exposed.
This preference has the following options:
Option Description
None Does not expose measure inertia
property
PartBody Expose the measure inertia property
and calculate against PartBody.
3. The identify.standard.part preference in the wgmclient.ini file
controls whether to expose the geometrical set information of specific parts
identified by a standard naming convention. If you wish to expose this
information, the values of the string which reflect the customer naming

Administration and Configuration 289

 convention to define the standard part are used to search the standard part in
the specification tree.
This preference has the following options:
Option Description
None Does not expose design information
of the standard part.
[filename of CAD model, name of Enter the values of the string which
geometrical set] reflect the convention to define the
standard part used to search the stand-
ard part in the specification tree. The
format is pairs of strings separated by
semicolon. For example, [none,
none]; [filename of CAD
model, name of geometrical
set]; [filename of CAD
model, name of geometrical
set]

The resulting XML file containing the data does not need to be opened in CAT-
IA V5. The xml file is created using the naming convention
<Parent_File_Name>.para.xml and is saved as an attachment to the
part.

Modifying the Properties Page

To configure a custom part-specific properties page, you have to create a properties
page or template processor. For details on how to do this refer to the Customizing
the HTML Client section in the PTC Windchill Customization Guide located at
PTC Reference Documents Web site.

Modifying the HTML Client Item Selection Page

To enable recognition of custom parts as a sub-class of WTPart and not just the
supported type in the HTML client item selection page’s default implementation,
you must add support for the custom part in the configured
wt.query.SearchAttributeListDelegate.
In addition, you must modify the CAD application HTML files that use the item
selection page, and use the xconfmanager modify or override the type list id
entries in
com\ptc\windchill\cadx\propfiles\picker.properties.

290 PTC Windchill® Workgroup Manager for CATIA® V5 Administrator's and User's Guide
Note
For wt.query.SearchAttributeList, which is the default configured
search attribute list, the type identifier is referred to as the query value.

Replacing WTPart
If you want your site to use only custom part and not WTParts, use the following
procedure.
1. Add custom part support to HTML Search.
2. In picker.properties, use the xconfmanager to change the type list
entries that contain a type identifier for WTPart to the custom part type
identifier you created in Step 1.
3. Restart the Method server.

Supporting WTPart and Custom Part

If your site plans to use both WTParts and custom parts, use the following
procedure.
1. Add custom part support to HTML Search.
2. In picker.properties, use the xconfmanager to add to the type list
entries that contain a type identifier for WTPart the custom part type identifier
you created in step 1.
3. To add an All type list entry for a type list, add an entry with the ALL type
identifier used by the configured search attribute list.
4. Restart the Method server.

Enabling the Recording and Display of Rename and

Location History
When a file is renamed, Windchill records the data in a table that can be displayed
to the user. The administrator configures this display of Rename history and
Location history by modifying entries in the configAudit.xml file, located at
codebase\registry\auditing\configAudit.xml file.
Be aware that enabling auditing can adversely affect performance and
consequently choose to audit the most significant events. To enable display of the
Rename History and Location History links on the information page, put the
following entries in configAudit.xml and restart the method server.
<?xml version="1.0" encoding="UTF-8"?>
<!DOCTYPE EventConfiguration SYSTEM "configAudit.dtd">
<EventConfiguration enabled="true">
<KeyEntry eventKey="*/wt.folder.FolderServiceEvent

Administration and Configuration 291

/POST_CHANGE_FOLDER" multiObject="true"/>
<KeyEntry eventKey="*/wt.epm.EPMDocumentManagerEvent
/PRE_CHANGE_CAD_NAME" multiObject="true"/>
<ConfigEntry class="wt.epm.EPMDocumentMaster"
enabled="true">
<RenameEventEntry eventType="PRE_CHANGE_IDENTITY"
enabled="true"
handler="wt.audit.configaudit.RenameEventRecorder"/>
<KeyedEventEntry eventKey="*/wt.epm.EPMDocumentManagerEvent
/PRE_CHANGE_CAD_NAME"
enabled="true"
handler="wt.audit.configaudit.CADNameChangeAuditEventRecorder"/>
</ConfigEntry>
<ConfigEntry class="wt.epm.EPMDocument" enabled="true">
<KeyedEventEntry eventKey="*/wt.folder.FolderServiceEvent
/POST_CHANGE_FOLDER"
enabled="true"
handler="wt.audit.configaudit.LocationChangeAuditEventRecorder"/>
</ConfigEntry> </EventConfiguration>

Note
The default configAudit.xml file comes with
EventConfiguration enabled="false", but with all lower level sections
enabled. Therefore, setting EventConfiguration enabled="true"
enables all auditing for the application as a whole. To selectively audit events, you
must customize which auditing events are enabled.

Generation of Viewables
Server-side generation of viewables is enabled by setting up the Windchill
Visualization Service. For information about setting up Windchill Visualization
Service, see the Windchill Installation and Configuration Guide - Visualization
Services located on PTC Reference Documents.

Managing Secondary Content

The administrator specifies files that the system automatically attaches to a
supported model’s dynamic document. The functionality assumes that the name of
these related files is not random and is based on of the main model’s file name. The
following file specifications are defined:
• Extension of the file to be automatically attached
• Existing category for the file
• New category

292 PTC Windchill® Workgroup Manager for CATIA® V5 Administrator's and User's Guide
 ○ Behavior for downloading attachments of this type
○ Validity of the attachment after the primary content is modified is also
defined by the attachment
• A pattern-matching string to find the name of the additional content.
By default, no automatic attachment settings are defined. These can only be set by
any user. Automatic attachment preference can be set from all locations – Sites ,
Products , Projects , or Organizations in the Windchill Preference Management
utility and the wgmclient.ini file. Use the following process to define the
automatic attachment settings:
1. In the Preference Management utility, configure the Windchill Workgroup
Manager autoattach preference, Upload CAD/Dynamic Document and
Attachment Filter , with the file wgm.autoattach. This allows the content
that is uploaded to Windchill to be configured as additional content of a CAD
model.
2. Set the upload.autoattach.search path. This specifies the paths on
disk, separated by ; (semi-colon), search for attachments that need to be
automatically added to a dynamic document upon upload.
For more information on preferences, see Preferences on page 305.

Specifying Whether or Not to Outdate Secondary Content

The Windchill preference system (under Preference Management ▶ Operation ▶
CAD Data Management ▶ Content Handling ▶ Mark Out Of Date ) lists the secondary
content categories for your site. For each category of file type, setting the mark-
out-of-date preference to Yes (default is No ) means that upon executing various
PDM operations, any secondary content of the specified category type is marked as
outdated (for example, in the Attachments table on the CAD document information
page). Setting the value to No means that the category does not become outdated,
as it is carried forward with the CAD document.
Users can manually override conflicts caused by outdated files (for example,
during a Check In attempt) by:
• Terminating Check In and manually updating the attachment, thus removing the
Outdated flag.
• Removing the attachment from the CAD document.
• Resetting the status (removing the Outdated flag).
• Overriding the conflict and checking the CAD document in “as is,” with an
Outdated status.

Administration and Configuration 293

Setting the Automatically Download Secondary Content
Preference
You can set a preference to specify whether to automatically download secondary
content for different types of files. The secondary content categories for your site
are listed in Windchill (Utilities ▶ Preference Management ▶ Operation ▶ CAD Data
Management ▶ Content Handling ▶ Download ). For each category of file type,
setting the download preference to Yes (default is No ) means that upon a download
of a Dynamic Document, any secondary content of the specified category type is
downloaded automatically along with the primary content. Setting the value to No
specifies that the secondary content is not downloaded automatically with the
primary content of dynamic document.

Cleanup of the Event Management Utility

To avoid possible performance issues resulting from an accumulation of a large
number of event records in the Event Management utility, add the following site-
wide property to
wt.properties: com.ptc.core.task.purgeTasksOlderThanDays
= <integer>. Events older than the specified integer (number of days) are
automatically purged.
For more information on the Event Management utility, refer to Conflict
Management on page 116.

Configuring the Workspace User Interface

This section describes how to configure the workspace user interface including
tables, rows and automatic scrolling.

Administering Table Views

The display of information in many tables can be set by a user and administrator
using the Table View Manager . Specific views for tables can be created or edited in
the Create Table View window, described in the server online help. Administrators
have the option of making a table view available to all users by selecting the
Publish to All Users check box on the first step, Set Name , of the Create Table View
window.

Configuring Table Scrollbar Display

By default, scrollbars controlling the vertical scrolling for tables are positioned on
the right side of tables. Occasionally, the combined number and width of table
columns may make it necessary to use the horizontal scrollbar to access the vertical
scrollbar. A site-wide property allows you to change the location of table scrollbars

294 PTC Windchill® Workgroup Manager for CATIA® V5 Administrator's and User's Guide
from the right to the left side to reduce the need for horizontal scrolling. To
position scrollbars on the left side of tables, configure the following property in
your site.xconf:
<Property name="com.ptc.core.htmlcomp.jstable.positionScrollbarLeftside"

overridable="true" targetFile="codebase/wt.properties" value="true"/>

Note
No property is necessary for default behavior. This property works for common
table components on the Windows platform (only) except for the Event
Management utility tables.

