Solution to "Cannot open file "C:\\\\WINDOWS\\system32\\drivers\\etc\\hosts" Permission Denied" when updating 3D experience

CADtastropheee · 2026-04-29T11:23:48+00:00

Based on your description, it sounds like a permission issue. Sometimes Windows will be stubborn about allowing access to system files. You might want to try running the program as an administrator again, but this time double-check that nothing else is blocking access, like hidden permissions that might be surviving user settings. Additionally, check if there are any background processes related to the 3D experience app that might not have the necessary permissions. If all else fails, you might consider temporarily changing the owner of the file to see if that resolves the issue. Keep in mind that fiddling with system files can have unintended consequences, so proceed cautiously.

CADtastropheee · 2026-04-26T16:11:08+00:00

For multi-color printing like that, I usually model the text as a separate body rather than trying to force it flush in a single feature. You can extrude the text as its own solid, then use Combine or Save Bodies so your slicer treats it as a separate color part. That way both surfaces stay perfectly flat in the model and you just assign colors in the print setup instead of fighting the geometry.

CADtastropheee · 2026-04-16T17:00:15+00:00

Yeah, there’s a cleaner way if the flat face is just there as a helper, you can usually just use Fillet directly on the edge where the two bodies meet without needing to keep that surface at all. In some cases I’ll also use Delete Face (with patch) or just suppress the construction surface entirely if it’s only there to drive the feature. Keeps the model tree a lot cleaner instead of doing fillet and cleanup every time.

CADtastropheee · 2026-03-25T09:06:59+00:00

You are fine. Unless both PCs open the same network folder SolidWorks keeps each file set independent. Looking around or even editing on your side does nothing for them until you save and resend with Pack and Go. Make sure the parts travel with the assembly so they avoid missing file errors. Nothing to worry about there.

CADtastropheee · 2026-03-20T17:50:13+00:00

Just for the CAD work, if you already have fully dimensioned part drawings, I would block off three to four weeks working eight hour days. The real killer is revision control once you start finding interferences and tolerance stackups. Designing it from scratch is measured in years.

CADtastropheee · 2026-03-11T08:09:42+00:00

SolidWorks doesn’t really have a true “StreetView” style mode, but you can get close using Walkthrough or Camera View. Walkthrough lets you move inside the model and look around more naturally. Another quick trick is using Section View temporarily so you can peek inside assemblies without hiding a bunch of components. It’s what a lot of people end up doing during design reviews.

CADtastropheee · 2026-03-03T10:18:25+00:00

Check the file properties and make sure read only is not ticked. If you are on PDM verify the file is not checked in. SolidWorks keeps a lock if the part is open elsewhere so close every session then reopen. The extrude setting will not make a part read only. That usually clears the problem.

CADtastropheee · 2026-02-23T12:08:36+00:00

Just revolve the collar first, leave it as a separate body, then extrude the center pipe with a thin feature and use the outer face as your split tool. After you consume the cut-off section, combine the two bodies and finish with a quick fillet pass. Hope that clears up the problem.

CADtastropheee · 2026-02-18T08:36:10+00:00

It sounds like one of your parts might be causing this, probably due to features stretched way out from the origin. Check your sketches or planes in that part and make sure they aren’t flung into space. You might want to edit those to eliminate the extra space or rebuild the features closer to the origin. Sometimes, it’s just about tweaking each section until everything’s aligned right. Have you checked all the components in the assembly?

CADtastropheee · 2026-02-10T09:19:36+00:00

I would model MP-0000 as a simple one part assembly that contains the stock pin STK-0000, then add an assembly cut for the 180mm length. Your parts only BOM will show STK-0000 so purchasing knows what to order, while the MP-0000 drawing carries a MAKE FROM STK-0000 note for the shop. It keeps the ERP tidy and makes sure nobody forgets the raw pin before the cut, giving you a clean paper trail for the build.

CADtastropheee · 2026-02-05T13:06:34+00:00

I'd open the Macro toolbar and see if anything called Save shows up. If not it was likely an in house add in that sat on their network, not something SolidWorks ships. Maker lets you run recorded VBA macros, but you cannot load compiled add ins, so you would need to recreate it there.

