Do you have multiple people (at any one time or day) accessing and editing the same files?
I have a solution that works very well for managing files with single users. I like it because of its simplicity. This solution, however, would need to be modified for a multiple-user environment.
This is what I do:
Create a directory for all SW parts.
Inside this directory, create directories for various projects.
Inside each project directory, create a directory for the current date of your project. I recommend something like "040624", year, month, date, for easy chronological sorting. After the date, you can optionally add a descriptive label, but remember your project is defined by the directory in which this date (or rev) directory is couched.
Each time you anticipate a major revision to parts or assemblies, create a fresh directory with the current date. Open the master assembly (or assemblies) from your most recent revision (easy to find, since it's in the newest directory and named such by its date). Select File > Find References, and save all the parts/assemblies to your new directory. Close all open documents and reopen them in your new directory. You're now ready to edit your files.
Using this method, you strip away any old revisions of parts or assemblies that are no longer current, plus you keep a continual record of what you have done in the past. Note that no directories or parts are deleted.
One thing to note. When I'm working on a more complex part, I will give it a name, such as "widget". When I plan to do anything risky or major to the part, I save it as "widget 02", and on up the line until I'm finished messing with it. Make sure any assemblies using the part are open while you're building your part so the assembly will update (otherwise you may need to update your assembly manually to make sure you are using the most current file name for your newly-edited part).
So you get this string of parts that are continually updated. You get assemblies of nothing but the newest parts included. You have directories named according to their rev dates, and you strip away all former files, such as "widget, widget 01, widget 03" that were made along the way by using the Find References feature to jump into new directories.
One last thing. If you export to IGES or other formats, include such a folder within your date directory. So my current widget design will be exported as IGES files for the mold maker and deposited into the IGES directory inside my "040624" folder. After "IGES" add who the files are going to if you like. Save a copy of the native SW part file for each IGES file you make, just in case you ever need to go back and check on the features in the future to see what you really sent out. This goes for all rapid prototyping.
If you receive files from China (they probably use the numbers in the name to avoid file corruption--Chinese language cross-over problems in SW), add those to a sub-directory within your current rev directory or create a new dated directory to become your current rev directory and note "China" or something like that after the date. You decide which works best, probably depending on whether the parts have been changed significantly while in China.
Make back-ups to at least two CDs of all part files that begin to age. Document in a database which projects and date directories are on which data CD so you can find the archives quickly. Begin with "backup01" or "040624backup" or some such CD name and work your way up, per CD. Store one of the CDs off-site for added retrieval security. Double-check that your files are truly on your CD before deleting anything off your hard drive. Soon everything will be on DVDs, so you might want to start there now. Never buy cheesy discs and I never buy a disc that doesn't have its own slim disc case. I've got about 100 CDs of backed up data and almost 1000 entries in a database to easily find any file or revision I've ever created.
Modify per your needs and take into account multiple-user access to these parts. Minimize tribal knowledge required to find the current revision of anything. Never compromise your system.
"Do this and you will live."
Jeff Mowry
Industrial Designhaus, LLC
