The Difference Between Saving and Checking In With SOLIDWORKS PDM

When working in SOLIDWORKS PDM, there are many ways to collaborate and track changes to files. From the automated workflows, integrated approvals, and derivative content generation, your team can find great comfort in the available tools.

But what about the basics? It is critical for your team’s productivity to know the difference between just saving a file into the vault and fully checking the file in. While there is some overlap between the methods, there are a few key differences you should be aware of.

Checking Out Files for Editing

In SOLIDWORKS PDM, the first step to modifying a file is to check it out. When a file is checked out for editing, a new version (or copy) of the file is created, which is now the new “working” version. This new version of the file only exists on the local computer where the file is being edited and can only be edited by the user who initiated the checkout.

Saving Checked-out Files

While a user has the file checked out for editing, it is good practice to periodically save the changes to the file. In this case, the Save command is only being performed locally on the user’s machine.

Saving the file does not return the file to the vault or release the user’s “ownership” of the file. While saving incremental changes locally is recommended, it is still necessary to “Check In” for changes to be transferred to the central PDM Server.

Benefits of checking out a file from SOLIDWORKS PDM

Performing a local Save just means that if SOLIDWORKS closes or the computer reboots unexpectedly, the user will be able to open the file from the last Save point and continue working. All this is really doing is saving the file to the local cache.

Checking In Files

The Check In operation is what takes the local working copy of the file and permanently adds it to the SOLIDWORKS PDM vault. Checking the file into the vault adds to the file version history.

Check in files to sync them back to the vault

It is recommended to perform the Check In operation periodically after major file changes, because this is the only way to ensure the file is tracked on the central server. Without regularly checking in, you run the risk of losing valuable progress updates.

How Often Should You Check In?

There is no one-size-fits-all answer to this question, but a general rule of thumb would be to check the file into the vault after every change that you don’t want to risk losing. At a minimum, this is once every few days.

It is not recommended to keep files checked out for long periods of time (weeks, months, or more). The only way to ensure files are backed up is to periodically check them into the vault.

Losing data due to a system crash

The risk is that if the user’s local computer were to experience some catastrophic failure or become inaccessible (e.g. hard drive crash, water damage, theft/loss), there would be no way to retrieve the files that were “checked out” for editing.

An Example of Saving vs. Checking In

Take this scenario, for example, where a PDM user named Sarah keeps a file “checked out” for two months:

1. Sarah checks out a file to get to work on changes for a project. There are four versions of the file in SOLIDWORKS PDM already, so she will now be working on version five.
2. Sarah keeps the file checked out while working on it for two months, and never once checks it in to the vault.
3. One day, Sarah’s computer randomly crashed and would not turn on. She cannot access the version five copy of the file.
4. Sarah’s team must revert to version four, which was the last version checked in to the PDM vault.

In the example above, if Sarah had checked the file in more often, even every week, there would have been a much more recent recovery point for her to fall back on.

Protect Your Company Data with SOLIDWORKS PDM

SOLIDWORKS PDM does more than just checking in and checking out files. With regular backups, maintenance, and updates your company’s IP can stay protected from hardware issues or even ransomware. Our team of experts has helped clients ensure their vaults are in working order and protected from the next threat.

To verify your SOLIDWORKS PDM vault is in top condition, schedule an Audit Service here.