Configuring the Display of Number of Workspace Rows

The property com.ptc.windchill.uwgm.cadx.ws.sizeToWindow
controls the number of rows displayed in the workspace object list. Set to True
(default), the number of rows shown is based on the height of the window. To
display a fixed number of rows (for example, 10 for Windows), set the property to
False , as follows:
<Property name="com.ptc.windchill.uwgm.cadx.ws.sizeToWindow" overridable="true"
targetFile="codebase/wt.properties"value="false"/>

Configuring Automatic Scrolling in the Workspace

The property com.ptc.windchill.uwgm.cadx.ws.scrollToTable
controls whether the workspace page appears automatically scrolled to the
beginning of the item list table or appears scrolled to the top of the page. When set
to True (default), the page automatically scrolls to show the workspace item list.
To disable automatic scrolling, set the property to False , as follows.
<Property name="com.ptc.windchill.uwgm.cadx.ws.scrollToTable" overridable="true"
targetFile="codebase/wt.properties" value="false"/>

Performance Considerations
The following sections describe how you can set up your system for maximum
performance.

Setting the Number of Concurrent Upload and

Download Threads
The recommended number of concurrent upload and download threads depends on
your network’s bandwidth. Three threads are recommended for a WAN, while 6
threads are possible for a fast LAN. However, in most cases, increasing the number

Administration and Configuration 295

of threads in a LAN environment will not improve performance, as the disk will
then become the bottleneck. Even in a WAN environment, settings greater than the
default are unlikely to improve throughput significantly.
To set the number of concurrent threads CATIA V5 uses for uploading and
downloading data to and from a Windchill server, use the wf.network.
threads preference in the wgmclient.ini file.

Setting the Method Server HEAP Size

It is recommended that the default Java heap size for each method server be set to
512MB in order to cope with large CAD application data sets that are common to
the products developed by CAD users.

Data Compression
The metadata compression option is intended to improve the upload and download
performance of Windchill Workgroup Manager for users accessing Windchill
across a lower bandwidth network. This feature substantially improves the
performance of upload and download operations for large family of objects.

Maximizing the Oracle Server/Windchill

Server/Windchill Server
Connection
Due to the large number of objects and CAD documents involved in database
transactions, it is highly recommended that the connection between the Oracle
server and the Windchill method server machines is both low latency and high
bandwidth.

Note
Bulk HTTP data transfer using Apache on Windows 2000 can be restricted by
Apache's default send buffer size. It is recommended to set the
SendBufferSize=16384 property in httpd.conf to significantly improve
throughput over high latency, low bandwidth WANs.

Delaying Metadata Updates of Attributes

The force.update.metadata.on.open and update.metadata.on.
load Windchill Workgroup Manager preferences allow you to delay the
propagation of metadata (global attributes (IBAs) and system attributes) to obtain
better performance. The force.update.metadata.on.open preference
controls whether global attributes (IBAs) are updated upon open. The update.
metadata.on.load preference controls whether metadata updates are delayed
until switching to design mode.

296 PTC Windchill® Workgroup Manager for CATIA® V5 Administrator's and User's Guide
Propagating attributes to CAD files increases the time needed to open files,
compared to opening files when working standalone without Windchill Workgroup
Manager. While this issue is not noticeable on single parts and small assemblies,
opening large assemblies can take significantly longer when the CAD tool is
connected to Windchill Workgroup Manager. If you regularly work with large
assemblies, waiting for files to open can have a significant effect on your
productivity.
These preferences provide the ability to exchange the temporary inaccuracy of
metadata in a CAD session for improved system performance. For optimum
performance, set both preferences to No. Remember that when the preferences are
enabled, the attribute propagation is only postponed. There is no data corruption;
there is only a temporary incorrect display.
Following are details about setting these preferences:
• These preferences are available in the wgmclient.ini file only, and are not
available from Windchill Preference Management . (The wgmclient.ini
file is located in the Windchill Workgroup Manager home directory.)
• You can set the force.update.metadata.on.open preference to:
○ Yes (default)—Global attributes are updated for documents when they are
opened in any mode, including visualization mode. System attributes are
updated according to the value of update.metadata.on.load.
○ No—Metadata is updated according to the value of update.metadata.on.
load.
○ Legacy—For legacy data, global attributes are updated according to the
value of update.metadata.on.load. This preference is applied only to
documents that do not have a neutral data XML file (models upgraded from
a release prior to Windchill 9.0).
• You can set the update.metadata.on.load preference to:
○ Yes (default)—Metadata is updated for a CATIA V5 document when it is
loaded in any mode other than visualization mode.
○ No—Metadata is not updated until a CATIA V5 document is loaded in
design mode.

Administration and Configuration 297

 Note
○ If force.update. metadata.on.open is set to Yes, global
attributes are updated for documents that are loaded in visualization mode,
regardless of the value of update.metadata.on.load.
○ When a drawing is loaded, metadata is updated for any CATIA V5
document that the drawing references with an attribute link, regardless of
the value of update.metadata.on.load.
○ If update.metadata.on.load is set to No, out-of-date metadata
values are displayed in CATIA V5 for any CATIA V5 document that is not
loaded in design mode.

Preventing Automatic Synchronization of System

Parameter Changes
Note
This topic applies only environments that use CGR cache management in CATIA
V5.
When you work on a CAD file in CATIA V5, system parameter changes are
propagated automatically when the file is loaded by CATIA V5. This can cause
performance issues, especially when you work with drawings of large assemblies,
which partially load the dependents of the assembly.
To prevent the automatic synchronization of system parameter changes, disable the
update.system.attribute.on.drawing.open preference in the
Wgmclient.ini file. When this preference is enabled, system parameter
changes are synchronized only when you manually synchronize them or when you
work in design mode.

System Configuration Recommendations

The following section discusses recommendations for configuring the Windchill
system.

Running Multiple Servers

It is recommended that Windchill be configured to run multiple method servers on
servers with multiple CPUs and to run Oracle on a second server, especially when
there is a single-CPU server running Windchill.

298 PTC Windchill® Workgroup Manager for CATIA® V5 Administrator's and User's Guide
Using External File Vaulting
Content files persisted in external vaults are retrieved faster than content files
stored in Oracle as binary large objects (BLOBS). Although the use of file vaults
can add complexity to backup and recovery operations, vault management can be
simplified by using the xconfmanager to set the property wt.property wt.
fv.forceContentToVault = true. This causes all content to vault to the
DefaultCacheVault, thus keeping it out of Oracle BLOBs, without requiring
creation of a vaulting rule. In the event that multiple vaults must be implemented at
your site, a vaulting rule applied to the User domain (where dynamic documents
are created) can direct content to vault appropriately.

Note
Following a custom checkin, the user is able to see dynamic documents to be
vaulted only in the default cache folder until an explicit revaulting action (executed
through the replication schedule set by the administrator) is executed.

Using Content Replication

Content replication provides the means to copy selected content files from a master
server to remotely located replica servers for faster access by users at the remote
site, thereby significantly improving access time. The files at the replica site remain
retrievable by users at the master site.

Client and Server Logging

TheWindchill Workgroup Manager for CATIA V5 logs are found in the \cadapp
folder, with the crash logs from the CAD Adapter in the CATTemp directory.
A log file looks like this:
2010-01-04T15:21:17.564Z: I: uwgm.srvprefs_set: WWGM_PREFERENCES:
upload.related.drawings: false (server)
2010-01-04T15:21:21.971Z: I: uwgm.srvprefs_set: WWGM_PREFERENCES:
Pro/ENGINEER: true (server)
2010-01-04T15:21:21.971Z: I: uwgm.srvprefs_set: WWGM_PREFERENCES:
wgm.autoattach: "" (server)
2010-01-04T15:21:21.971Z: I: uwgm.srvprefs_set: WWGM_PREFERENCES:
CATIA V5: "*.CATProduct,*.CATProcess,MANUFACTURING;*.CATPart,
*.CATAnalysis,ANALYSIS_INPUT" (server)
2010-01-04T15:21:21.971Z: I: uwgm.srvprefs_set: WWGM_PREFERENCES:
define.drawing: "" (server)
2010-01-04T15:21:21.971Z: I: uwgm.srvprefs_set: WWGM_PREFERENCES:
Unigraphics: "attribute" (server)

Administration and Configuration 299

The logging capabilities of theWindchill Workgroup Manager client collect
information of version information ofWindchill Workgroup Manager client and
CATIA V5 as well as preferences used by theWindchill Workgroup Manager client
from the startup until the end of the session. Specifically, the log includes the
following information:
• Version ofWindchill Workgroup Manager client including minor version,
maintenance release, and patches.
• Version of the CATIA V5 Abstraction Builder used to generate the DLL
• CATIA V5 version including the service pack number for the CATIA
development tool that was used to generate the DLL
• Windchill Workgroup Manager-relevant preferences used by the client. Since
theWindchill Workgroup Manager client at startup is served by both active
server-side preferences (for example, Windchill preferences) and preferences
defined on the client slide (example: wgmclient.ini), this client initialization
file includes the following information relevant to theWindchill Workgroup
Manager client:
○ <WWGM preference name 1 =<value>(<source>)
○ <WWGM preference name 2=<value>(<source>)
○ <WWGM preference name 3 =<value>(<source>)

Note
<source> could be the client (driven by the value of the wgmclient.ini file), the
server (the value from Windchill preference management) or the default. The
default is used if a preference is defined neither on the server nor in the
wgmclient.ini file. It is a hardcoded value that is defined as part of the client
preference schema.
To enable the logging, set the following two environment variables:
• PTC_LOG_ACTIVATE is set to “t”
• PTC_LOG_CONFIG is set to the path of the file “logging.cfg”
And add the following lines to the “logging.cfg” file to enable the logging area for
particular information:
• verbose_level ERROR
• enable WWGM_PREFERENCES INFO
• enable WWGM_ADAPTER_LOGGING INFO
• enable WWGM_CLIENT_VERSION INFO

300 PTC Windchill® Workgroup Manager for CATIA® V5 Administrator's and User's Guide
Enabling Debug Logging in Windchill
Workgroup Manager Client
When troubleshooting Windchill interaction issues, it can be advantageous to have
additional debug logging enabled on the Windchill Workgroup Manager client.
You can enable additional debug logging (e.g., in the uwgm.log, creation of an
applog.log, etc.) by setting the client environment in Windows by navigating
to Start ▶ Control Panel ▶ System ▶ Advanced ▶ Environment Variables ▶ User
variables ▶ New .
Note
Enabling debug logging may degrade system performance.