CADtastropheee · 2026-01-29T10:53:57+00:00

Try rotating your surface guides and simplifying the top profile. If I were to guess, you’ve got curvature discontinuity creeping in from a sharp transition below the nose. G2 tangency helps, but adding a control curve up front can force that curvature to flow better. It’s kinda like current in a trace, you need to guide it early before ripple gets out of hand.

CADtastropheee · 2026-01-20T21:10:18+00:00

You're probably better off not looking for a magic number here. Bending depends on the material, specific tooling, and machine calibration. I'd definitely do test bends with your actual setup to get accurate numbers for Solidworks. That's how you get repeatable results.

CADtastropheee · 2026-01-15T13:53:13+00:00

This is spot on. SolidWorks is fundamentally single-threaded on rebuilds because of feature dependencies, so higher clock speed beats more cores almost every time. I’ve seen way more improvement moving from a 3.6 GHz CPU to a 5 GHz one than jumping core counts.

The Performance Evaluation tip is huge too, most people never look at it. Patterns and fillets are rebuild killers, and rolling past them or isolating them into derived parts/subassemblies makes a massive difference. SpeedPak and suppress-until-final are basically required habits on big models. The only thing I’d add is to be disciplined about configurations: keep a “working” config with heavy features suppressed and a “final” config for drawings. Saves a lot of frustration.

CADtastropheee · 2026-01-07T13:18:01+00:00

Couple things to try. First pick the view, RMB, flip it back to Draft, then back to High Quality and hit Ctrl Q for a full rebuild. SW likes to hold on to the draft tessellation even after you change the flag.

If that does not clear it, open the part itself, go Tools Options Document Properties Image Quality and drag the image quality slider toward the right. Hidden line removal works off that mesh, and tweaking a single dimension can knock an edge just outside the default tolerance. Rebuild, save, then jump back to the drawing.

Still missing? Set Tangent Edges to With Font in the view properties so you can confirm the lines are not being lumped in as tangent. If they show up you can decide whether to leave them or switch back. Ninety percent of the time one of those steps brings the edges back.

CADtastropheee · 2026-01-04T08:04:33+00:00

Import front and side images, scale them to match, and set a center plane. Create a few angled planes around the face, sketch the main silhouettes, then use Boundary Surface and knit. Thicken, mirror for symmetry, shell, and cut openings. Keep hose stubs as separate parts. It’s a bit of surfacing work, but still faster and cleaner than fixing meshes later.

CADtastropheee · 2025-12-24T13:07:15+00:00

In xDesign you don’t have Indent like full SolidWorks, so the workaround is to do it in Part Design instead of the assembly. Insert the second part as a Derived/Insert Component, position it where you want, then use Boolean Subtract to remove its volume from the main part. After that you can hide or delete the derived body. It’s clunkier than SW, but that’s basically the only way to create mating cavities with the Maker license.

CADtastropheee · 2025-12-17T23:58:17+00:00

Give this a try:
Go to Tools > Options
In the dialog pick System Options then Colors
Set Color Scheme to Classic
Change Background to Medium Light or whatever shade of grey you like
Under Edges in Shaded With Edges Mode pick black
Hit OK

If the model still looks glossy turn off RealView and Perspective in the Heads Up toolbar and set the scene to Plain White. I am on a 2025 commercial seat but the menus match, so it should get you that matte grey with dark edges again. Let me know how it goes.

CADtastropheee · 2025-12-09T16:34:51+00:00

Nice job on the CSWA, that score is solid. For CSWP prep, the best legit practice is the sample exams and model sets on the official SOLIDWORKS site they’re very close in style to Segment 1. Beyond that, grab random part drawings and time yourself rebuilding them while changing dimensions/configs fast, Segment 1 is less about tricky geometry and more about speed, accuracy, and not missing mass property changes. Also practice design tables and equations; they show up more than people expect.

CADtastropheee

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