Continue to Site

Eng-Tips is the largest engineering community on the Internet

Intelligent Work Forums for Engineering Professionals

Register Log in
  • Congratulations cowski on being selected by the Eng-Tips community for having the most helpful posts in the forums last week. Way to Go!

Printing problems?

Status
Not open for further replies.
macPT

macPT

Mechanical
Oct 22, 2002
607
I've been using SW2005 (SP1.1) for sometime without any significant problems (just a litle less stable then SW2004).

But today I was surprised with a problem: I click the print command (in an assembly) and nothing happens! Not even the window for choosing the printer and printing options is shown! Page setup and print preview have the same effect. SW behaves like no command was selected.

I've found that this happens with some assemblies, but these same assemblies can be printed in other computers (note that no other user was using the files unsuccessfuly printed).

All parts are resolved (some supressed), all mates are OK (no error in mates) and no previous problem was detected during all the time I've been using SW2005.

For example, I have an assembly that is part of a top level assembly and as subassemblies. I can print the top level assemby, I can print the subassembly, but I'm not able to print the assembly! I'm puzzled.

Regards
 
Replies continue below

Recommended for you

Sort by date Sort by votes
The printer and some of the print properties are saved in SolidWorks documents. If the printer that was previously associated with the document is unavailable, the print dialogs do not show up.

This is listed as a fixed SPR with service pack 2.0.

So upgrading to 2.0 should help. If that is not an option, open the file on a computer that can print it, take note of the exact name of the printer that it wants to print to and make sure that you have an identical printer available on your computer.

Eric Endsley
 
Upvote 0 Downvote
SBaugh - modify the install? Hummm... sounds like big problems! I prefer uninstall and reinstall (last time I've done something like that - in fact it was going back one SP - I spend 2 days recovering the resulting messed SP's). That's what I will do if theres's no other solution.

EEnd - I also thought that the problem was with the printers (we have switched to new servers one week ago, so some problems are to be expected) but other programs like Word are able to print with no problems. I am able to print a problematic SW file, using another computer, on the printer connected to the computer that can't print it! But I will perform more tests.

Any other ideas?

Rehards
 
Upvote 0 Downvote
Switching to the new server can do it.

Our IS dept. switched our print server a few weeks ago and it did cause havok with SWx and ACAD, but standard MS products did not have a problem. IS told me the migration was supposed to be undetectable and that they only got calls from CAD people. I was able to fix the problem by loading the printers from the server directly instead of using MS's "add printer" function.

Try going to Start, Run and type in \\{new server name}
This should bring up a list of printers. Double-click to load one (after the problem one of the same name is deleted of course)
 
Upvote 0 Downvote
macPT – Word and most other programs make use of the default printer setting of Windows. SolidWorks typically stores information about which printer you used for a particular document in the document itself. This is to make it easier to get prints of different sizes to the appropriate printer / plotter. Some versions of SolidWorks would punt when it tried to bring up the print dialog box if it was unable to find the printer associated with a document. Changing the server is likely to have triggered this problem. MElam's suggestion has a good chance of fixing the problem.

There is a fixed SPR listed for 2005 SP2 that I believe refers to this. I would copy and past the # and description here if it was not for all of the proprietary information warnings on the way to the list. But searching the fixed SPR list for print will quickly find it.


Eric Endsley

 
Upvote 0 Downvote
The Rollback function sucks - that's why your SP got screwed up. Doing a Modify will not result in your SP getting screwed up. Because this is a function through the control panel.

I do a Modify on my install about once a month, without problems. It's really simple and all you have to do is click through the "next" buttons and let it run. Try it...

Regards,

Scott Baugh, CSWP [pc2]
3DVision Technologies
faq731-376
faq559-716 - SW Fora Users
 
Upvote 0 Downvote
SBaugh

Maybe this should be another thread, but I will continue from here.

My CD's are for SP0.0. I have SP1.1 installed. Can I Modify the SP1.1 installation with SP0.0 CD's?

Regards
 
Upvote 0 Downvote
No this shouldn't be another thread, because I think this may help your existing problem, and if it doesn't you will at least understand how to do it next time.

My CD's are for SP0.0. I have SP1.1 installed. Can I Modify the SP1.1 installation with SP0.0 CD's?
Click to expand...

Yes you must use the "Original" CD's you intially installed SW with. That was the problem I think you ran into, you re-ran the SP and that will give you the option to rollback. If you run the modify from your CD's or as I listed in the FAQ above. You will not get a Rollback option, only Repair, modify or remove.

Regards,

Scott Baugh, CSWP [pc2]
3DVision Technologies
faq731-376
faq559-716 - SW Fora Users
 
Upvote 0 Downvote
Problem solved!

Tried all advices except the one from EEnd to upgrade to SP2.0. Nothing worked!

After upgrading to SP3.0, the problem was solved.

It's still a mistery to my why some files where able to be printed and others not, and that was beginning to happen a few days ago and only in one computer! (could the new server triggered that, in only one computer?)

Regards
 
Upvote 0 Downvote
Running a SP replaces files and works a lot like a "modify". The SP could have fixed the problem, but the simply fact of running a form of the install probably would have fixed it. Since you could not pen it down and it was not repeative for all files, makes me think a "modify" would have done it without a SP install.

Glad to see it's fixed though.

Regards,

Scott Baugh, CSWP [pc2]
3DVision Technologies
faq731-376
faq559-716 - SW Fora Users
 
Upvote 0 Downvote
SBaugh

Since I've made an upgrade to SW Office Pro, I've performed a fresh install.

This fresh install did not solve the problem. So I guess a "modify" would have the same result (at least, when I refer to all advices in my previous post, I was considering that a fresh install would not be less efective than a modify).

The problem was solved only after install SP3.0.

Can a "modify" be more effective than a fresh install to solve problems?

Regards



 
Upvote 0 Downvote
No, I didn't. My fresh install was not that fresh!

Regards
 
Upvote 0 Downvote
Status
Not open for further replies.

Similar threads

bjlasota
  • Locked
  • Question
Flat Pattern Problem, Orientation Problem, Viewing Problem. The day of Problems
Replies
3
Views
362
bjlasota
bjlasota
moon161
  • Locked
  • Question
Fillet problems
Replies
4
Views
182
moon161
moon161
a0r0t
  • Locked
  • Question
3D Printing note
Replies
6
Views
456
TheTick
TheTick
EaZiE
  • Locked
  • Question
Strategy for printing? 1
Replies
8
Views
256
Agriego
Agriego
aroundhere
  • Locked
  • Question
printing problems
Replies
3
Views
144
tgrimley
tgrimley

Part and Inventory Search

Sponsor

Back
Top Bottom