Enable creation of the uwgm.log and/or applog.log

For normal debugging, create a logging.cfg text file with the following
environment:
verbose_level DEBUG
enable CIPSOAP DEBUG
enable UWGMCLNT_PDM_ACTIONS DEBUG
enable UWGMCLNT_CAD_ACTIONS DEBUG
enable PROWT_PDM_ACTIONS DEBUG
enable UWGM_COMM DEBUG
enable Communication DEBUG
enable ContentPlugin DEBUG
enable CurrentLogger DISABLED
enable DBObjectIBA DEBUG
enable Download DEBUG
enable HTTPDownload DEBUG
enable LocalCache DEBUG
enable Merge DISABLED
enable PartIBA DEBUG
enable Persistance DEBUG
enable Profile DEBUG
enable RefTable DISABLED
enable ServerCache DEBUG
enable ServerDownload DEBUG
enable IndexLogging DEBUG
enable ServerProfile DEBUG
enable ThreadQueue DEBUG
enable ToDo DISABLED
enable Upload DEBUG
enable WorkspaceCache DEBUG
enable Ipc DISABLED
enable WfImport DEBUG
enable DetailActionInfo DEBUG
enable Wildfire DEBUG
enable UWGMLIB_CONTENT_MANAGER DEBUG
enable UWGMLIB_PREFERENCES DEBUG
enable UWGMCLNT_PREFERENCES DEBUG
enable UWGM_CADADAPTER_TRL DEBUG
enable WWGM_ADAPTER_LOGGING DEBUG
enable WWGM_PREFERENCES DEBUG

Administration and Configuration 301

enable PROWT_JSCB_LOG_AREA DEBUG
enable UWGM_ADAPTER DEBUG
enable WindchillRTA DEBUG
enable UWGMLIB_VFS DEBUG
enable UWGMCLNT_VFS DEBUG
enable UWGMLOCK DEBUG
enable WWGM_CLIENT_VERSION DEBUG
enable PROE_PROWT DEBUG
enable HTTP_INIT_AREA DEBUG
enable PROWT_PROP_AREA DEBUG
enable ConfigAssembly DEBUG
use_local_time yes

Set the following environment:

PTC_LOG_ACTIVATE=t
PTC_LOG_CONFIG=c:\logging.cfg

Move the logging.cfg file to the PTC_LOG_CONFIG environment location.

Note
If troubleshooting performance-related issues, use the following in logging.
cfg.debug instead.
verbose_level INFO
enable CIPSOAP INFO
enable UWGMCLNT_PDM_ACTIONS ERROR
enable UWGMCLNT_CAD_ACTIONS ERROR
enable PROWT_PDM_ACTIONS ERROR
enable UWGM_COMM ERROR
enable Communication ERROR
enable ContentPlugin ERROR
enable CurrentLogger DISABLED
enable DBObjectIBA ERROR
enable Download ERROR
enable HTTPDownload ERROR
enable LocalCache ERROR
enable Merge ERROR
enable PartIBA ERROR
enable Persistance ERROR
enable Profile ERROR
enable RefTable ERROR
enable ServerCache ERROR
enable ServerDownload ERROR
enable ServerProfile ERROR
enable ThreadQueue ERROR
enable ToDo DISABLED
enable Upload ERROR
enable WorkspaceCache ERROR
enable UWGMLIB_CONTENT_MANAGER ERROR
enable UWGMLIB_PREFERENCES DISABLED
enable UWGMCLNT_PREFERENCES ERROR
enable UWGM_CADADAPTER_TRL ERROR
enable PROWT_JSCB_LOG_AREA ERROR
enable UWGM_ADAPTER INFO
enable WindchillRTA ERROR

302 PTC Windchill® Workgroup Manager for CATIA® V5 Administrator's and User's Guide
enable ConfigAssembly ERROR
use_local_time yes

Note
Full debug logging in logging.cfg.debug is preferred.
Note
applog.log and <start-in>\Log_PROE_<PROE VERSION>
_<date>_<time>_<pid>_000001\uwgm.log.1 will be created in the
start-in directory. The location of these files and directories can be controlled by
adding a "log_dir_path <desired_path>" entry to logging.cfg.debug; for
example:log_dir_path c:\temp.

Enable creation of an applog.log.# with BSC information

Set the following in the client environment:
BSC_LOG_ACTIVATE=t

Enable creation of a mozilla.log

mozilla.log
When using Windchill Workgroup Manager with the wgmclient.ini file preference,
windows_browser_type=mozilla_based_browser.
Set the following in the client environment:
NSPR_LOG_FILE=c:\mozilla.log
NSPR_LOG_MODULES=all:5
PTC_DEBUG_GECKO_OUTPUT=1000
PTC_BR_LOG_ACTIVATE=t

Enable creation of a mozilla.log

mozilla.log (UNIX)
When using Windchill Workgroup Manager embedded browser on UNIX
platforms
Set the following in the client environment:
setenv NSPR_LOG_FILE /tmp/mozilla.log
setenv NSPR_LOG_MODULES all:5
setenv PTC_DEBUG_GECKO_OUTPUT 1000

Enable creation of request/response*.

request/response*.xml
xml
Set the following in the client environment:
UWGM_PRINT_XML_FILES=yes

Enable creation of Adapter logs

Set the following in the client environment:
VC_LOG_DIR=<path>

Administration and Configuration 303

Redirect std.out , std.err to uwgm_client.out
Set the following in the client environment:
PTC_WGM_STDFILES=t

Enable Java Script Bridge logging

Set the following in the client environment:
PTC_JS_COMMAND_LOG=t

304 PTC Windchill® Workgroup Manager for CATIA® V5 Administrator's and User's Guide
 9
Preferences

Preference Organization .......................................................................................... 306

Managing Preferences Using the Preference Management Utility ................................ 306
Managing Preferences Using the wgmclient.ini File .................................................... 327

This section is intended for all users and contains the most frequently used Wind-
chill Workgroup Manager preferences that can be set or changed using the
Preference Management utility in Windchill and preferences that can be set or
changed using the wgmclient.ini file located in the Windchill Workgroup Manager
home directory.

305
Preference Organization
The preference system is organized through a top-down design where an
administrator first sets up the commonly used server and client preferences;
typically, the user then specifies client behavior.
The following list describes the preferences hierarchy:
1. Windchill organization—The most general level. The preferences at this level
are set by an administrator on the server in the Preference Management utility
window and are visible to administrators and users.
2. User—More specific than the Windchill organization level. These are client
preferences set in the Preference Management utility window, and in the
wgmclient.ini file. They are client-only preferences, but are visible to the
user and administrator. They can be customized from what the administrator
sets.
3. wgmclient.ini file—The most specific level. The preferences at this level
are visible to the user, and override client preferences set on the server in the
Preference Management utility window. These preferences customize the client
to meet individual user working styles.
Note
Administrators can lock a preference in the Preference Management utility
window so that it cannot be changed by any method, including changing the
wgmclient.ini file. Administrators usually lock certain preferences to ensure
that certain business policies cannot be changed.

Managing Preferences Using the

Preference Management Utility
This section provides an overview of the Preference Management utility,
instructions on setting or changing preferences for CATIA V5, and lists the most
frequently used Windchill Workgroup Manager preferences that may be of interest
for CATIA V5.

About the Preference Management Utility

Administrators for the site, organization, and other application contexts (such as
projects, programs, products, or libraries) can set preferences for the contexts
which they administer. To access the preferences for a particular application
context, click the Preference Management link on the Utilities page of that
application context. Depending on your Windchill role, you can access the

306 PTC Windchill® Workgroup Manager for CATIA® V5 Administrator's and User's Guide
Preference Management utility under Business Administration from Site ▶ Utilities ,
Organization ▶ Utilities , Products ▶ Utilities , Projects ▶ Utilities , or Libraries ▶
Utilities .
Users can set preferences for the user context in the Preference Management
utility.
Administrators and users can access the Preference Management utility from the
Quick Links menu in the upper right of the Windchill interface by clicking Quick
Links ▶ My Settings ▶ Preferences .

