As far as I can remember, it is impossible to open a STEP with Solidworks by double-clicking on it as on a prt or asm or drw file. You have to open a file and then etc.
Ah, I think AC COBRA is right. Do the test once to see if you can open your step with solidworks as he said. If it works the problem is solved, because the basic question "In Solidworks, when I save a file in STEP format in my folders it is in PDF type." turned out not to be a problem since the file created was indeed in .step
When I double click on the file to open it, it sends it to Acrobat Reader and when I open it from Solidworks with "open" there is no problem.
After my concern is that, I would like his . STEP, or in the right format, because I'm going to need it for the creation of my next tool library, in my future MasterCam CAM software.
It is indeed not possible to open a step file (and several other formats such as iges, x_t, ...) with solidworks by double-clicking on this file in Windows, the opening mode being different (it happens by a loadfile function of the Api and not opendoc as for native solidworks files).
This does not prevent your file from being in step format but only the association of the default program is wrong in Windows. As already said, you have to be an administrator on your pc to be able to change this association (do not put solidworks since it does not work) with either any step file viewer or your CAM software if it accepts it.
If you really want to open step files with Solidworks by default, you will have to go through an intermediate program of your creation that allows you to launch Solidworks then open your step file with the right function of the Api then associate the step extension to this new program in Windows but there you have to know about programming...
Yes the file doesn't have any problems, that's what has been said since the beginning of the discussion, we're just about the definition of a default program in Windows...
an interesting track in the links of AC Cobra: Solidworks Launcher
(see screenshot) to be tested with the WWTP
which may be useful for another Solidworks file icon problem on another pc (despite the attempt to redo in SW system option / explorer / restore assosciations)
Yes, for native Solidworks files, you have to put Solidworks Launcher as the default program, but doesn't work for other extensions (step, x_t, iges), at least for me.
On Windows 7 and SW2017, cleaning the PC then re-test with "SLDWORKS.exe" as the default program for step files and it works, but still not on Windows 10, to be continued...
At home it is associated with SwLauncher and I can't associate it with "SLDWORKS.exe" like d.roger, it tells me "Unable to associate a file type with this program"
Maybe a problem related to Windows 8 and 10. On Windows 7 it works very well, I will occasionally do a test on Windows 10 with SW2018 (normally a test station being installed).