How to Fix “The SOLIDWORKS Document Manager Library is Invalid” Error

Occasionally, when creating a SOLIDWORKS Pack and Go, you may encounter an error saying that “The SOLIDWORKS Document Manager library is invalid” and you should contact your administrator. This error message is a result of having missing or improperly configured files.

Typically, the missing files are from shared SOLIDWORKS files in common directories; however, additional troubleshooting may be required. We’ve outlined the common steps to resolve the issues with the SOLIDWORKS Document Manager library being invalid to get you back to modeling as quickly as possible.

If your SOLIDWORKS Document Manager library is invalid, there are a few things you can try to resolve the error message.

Repair Your SOLIDWORKS Installation

The easiest fix is repairing your SOLIDWORKS installation. This is a mostly automatic process that requires very little manual interaction aside from having administrative access on your machine and being able to launch the SOLIDWORKS Installation Manager.

Using the SOLIDWORKS Installation Manager to repair

To begin a SOLIDWORKS Repair:

1. Go to the Windows Control Panel and navigate to the Programs directory.
2. Right-click on the version of SOLIDWORKS and choose Change.
3. Select Repair and follow the prompts.

Manually Register the Required DLL Files

If repairing the installation does not work, you will need to manually register the required DLL files based on your SOLIDWORKS version.

To manually register the DLL files:

1. Open Command Prompt as an administrator.
2. Navigate to the folder containing the DLL file with cd “C:\Program Files\Common Files\SOLIDWORKS Shared”.
3. Register the DLL file with regsvr32 sldshellutils14u.dll.
4. A confirmation dialog will appear indicating success or failure.

DLL Files by SOLIDWORKS Version:

• SOLIDWORKS 2022-2023: %ProgramFiles%\Common Files\SOLIDWORKS Shared\sldshellutilsExtu.dll
• SOLIDWORKS 2018-2021: %ProgramFiles%\Common Files\SOLIDWORKS Shared\sldshellutils14u.dll
• SOLIDWORKS 2015-2017: %ProgramFiles%\Common Files\SOLIDWORKS Shared\sldshellutils11u.dll
• SOLIDWORKS 2013-2014: %ProgramFiles%\Common Files\SOLIDWORKS Shared\sldshellutils10u.dll
• SOLIDWORKS 2011-2012: %ProgramFiles%\Common Files\SOLIDWORKS Shared\sldshellutils9u.dll
• SOLIDWORKS 2010: %ProgramFiles%\Common Files\SOLIDWORKS Shared\sldshellutils8u.dll

How to Unregister a DLL File

There may be scenarios where you need to unregister the DLL file before proceeding with the new registration. This can help clear out registries and other directories to help the fix stick.

To manually unregister the DLL files:

1. Open Command Prompt as an administrator.
2. Navigate to the DLL location with cd “C:\Program Files\Common Files\SOLIDWORKS Shared”.
3. Unregister the DLL file with regsvr32 sldshellutils14u.dll -u.

Need More Assistance to fix the SOLIDWORKS Document Manager Library?

While the most common solutions to fix the SOLIDWORKS Document Manager library error are listed above, there is always a chance that there is a different root cause for your errors. You can leverage your SOLIDWORKS Subscription to get access to a dedicated Technical Support team ready to answer your toughest questions.

To submit a ticket and connect with our Technical Support team, click here.