Users can also access the Preference Management utility from Windchill ▶ Home ▶
Quick Links ▶ My Settings ▶ Preferences .

You can control search behavior using search preferences. From the Quick Links
menu, select My Settings ▶ Preferences to open the Preference Management
utility. Expand the Search category to see the search preferences. For more
information, see “Setting Search Preferences” in the Windchill Help Center.
When the Preference Management utility is launched from a particular application
context or from the Quick Links menu, the complete list of available preferences for
that context or user appears. The Context field at the top of the Preference
Management utility identifies the context or user.

Note
Site and organization administrators can switch between contexts by clicking the
find icon next to the Context field and searching for other available contexts.
The figure below is an example of the site context for the Workgroup Manager
Client category. The Workgroup Manager Client category and subcategories include
preferences for CATIA V5. For information on how to set or modify preferences
and category lists of the most frequently used preferences that may be of interest
for CATIA V5, see Setting or Modifying Preferences Using the Preference
Management Utility on page 309 and Frequently Used Preferences: wgmclient.ini
File on page 329.

Preferences 307
Preferences are grouped by category and subcategory according to the type of
functionality they impact, such as Display or Search . The expand icon and
collapse icon next to the category names can be used to view and hide the
preferences in each category. You can choose to show all preferences within every
category by clicking the expand arrow near the top of the Preference Management
utility. Clicking the collapse arrow hides all preferences in the table, leaving only
the top level categories visible. Within a category, each preference is named and a
short description of the preference is provided. The current value of the preference
is also displayed. A locked icon next to the preference indicates that the
preference value cannot be changed below the level at which it is locked.
Preference values set at one level are inherited by the application contexts below.
For example, preference values set at the site level are inherited by the
organization; application contexts within the organization inherit preference values
from the organization, as shown in the following figure:

308 PTC Windchill® Workgroup Manager for CATIA® V5 Administrator's and User's Guide
Note
User preferences may be inherited directly from the organization level, from
individual application contexts, or may be unique (able to be set only at the user
level).
Preference values can be set for each application context, unless the preference is
locked at a higher level. For example, if a preference is not locked at the
organization level, then it may have one value at the organization level, but
individual products or projects within that organization could each specify a
different value. Similarly, if a preference is not locked at an organization level, but
is available at the user level, individual users could each set different values for
that preference.
If a preference is not explicitly set for a particular application context, then the
value for that preference is inherited from the level above. For example:
• If a preference is not set for a particular product or project, then the value set
for that preference at the organization level is used.
• If the preference is not set at the organization level, then the value set for that
preference at the site level is used.
• If no preference is set at any level, then the default value defined for that
preference is used.
For more information about the Preference Management utility, see “Preference
Management” in the Windchill Help Center.

Setting or Modifying Preferences Using the

Preference Management Utility
Every preference in the Preference Management utility can be changed, if you
have access to that preference and if the preference is unlocked. For more
information, see About the Preference Management Utility on page 306.
Refer to Frequently Used Preferences: Preference Management Utility on page 312
to view lists of the most frequently used preferences that may be of interest for
CATIA V5.
Use the following procedure to change a preference from its current state.
1. From the Preference Management utility window, you can view the list of all
preferences for which you have access permissions.
In this example for the user context, the Operation category and subcategories
include preferences for CATIA V5 as well as other CAD tools integrated with
Windchill Workgroup Manager, and for preferences associated with Windchill.

Preferences 309
 In this example for the site context, the Workgroup Manager Client category
and subcategories includes preferences for CATIA V5, as well as other CAD
tools integrated with Windchill Workgroup Manager.

2. Individually, select the preferences you want to set by selecting the preference
and right-clicking to select the Set Preference icon.

Note
The Delete Child Instances option is only available depending on your Wind-
chill role. For more information, refer toAbout the Preference Management
Utility on page 306.
3. In the Set Preference window, enter or select the appropriate values for this
preference.

310 PTC Windchill® Workgroup Manager for CATIA® V5 Administrator's and User's Guide
 • When the Client field is shown, select the applicable CAD tool.

Note
When the Client field is shown in the Set Preference window for the
Workgroup Manager Client category, or in a different category where the
description includes “Windchill Workgroup Manager,” it indicates the
preference is applicable to one or more Windchill Workgroup Manager
integrations. Select the applicable CAD tool from the menu.
When the Client field is not shown in the Set Preference window for the
Workgroup Manager Client category, or in a different category where the
description includes “Windchill Workgroup Manager,” it indicates the
preference is applicable to all Windchill Workgroup Manager integrations.
• In the Value field, select an option or enter the new value.

Note
The default value (when applicable) and other value options are shown
when you right-click on Value .
• In the Comments field, enter any enter any comments about the preference
value, up to 500 characters. Comments entered at a higher level (such as
the site or organization level) are present when setting the preference at
lower levels. Include the rationale behind the preference value choice for
future reference.
• If the preference is for an application context, administrators can select the
Locked checkbox to prevent the preference from being set at a lower level,
or from being overwritten in the wgmclient.ini file for CATIA V5.

Note
The Locked field is not available for individual user preferences.

Preferences 311
 • Click Revert to Default to set the preference value and comments back to
the value and comments set at the next highest level. If no value has been
set for the preference at any level, the system default value defined for that
preference is used; any content at the current level in the Comments field is
deleted. (Clicking Revert to Default closes the Set Preference window.)

Note
For more information about preference values set by context (site,
organizations, products, or libraries), see About the Preference
Management Utility on page 306.
• When finished, click OK . The Preference Management window refreshes,
and the new preference value appears in the table.
4. After a preference is changed, in order to see the preference modification,
synchronize while Windchill Workgroup Manager is running through Tools ▶
Synchronize , or restart Windchill Workgroup Manager to synchronize the
modified preference value. For more information about synchronization, see
Synchronize on page 103.

Frequently Used Preferences: Preference

Management Utility
This section contains some of the more frequently used preferences that can be set
or modified depending on your Windchill role.
In addition to the preference category Workgroup Manager Client , Windchill and
Windchill Workgroup Manager preferences can be set from other preference
categories such as Operation , Visualization , and Workspaces .

Note
The intent of this section is to list the most frequently used preferences, and not
every preference that can be set using the Preference Management utility. For the
complete list of preferences for your Windchill Workgroup Manager for CATIA V5
that can be managed from the Preference Management utility, refer to the
Preference Management utility in Windchill . Online help is available for each
preference from the Set Preference window.
The following tables list the most frequently used preferences in the preference
categories Operation , Workgroup Manager Client , and Workspaces that can
managed for Windchill Workgroup Manager for CATIA V5 according to your
Windchill role.

Preferences Under Operation

The following table describes the most frequently used preferences that can be set
or modified from the Operation category and subcategories.

312 PTC Windchill® Workgroup Manager for CATIA® V5 Administrator's and User's Guide
Name Contexts Values
Operation ▶ Auto Associate No soft attribute in the CAD
▶ Auto Associate Naming • Site
document is used to name the
Parameter • Organizations part (default).
Operation ▶ Auto Associate No soft attribute in the CAD
▶ Auto Associate Number- • Site
document is used to name the
ing Parameter • Organizations part (default).
Operation ▶ Auto Associate
▶ Auto Associate Truncate • Site • Yes
Name File Extension • Organizations • No
Operation ▶ Auto Associate
▶ Auto Associate Truncate • Site • Yes
Number File Extension • Organizations • No
Operation ▶ Auto Associate
▶ Create Alternate Link On • Site • Yes
Check In • Organizations • No
• Products
• Projects
• Libraries
Operation ▶ Auto Associate
▶ Create Associate New • Site • Owner
Part • Organizations • Owner and Images
• Products • All
• Projects • Never
• Libraries
Operation ▶ Auto Associate
▶ Disallow Product Struc- • Site • Contributing Content
ture Links by Document • Organizations • Content
Sub-types
Sub-types
Operation ▶ Auto Associate
▶ Disallow Product Struc- • Site
ture Links by Document • Organizations
Sub-types ▶ CATIA V5
Operation ▶ Auto Associate
▶ Disallow Product Struc- • Site • CADDRAWING
ture Links by Document • Organizations • CALCULATION_DATA
Types
Operation ▶ Auto Associate
▶ Disallow Structure CAD • Site • Contributing Image
Document Sub-types
Sub-types • Organizations • Image
Operation ▶ Auto Associate CADDRAWING
▶ Disallow Structure CAD • Site
Document Types • Organizations

Preferences 313
Name Contexts Values
Operation ▶ CAD Data Man- Select the preference and the
agement ▶ Content Han- • Site
appropriate value from the list
dling ▶ Download • Organizations of preferences for CATIA V5.
<preference name>
Note
There are several preferences
that can be set for CATIA V5
under Operation ▶ CAD Data
Management ▶ Content Han-
dling ▶ Download <preference
name>.

Operation ▶ CAD Data Man- Select the preference and the

agement ▶ Content Han- • Site
appropriate value from the list
dling ▶ Mark Out Of Date • Organizations of preferences for CATIA V5.
<preference name>
Note
There are several preferences
that can be set for CATIA V5
under Operation ▶ CAD Data
Management ▶ Content Han-
dling ▶ Mark Out Of Date
<preference name>.
Operation ▶ CAD Data Man-
agement ▶ Content Han- • Site • Yes
dling ▶ Set Default Subtype • Organizations • No
Operation ▶ Dynamic Docu-
ment default soft type • Site • ${internet_domain_name}
• Organizations • ${internet_domain_name}.
MachineDesign
Operation ▶ Edit Attributes ▶
• Site Select the preference and the
Collector <preference appropriate value from the list
name> • Organizations of preferences for CATIA V5.
• Products Note
• Projects There are several preferences
• Libraries that can be set for CATIA V5
under Operation ▶ Edit Attrib-
• User utes ▶ Collector <preference
name>.
Operation ▶ Remove from Select the preference and the
Workspace ▶ Collector • Site
appropriate value from the list
<preference name> • Organizations
• Products

314 PTC Windchill® Workgroup Manager for CATIA® V5 Administrator's and User's Guide
Name Contexts Values
• Projects of preferences for CATIA V5.
• Libraries
Note
There are several preferences
that can be set for CATIA V5
under Operation ▶ Remove
from Workspace ▶ Collector
<preference name>.
Operation ▶ Gathering (Core
HTML Component) ▶ Trace • Site • Per Configuration (All, Re-
Drawing Optional • Organizations quired, None)
Dependents • Required (All, Required,
• Products
None)
• Projects
• Libraries
• User
Operation ▶ New CAD
Document ▶ Synchronize • Site • Per Configuration (All, Re-
CAD File Name with CAD • Organizations quired, None)
Document Number
• Products • Required (All, Required,
None)
• Projects
• Libraries
• User
Operation ▶ Remove from Select the preference and the
Workspace ▶ Collector • Site
appropriate value from the list
<preference name> • Organizations of preferences for CATIA V5.
• Products
• Projects Note
There are several preferences
• Libraries that can be set for CATIA V5
• User under Operation ▶ Remove
from Workspace ▶ Collector
<preference name>.
Operation ▶ Rename ▶
Collector • Site • Yes
• Organizations • No
• Products
• Projects
• Libraries
• User

Preferences 315
Name Contexts Values
Operation ▶ Set State ▶ Col-
• Site Select the preference and the
lector <preference name> appropriate value from the list
• Organizations of preferences for CATIA V5.
• Products
• Projects Note
There are several preferences
• Libraries that can be set for CATIA V5
• User under Operation ▶ Set State ▶
Collector <preference name>.
Operation ▶ Undo Check Select the preference and the
Out ▶ Collector <preference • Site
appropriate value from the list
name> • Organizations of preferences for CATIA V5.
• Products
• Projects Note
There are several preferences
• Libraries that can be set for CATIA V5
• User under Operation ▶ Undo Check
Out ▶ Collector <preference
name>.
Operation ▶ Update Opera- Select the preference and the
tion ▶ Update <preference • Site
appropriate value from the list
name> • Organizations of preferences for CATIA V5.
• Products
• Projects Note
There are several preferences
• Libraries that can be set for CATIA V5
• User under Operation ▶ Update Op-
eration ▶ Update <preference
name>.
Operation ▶ Update Opera-
tion ▶ Update ▶ Add Primary • Site • DOWNLOAD
Contents to Workspace • Organizations • LINK
• Products
• Projects
• Libraries
• User
Operation ▶ Update Opera- Select the preference and the
tion ▶ Upload <preference • Site
appropriate value from the list
name> • Organizations
• Products
• Projects

316 PTC Windchill® Workgroup Manager for CATIA® V5 Administrator's and User's Guide
Name Contexts Values
• Libraries of preferences for CATIA V5.
• User
Note
There are several preferences
that can be set for CATIA V5
under Operation ▶ Update Op-
eration ▶ Upload <preference
name>.
Operation ▶ Upload Opera- Select the preference and the
tion ▶ Upload <preference • Site
appropriate value from the list
name> • Organizations of preferences for CATIA V5.
• Products
• Projects Note
There are several preferences
• Libraries that can be set for CATIA V5
• User under Operation ▶ Upload Op-
eration ▶ Upload <preference
name>.
Operation ▶ Upload Opera- Select the preference and the
tion ▶ Collector <preference • Site
appropriate value from the list
name> • Organizations of preferences for CATIA V5.
• Products
• Projects Note
There are several preferences
• Libraries that can be set for CATIA V5
• User under Operation ▶ Upload Op-
eration ▶ Collector <preference
name>.

Preferences Under Workgroup Manager Client

The following table describes the most frequently used preferences that can be set
or modified from the Workgroup Manager Client category and subcategories.
Name Context Values
Workgroup Manager Client
▶ Add Active Workspace To • Site • Yes
CATIA DLNames List • Organizations • No
Workgroup Manager Client
▶ All-in-One CATPart • Site • Yes
Creation with Merging all • Organizations • No
Bodies

Preferences 317
Name Context Values
Workgroup Manager Client _AllCATPart
▶ All-in-One CATPart name • Site
• Organizations
Workgroup Manager Client
▶ Allow Continuing Save to • Site • Yes
Workspace or Checkin • Organizations • No
When Missing Design Table
File
Workgroup Manager Client
▶ Allow to save in different • Site • Yes
environment • Organizations • No
Workgroup Manager Client Part Parameter
▶ Assembly-level CGR • Site
parameter • Organizations
• Products
• Projects
• Libraries
Workgroup Manager Client Part Number
▶ CATIA V5 Template Part • Site
Number • Organizations
• Products
• Projects
• Libraries
Workgroup Manager Client
▶ Check In Content • Site • Models Only
Options • Organizations • Viewables Only
• Products • Models and Viewables
• Projects
• Libraries
• User
Workgroup Manager Client ProductTemplate.CATProduct
▶ Design In Context ▶ • Site
Assembly Template Used In • Organizations
New Image Design Context • Products
Action
• Projects
• Libraries
Workgroup Manager Client ProductTemplate.CATProduct
▶ Design In Context ▶ • Site
Assembly Template Used In • Organizations
New Image Design Context • Products
Action ▶ CATIA V5

318 PTC Windchill® Workgroup Manager for CATIA® V5 Administrator's and User's Guide
Name Context Values
• Projects
• Libraries
Workgroup Manager Client
▶ Design In Context ▶ • Site • True
Attribute skipping image • Organizations • False
update
Workgroup Manager Client
▶ Design In Context ▶ • Site • Assembly Only
Default Design Context • Organizations • Full
Definition Rule • Products • Lightweight
• Projects • Geometry
• Libraries
• User
Workgroup Manager Client
▶ Design In Context ▶ • Site • Full
Default Representation • Organizations • Lightweight
• Products • Geometry
• Projects
• Libraries
• User
Workgroup Manager Client <CAD tool template value>
▶ Design In Context ▶ • Site
Default Template for Open • Organizations
in Creo View/CAD
View/CAD Tool • Products
• Projects
• Libraries
• User
Workgroup Manager Client
▶ Design In Context ▶ Hide • Site • Yes
wizard when creating a • Organizations • No
Design Context from a • Products
Configuration Context
• Projects
• Libraries
• User
Workgroup Manager Client
▶ Design In Context ▶ • Site • Yes
Show Excluded Nodes • Organizations • No
• Products
• Projects

Preferences 319
Name Context Values
• Libraries
• User
Workgroup Manager Client
▶ Design In Context ▶ • Site • Yes
Show New Design Context • Organizations • No
Action • Products
• Projects
• Libraries
Workgroup Manager Client
▶ Design In Context ▶ • Site • Yes
Show Open in Creo View • Organizations • No
and CAD Tool Action • Products
• Projects
• Libraries
• User
Workgroup Manager Client
▶ Enable CGR Cache • Site • Yes
Support ▶ CATIA V5 • Organizations • No
Workgroup Manager Client
▶ Enable Environment • Site • Yes
Management • Organizations • No
Workgroup Manager Client
▶ Enable Read Only In • Site • Yes
Session • Organizations • No
Workgroup Manager Client
▶ Enable Replace in CAD • Site • Yes
Session on Refresh • Organizations • No
Workgroup Manager Client
▶ Enable Support for • Site • Yes
Parameters or Properties • Organizations • No
with Units
Workgroup Manager Client PTC_WM_ENVMGMT
▶ Environment • Site
Management Parameter • Organizations
Workgroup Manager Client
▶ Expose Annotation Text • Site • Yes
Notes From Specification • Organizations • No
Tree
Workgroup Manager Client
▶ Expose Manufacturing • Site • Yes
Information • Organizations • No

320 PTC Windchill® Workgroup Manager for CATIA® V5 Administrator's and User's Guide
Name Context Values
Workgroup Manager Client
▶ Expose Measure Inertia • Site • Blank
Property • Organizations • PartBody
Workgroup Manager Client
▶ Expose Parameters • Site • Blank
under Specific Geometrical • Organizations • Names
Set From Specification Tree • All
Workgroup Manager Client
▶ Family Table Instance • Site • All
Creation ▶ Manage model • Organizations • Assembly
instances as family table • Products • Parts
CAD Documents
• Projects • Disable
• Libraries
Workgroup Manager Client <Standard Part string value>
▶ Identify Standard Part • Site
• Organizations
Workgroup Manager Client
▶ Ignore Missing • Site • Yes
Dependents • Organizations • No
Workgroup Manager Client
▶ Independently Modify • Site • Yes
Instances • Organizations • No
Workgroup Manager Client <environment value>
▶ Managed Environment • Site
Variable • Organizations
Workgroup Manager Client <file system path value>
▶ Managed Read Only • Site
Area Folders • Organizations
• Products
• Projects
• Libraries
Workgroup Manager Client
▶ Mapping System • Site • PTC_WM_ITERATION
Attributes and File • Organizations • CAD Document Iteration
Properties ▶ CAD System Attribute
Document Iteration System
Attribute
Workgroup Manager Client
• Site •
▶ Mapping System
PTC_WM_LIFECYCLE_S-
Attributes and File • Organizations
TATE
Properties ▶ CAD
Document Life Cycle State • CAD Life Cycle State
System Attribute System Attribute

Preferences 321
Name Context Values
Workgroup Manager Client
▶ Mapping System • Site • PTC_WM_LIFECYCLE
Attributes and File • Organizations • CAD Life Cycle System
Properties ▶ CAD Attribute
Document Life Cycle
System Attribute
Workgroup Manager Client
▶ Mapping System • Site • PTC_WM_NAME
Attributes and File • Organizations • CAD System Attribute
Properties ▶ CAD
Document Name System
Attribute
Workgroup Manager Client
▶ Mapping System • Site • PTC_WM_NUMBER
Attributes and File • Organizations • CAD System Attribute
Properties ▶ CAD
Document Number System
Attribute
Workgroup Manager Client
• Site •
▶ Mapping System
PTC_WM_ORGANIZA-
Attributes and File • Organizations
TION_ID
Properties ▶ Organization
ID System Attribute • <CAD System Attribute>
Workgroup Manager Client
▶ Mapping System • Site • PTC_WM_PART_NAME
Attributes and File • Organizations • CAD System Attribute
Properties ▶ Part Name
System Attribute
Workgroup Manager Client
• Site •
▶ Mapping System
PTC_WM_PART_NUM-
Attributes and File • Organizations
BER
Properties ▶ Part Number
System Attribute • CAD System Attribute
Workgroup Manager Client
▶ Mapping System • Site • PTC_WM_REVISION
Attributes and File • Organizations • CAD System Attribute
Properties ▶ Revision
System Attribute
Workgroup Manager Client ${internet_domain_name}.Note
▶ Note default soft type • Site
• Organizations
Workgroup Manager Client
▶ Open Collector ▶ Include • Site • Required
Dependent CAD/Dynamic
CAD/Dynamic • Organizations • All
Documents • Products • None

322 PTC Windchill® Workgroup Manager for CATIA® V5 Administrator's and User's Guide
Name Context Values
• Projects
• Libraries
• User
Workgroup Manager Client
▶ Open Collector ▶ Include • Site • None
Related Drawings • Organizations • All
• Products • Initially Selected
• Projects
• Libraries
• User
Workgroup Manager Client
▶ Open In CAD Tool for • Site • Yes
Non-native
Non-native Objects • Organizations • No
• Products
• Projects
• Libraries
• User
Workgroup Manager Client
▶ Resolve Broken Links • Site • Yes
Using CATIA Instance • Organizations • No
Name
Workgroup Manager Client
▶ Save data with active • Site • Yes
environment • Organizations • No
Workgroup Manager Client
▶ Store formula values for • Site • Yes
parameters • Organizations • No
Workgroup Manager Client
▶ Storing exported files • Site • Attachment
• Organizations • Windchill CAD Document
• Products
• Projects
• Libraries
Workgroup Manager Client
▶ Undo Checkout • Site • Yes
Overwrite Local Content • Organizations • No
• Products
• Projects
• Libraries
• User

Preferences 323
Name Context Values
Workgroup Manager Client <search file path>
▶ Un-managed Read Only • Site
Area locations • Organizations
• Products
• Projects
• Libraries
• User
Workgroup Manager Client
▶ Update Overwrite Local • Site • Yes
Content • Organizations • No
• Products
• Projects
• Libraries
• User
Workgroup Manager Client
▶ Upload After Native Save • Site • Yes
• Organizations • No
• Products
• Projects
• Libraries
• User
Workgroup Manager Client
▶ Upload CAD/Dynamic • Site • CAD/Dynamic Document
Document and Attachment • Organizations Type
Filter • Products • Attachment File Type
• Projects • Content Category
• Libraries
• User
Workgroup Manager Client
▶ Upload CGR files • Site • Yes
• Organizations • No
• Products
• Projects
• Libraries
Workgroup Manager Client
▶ Upload CGR files ▶ • Site • Yes
CATIA V5 • Organizations • No
• Products

324 PTC Windchill® Workgroup Manager for CATIA® V5 Administrator's and User's Guide
Name Context Values
• Projects
• Libraries
Workgroup Manager Client
▶ Upload Related Drawings • Site • Yes
• Organizations • No
• Products
• Projects
• Libraries
• User

Preferences Under Workspace

The following table describes the most frequently used preferences that can be set
or modified from the Workspace category and subcategories.
Name Context All Values
Workspace ▶ Add to Work-
space and Check Out ▶ Add • Site • DOWNLOAD
Primary Contents to • Organizations • LINK
Workspace
• Products
• Projects
• User
Workspace ▶ Add to Work- Select the preference and the ap-
space and Check Out ▶ Add • Site
propriate value from the list of
to Workspace Collector • Organizations preferences for CATIA V5.
<preference name> • Products Note
• Projects There are several preferences
• User that can be set for CATIA V5
under Workspace ▶ Add to Work-
space and Check Out ▶ Add to
Workspace Collector
<preference name>.
Workspace ▶ Add to Work-
space and Check Out ▶ Au- • Site • Yes
tomatically lock objects • Organizations • No
added to workspace
• Products
• Projects
• User

Preferences 325
Name Context All Values
Workspace ▶ Add to Work-
• Site Select the preference and the ap-
space and Check Out ▶ propriate value from the list of
Check Out Collector • Organizations preferences for CATIA V5.
<preference name> • Products Note
• Projects There are several preferences
• User that can be set for CATIA V5
under Workspace ▶ Add to Work-
space and Check Out ▶ Check
Out Collector <preference
name>.
Workspace ▶ Add to Work-
space and Check Out ▶ • Site • Yes
Open in Application • Organizations • No
• Products
• Projects
• User
Workspace ▶ Add to Work-
space and Check Out ▶ Re- • Site • Yes
use Modified Workspace • Organizations • No
Content
• Products
• Projects
• User
Workspace ▶ Add to Work-
space and Check Out ▶ Set • Site • DEFAULT
Configuration for Add to • Organizations • LATEST
Workspace
• Products • AS_STORED
• Projects
• User
Workspace ▶ Add to Work-
space and Check Out ▶ Set • Site • DEFAULT
Configuration for Check Out • Organizations • LATEST
• Products • AS_STORED
• Projects
• User
Workspace ▶ Add to Work-
space and Check Out ▶ Set • Site • SELECTED_AND_MODI-
for Check Out • Organizations FIED
• Products • SELECTED
• ALL

326 PTC Windchill® Workgroup Manager for CATIA® V5 Administrator's and User's Guide
Name Context All Values
• Projects
• User
Workspace ▶ Add to Work-
space and Check Out ▶ Use • Site • Yes
Advanced Tab as Default • Organizations • No
• Products
• Projects
• User
Workspace ▶ Edit Work-
space Preferences ▶ Allow • Site • Yes
Effectivity for CAD • Organizations • No
Documents
• Products
• Projects
• User
Workspace ▶ Export from Select the preference and the ap-
Workspace ▶ Collector ▶ • Site
propriate value from the list of
<preference name> • Organizations preferences for CATIA V5.
• Products
• Projects
Note
There are several preferences
• User that can be set for CATIA V5
under Workspace ▶ Export from
Workspace ▶ Collector
<preference name>.
Workspace ▶ Workspace
Display • Site • All items
• Organizations • Featured items
• Products
• Projects
• User

Managing Preferences Using the

wgmclient.ini
wgmclient.ini File
This section provides information on how to manage user preferences for CATIA
V5 in the wgmclient.ini file.

Preferences 327
About the wgmclient.ini
wgmclient.ini File
Users can customize preferences for CATIA V5 by editing the wgmclient.ini
file to meet individual user requirements. The preferences set in the
wgmclient.ini file override the same named preferences set on the server in
the Preference Management utility, provided the preference set in the Preference
Management utility is unlocked.
For more information about the Preference Management utility, see About the
Preference Management Utility on page 306.
The default wgmclient.ini file located in the Windchill Workgroup Manager
home directory contains the list of preferences that for CATIA V5 and for other
Windchill Workgroup Manager integrations.
The default wgmclient.ini file has several general preferences at the
beginning of the wgmclient.ini file that apply to most Windchill Workgroup Man-
ager integrations. There also are categorized sections for each specific Windchill
Workgroup Manager integration. Refer to the [CATIA V5] section for preferences
concerning CATIA V5.

Setting or Modifying Preferences in the wgmclient.ini

wgmclient.ini
File
Every preference listed for CATIA V5 in the wgmclient.ini file can be
changed, provided the preference hasn’t been locked at a higher preference
organization level. Changes made in this file override the same named preferences
set using the Preference Management utility. For more information, see About the
Preference Management Utility on page 306.
See Frequently Used Preferences: wgmclient.ini File on page 329 for a list of the
most frequently used preferences that may be of interest for CATIA V5.
The default wgmclient.ini file is located in the Windchill Workgroup Manag-
er Home directory. You edit and save this file to make changes to preferences.
Each line begins with # prefix indicating the line is a comment. In the preference
name line, enter the appropriate value after the equal (=) sign, and remove the #
prefix to set and uncomment the preference.

Note
Do not remove the # prefix at the beginning of comment lines describing the
preference or preference values, else errors could occur.
Use the following procedures to edit the wgmclient.ini file.

328 PTC Windchill® Workgroup Manager for CATIA® V5 Administrator's and User's Guide
Setting or Modifying an Existing Preference
Preferences that can be set or modified for CATIA V5 are listed under section
[CATIA V5] and in the beginning of the wgmclient.ini file where preferences are
located for more than one Windchill Workgroup Manager CAD integration.
To set or modify an existing preference for CATIA V5, perform the following
procedure.
1. Open wgmclient.ini in a standard text editor.
2. Locate the section for [CATIA V5]. If the preference is not listed under the
[CATIA V5] section, scroll to the beginning of the wgmclient.ini file and
search for the preference name.
3. To set (activate) a preference.
• Enter the appropriate value after the equal (=) sign. For example,
<preference name = preference value>.
• Remove the # prefix to uncomment the preference.
4. To remove (deactivate) a preference, or to set it back to the default value in the
wgmclient.ini file, add the # prefix at the beginning of preference name to
comment the preference.
5. Save the file.
6. Restart Windchill Workgroup Manager. The modified preference is available.

If the Preference Modification Fails

If the preference added, removed, or set back to the default value in the
wgmclient.ini file fails, it may be due to one or more of the following
reasons:
• The # prefix to uncomment the preference was not removed when attempting
to set the preference.
• The # prefix to comment the preference was not added when attempting to
remove the preference.
• The # prefix at the beginning of a comment line describing the preference or
list of preference values was removed.
• The wgmclient.ini file was not saved locally.
• Windchill Workgroup Manager was not restarted after saving the
wgmclient.inifile.
• The preference is locked at a higher preference organization level in the
Preference Management utility in Windchill.

Frequently Used Preferences: wgmclient.ini

wgmclient.ini File
This section contains the most frequently used Windchill Workgroup Manager
preferences for CATIA V5 that users can manage using the wgmclient.ini file.

Preferences 329
Note
The intent of this section is to list the most “frequently used” preferences, and not
every preference that can be set using the wgmclient.ini file for CATIA V5. Refer
to the wgmclient.ini file located in your Windchill Workgroup Manager
home directory, for a complete list of preferences.
If the preference is not listed under the [CATIA V5] section, scroll to the beginning
of the wgmclient.ini file and search for the preference name.
After saving the file locally, restart Windchill Workgroup Manager. The modified
preference is available. For more information, see Setting or Modifying
Preferences in the wgmclient.ini File on page 328.
The following table describes the most frequently used preferences that can be set
or modified under [CATIA V5] or in the general section of the wgmclient.ini
file.
Name Description All Values
checkin.content.options Specifies how the • Models Only
model is saved on the (default)
authoring application
menu, Auto Check In • Viewables Only
and provides default • Models and
interface setting for Viewables
Custom Check In .
Note
CATIA V5 does not
support creation of
client-side viewables;
therefore viewables
cannot be created.
save_to_ws.content.options Provides the default
• Models Only
interface setting for
(default)
the content option in
the Tools menu of the • Viewables Only
Save To Workspace • Models and
window. Viewables

Note
CATIA V5 does not
support creation of
client-side viewables;
therefore viewables
cannot be created.
save_to_ws.upload Provides the default
• Yes (default)
interface setting for
• No

330 PTC Windchill® Workgroup Manager for CATIA® V5 Administrator's and User's Guide
Name Description All Values
the Upload option in
the Tools menu of the
Save To Workspace
window.
import.to.workspace.upload Specifies if the model
• No (default)
is uploaded after an
Import action. • Yes
UndoCheckout.overwrite.local. Specifies if the model
• No (default)
content content is overwritten
in the cache when us- • Yes
ing Undo Checkout .
overwrite.contents.on.update Specifies if the model • No (default)
content is overwritten
in the cache when us- • Yes
ing Update from a
Windchill Workgroup
Manager.
wgm.autoattach Allows configuring The format of this
the content that is up- preference is: *.rsd,*.
loaded as additional <attachment file
content of a model. extension 1>,
<attachment type 1>;
… …;<attachment
file extension n>,
<attachment type n>
Default preference
value is: “*.rsd,*.
pdf,IMAGE;*.
rsd,*.xml,
GENERAL”
Which means upload
all *.pdf files as “IM-
AGE” type attach-
ment and all *.xml
files as “GENRAL”
type attachment to-
gether with *.rsd files.
Any other file type
can be specified as
auto attachment by
user.

Preferences 331
Name Description All Values
open.modifies.checkedout.objects Determines how • Yes (default)
checked out models
will appear in a ses- • No
sion after update.
upload.related.drawings= Native upload or auto
• No (default)
check in of CAD
Documents will also • Yes
upload or check in as-
sociated drawings.
unmanaged.read.only.area.folders Windchill Workgroup Include a semi-colon
Manager ignores files separated list of folder
retrieved from speci- paths that constitute
fied file system paths the ROAs.
assuming there is no
need to manage these
in Windchill.
catiav5.template.part.nr Upon retrieval in Set the value of this
CATIA V5, if the part preference with the
number is still set to string used for part
the default value and number in Windchill
the part number is not templates.
mapped to any other
Windchill attribute,
then it will be set to
be the same as the
model's file name
(without extension).
update.drawing. Determines whether
• Yes (default)
alwaysShowDialog to prompt the user
with a window to up- • No
date the drawing upon
save to workspace or
checkin.

332 PTC Windchill® Workgroup Manager for CATIA® V5 Administrator's and User's Guide
Name Description All Values
force.update.metadata.on.open Controls whether to • Yes (default)—
propagate metadata Global attributes
(global attributes
are updated for
(IBAs) and system at-
documents when
tributes) when a mod-
they are opened in
el is opened and
any mode, includ-
allows delay of this
ing visualization
propagation to obtain
mode. System at-
better performance.
tributes are up-
For details about us- dated according to
ing force.update.meta- the value of up-
data.on.open and date.metadata.on.
other preferences to load.
improve performance,
see Delaying Metada- • No—Metadata is
ta Updates of Attrib- updated according
utes on page 296. to the value of up-
date.metadata.on.
load.
• Legacy—For leg-
acy data, global
attributes are up-
dated according to
the value of up-
date.metadata.on.
load. This prefer-
ence is applied
only to documents
that do not have a
neutral data XML
file (models up-
graded from a re-
lease prior to
Windchill 9.0).

Preferences 333
Name Description All Values
update.metadata.on.load Controls when to up- • Yes (default)—
date metadata (global Metadata is up-
attributes (IBAs) and
dated for a CATIA
system attributes) for
V5 document
CATIA V5 documents
when it is loaded
opened within CATIA
in any mode other
V5, which can en-
than visualization
hance performance.
mode.
For details, see Delay- • No—Metadata is
ing Metadata Updates
not updated until
of Attributes on page
296. a CATIA V5
document is
loaded in design
mode.
enable.readonly.in.session Controls whether to • No (default)
enable the "Read On-
ly in Session" feature. • Yes
allow.missing.design.table When a design table
• No (default)
is missing, this prefer-
ence controls whether • Yes
to allow continuing • Action
the operations of Save • OK
to workspace or
• Filename
checkin by prompting
a window.
enable.environment.management Specifies which string • No (default)
to control in enabling
and managing envi- • Yes
ronment information.
environment.management. The value of the •
parameter string defines the PTC_WM_ENV-
name of the environ- MGMT (default)
ment global attribute.
• None — disables
managing envi-
ronment
information
enable.replace.in.cad.session.on. Controls whether to
• No (default)
refresh enable the feature of
Ses- • Yes
Replace in CAD Ses-
sion on Refresh .

334 PTC Windchill® Workgroup Manager for CATIA® V5 Administrator's and User's Guide
Name Description All Values
generic.is.read.only= Sets the Generic Part/ • No (default)
Assembly as Read
Only in Session • Yes
allinonecatpart.name Specifies the naming _AllCATPart
rule of the All-in-One
CATPart.
allinonecatpart.creation.merge.all. Controls merging of • No (default)
bodies all bodies when gen-
erating a part from a • Yes
product.
identify.standard.part Specifies the pair of
• The format is
strings to control ex-
pairs of string sep-
posing the standard
arated by semico-
part information. If
lon, filename of
yes, the values of the
CAD model,name
string which reflect of geometrical set;
the customer conven- filename of CAD
tion to define the model,name of
standard part are used geometrical set
to search the standard
part in the specifica- • Blank - design in-
tion tree. formation of the
standard part will
not be exposed
expose.parameters.under.geomet- Controls whether to • Blank
rical.set.from.specification.tree expose the parameters
under a specific geo- • Names
metrical set from a • All
specification tree by
specifying the name
of the geometrical set
under which all the
parameters need to be
exposed.
expose.annotation.text.notes.from. Controls whether to
• No (default)
specification.tree expose parameters
under a geometrical • Yes
set from a specifica-
tion tree upon Save to
Workspace or
Checkin.

Preferences 335
Name Description All Values
expose.measure.inertia.property Controls exposing • Yes
measure inertia prop-
erty upon Save to • Blank
Workspace or • PartBody
Checkin.
store.formula.value.for.parameters Stores the formula • No (default)
value instead of the
display value for pa- • Yes
rameters that use
formulas.
expose.manufacturing.information Controls exposing
• No (default)
manufacturing infor-
mation as secondary • Yes
content (XML file) in
Windchill upon Save
to Workspace or
Checkin related man-
ufacturing data, such
as CATIA V5
CATProcess.
expose.bounding.box.information Controls whether to
• No (default)
expose bounding box
information in Wind- • Yes
chill upon Save to
Workspace or
Checkin.
ignore.missing.dependents Determines if missing
• No (default)
dependencies are
ignored, or if ghost • Yes
parts are created for
them upon Import to
Workspace or Save to
Workspace or Check
In.
managed.read.only.area.folders The Read Only Areas This preference takes
(ROA) preeferenced a semi-colon sepa-
tells Windchill Work- rated list of directory
group Manager to paths that constitute
treat any parts or ref- the ROAs.
erenced assemblies
retrieved from

336 PTC Windchill® Workgroup Manager for CATIA® V5 Administrator's and User's Guide
Name Description All Values
specified file system
paths as objects that
already exist in
Windchill.
enable.pdm.status.icons Displays PDM status • No (default)
icons in a structure
tree. • Yes
enable.localPreview.on.save. Controls whether to
• No (default)
catalog enable the feature of
forcing the use of • Yes
"Local Preview"
when save to work-
space or check in cat-
alog data.
import.to.workspace.structure. Controls whether to • No (default)
only import structure mem-
bers only during im- • Yes
port to workspace.
open.assembly.cgrs Enables opening As-
• No (default)
sembly-Level CGR
assemblies in Assem- • Yes
bly-Level CGR mode.
update.system.attribute.on.draw- Controls whether de-
• No (default)
ing.open pendents loaded into
product mode, fre- • Yes
quently caused by
drawings loading de-
pendents of an assem-
bly, are forced to
update changes to
Windchill system at-
tributes. Turning this
off can result in a dis-
crepancy between the
Windchill system at-
tribute metadata infor-
mation on CATParts
and their actual state
in Windchill until the
user loads the CAT-
Part into design

Preferences 337
Name Description All Values
mode.
cache.size Specifies a limit for • 0 (default)
the client's internal
cache. • Set value in MB.
For example, 800.

upload.autoattach.searchpath Specifies paths on User may use envi-

disk, separated by a ronment variables in
semicolon (;), search path specifying
Searches for attach- the environment vari-
ments that need to be able as ${environ-
automatically added ment variable name}.
to a CAD/Dynamic
Document upon
upload.
message.slider.timeout Controls the duration • 10 (default)
that a pop-up message
window stays on a • 0 (disables slider
screen. window)
Enter an numeric val-
ue in seconds.
add.active.ws.to.dlnames Determines if the Ac-
• Yes (default)
tive Workspace
should be added to • No
the CATIA V5 list of
DLNames.
ascii.only.chars.in.workspace. Restricts ASCII char- • No (default)
name acters in workspace
name. This preference • Yes
turns onWindchill
Workgroup Manager
mapping of Unicode
workspace name to an
ASCII one on the
Workspace Local
Directory.
open.appVersionSelection. Determines whether a • No (default)
alwaysShowDialog window to choose an
application version is • Yes
always shown on
openInSession.

338 PTC Windchill® Workgroup Manager for CATIA® V5 Administrator's and User's Guide
Name Description All Values
wwgm.remember.last.used.server Controls whether to • No (default)
reconnect to the last
used server upon a • Yes
subsequent Windchill
Workgroup Manager
client launch.
windows.browser.type Sets the Windchill • For Mozilla
Workgroup Manager- browser type, en-
embedded browser ter Mozilla_ba-
type. sed_browser
• For Internet Ex-
plorer type, enter
IE_In_Process
expose.mass.properties.only.main. Controls whether to • No (default)
body enable or disable the
option of only the • Yes
main body when ex-
posing mass proper-
ties upon save to
workspace or check in
product or part.
wf.network.threads Controls the number • 3 (default)
of network threads to
be used upload and • Integer Value
download content. equal to or greater
than 0
wwgm.open.dialog.remember.last. Controls whether to • Yes (default)
location retain the last selected
Folder in an Open Di- • No
alog upon open opera-
tions, such as Open
from Windchill, Insert
from Windchill, and
Replace (from the in-
formation page).
java.script.errors Controls the display • Show (default)
and execution of the
java script error win- • Hide and run
dows. If the window • Hide and stop
is presented, the user

Preferences 339
Name Description All Values
can choose whether to
stop or continue run-
ning the script.
enable.auto.numbering.on.new. Controls whether the
• Yes (default)—
document.in.CATIA.session Windchill-generated
For new docu-
number is used as the
ments created in
file name and part
CATIA V5, the
number for new docu- Windchill-gener-
ments created in CAT- ated number is
IA V5. used as the file
name and part
number.
• No—For new
documents created
in CATIA V5, the
file name and part
number are as-
signed according
to the default
CATIA V5
behavior.
enable.suppressed.component.on. Controls whether stor-
• Yes (default)—
save ing the deactivated
Deactivated com-
components as sup-
ponents are stored
pressed in Windchill as suppressed in
when saved to work- Windchill.
space or checked in
from Windchill Work- • No—Deactivated
group Manager for components are
CATIA V5. stored as normal
child members in
Windchill.

340 PTC Windchill® Workgroup Manager for CATIA® V5 Administrator's and User's Guide
Name Description All Values
lock.raster.drawing.views.on. Controls whether to • No (default)—
publish lock raster drawing Raster views are
views during publica-
not locked, and
tion by the Theorem
raster views are
file synchronization
updated when the
worker. This prefer-
representation is
ence is only applica-
generated. If a ras-
ble when the Theorem
ter view cannot be
worker is used.
rendered success-
fully, the resulting
representation
cannot display the
raster view.
• Yes—Raster
views are locked
and not updated.
The previous ras-
ter views are
shown in the new
representation.

Preferences 341
 Glossary

Assembly- CATIA Graphic Representation of an assembly.

level CGR

Assembly- The physical file containing the CGR.

level CGR
file

Assembly-
When an assembly-level CGR file is open in session. The actual
level CGR assembly is not usually loaded at the same time.
mode

catalog A CATIA V5 document type that allows for a common location

for similar parts.

catalog The CATIA V5 “insert from catalog” window. Used to insert

browser catalog members into a product.

CGR
A CATIA Graphical Representation (CGR) is a lightweight
representation that contains only vertex and triangle surface
geometry. It does not contain any design data or properties.
CGRs allow users to view very large assemblies stored in Wind-
chill more quickly without having to copy the entire assembly
hierarchy to their machines.

commonspace
(Windchill term) The shared area on the Windchill server
containing objects that you and other users (who have the
appropriate access privileges) can check out. A commonspace
may contain products, projects, or libraries.

Design A document in Windchill that represents an alternate

Context configuration of a design assembly.

Design In The creation and editing of Design Contexts.

Context
(DIC)

343
Design Table A spreadsheet which in CATIA V5 is used to design multiple
variations of a part or an assembly.

Family Table (Windchill term) A family of objects when you associate a CAT-
IA V5 model file with an associated Design Table.

Fixed
A placement parameter that does not have constraints in CATIA
Member Link V5, and can have its transformation matrix updated in Windchill.

generic A model that is used as a basis for creating variations (instances

of the generic) that belong to the same family of objects.

Heterogene-
Heterogene-
The creation and edition of a Design Context that has been
ous Design In created with data from multiple CAD tools.
Context
(HDIC)

IBA
An instance-based attribute that can be associated with objects at
run time rather than by modeling.

object A generic name for objects that are created and managed in the
Windchill system. Examples of Windchill objects include parts
and documents.
part
(Windchill term) A Windchill business object with an
identification number, representing a physical component or
assembly in a manufactured product. This should not be
confused with a CAD part (model file) created by a CAD
application.

part family A node of aCATIA V5 chapter. The part family contains the
references to the CAD documents in the catalog.

Read Only A collection of data and preferences in a file system that is not
Area copied to a workspace, but is loaded from CATIA V5. A
managed read only area has the file system in Windchill. An
unmanaged read only area has the file system in CATIA V5.

required link
A link where the dependents are not downloaded along with the
parent objects to the workspace.

344 PTC Windchill® Workgroup Manager for CATIA® V5 Administrator's and User's Guide
Structure
When a CATProduct is loaded with its structure (CATParts and
mode child CATProducts/ child CATParts and/or component CGRs).

Top Down
The creation of annotated structures, achieved by inserting and
Design removing parts from a WTPart structure. Changes to the WTPart
(TDD) structure can be synced with the CAD document by comparing
them in Windchill.

workspace (Windchill term) An extension of the workspace cache (located

local on your hard drive) that stores CAD data managed by Windchill.
directory

Glossary 345