Currently, when we validate a plan, EPDM automatically launches a task to save the file in pdf (via the EPDM task addin).
It works more or less but our 8 users end up with pdf recording tasks automatically launched on their workstations.
For a small A4 detail shot it's not really a problem (except that you see a SW window open from time to time), but when you're 'lucky' enough to come across a close-up that already has trouble opening in the normal solidworks window, This can block the user for long minutes or even crash his SOLIDWORKS session: waste of time....
Does anyone have a solution so that print jobs can work properly without blocking our users???
There is certainly the solution of having a machine dedicated to these printing tasks but it annoys us to invest in a machine, an SW license and an EPDM license just to manage this problem of generating pdfs.
Would having two sessions in parallel on a machine limit crashes? (one session for the user with EPDM jobs disabled and one session dedicated to pdf printing)
Is there a way to force EPDM to run these tasks at less annoying times (noon, in the evening...)
From what I see in the help, some tasks do not support scheduling, such as the Convert and Print tasks (see HERE) so the solution may be to create a custom task that supports scheduling and either put your conversion to PDF script in it or run a conversion macro (as an add-in) through this task.
I haven't tried but in my opinion it must be able to do it.
Generation during off-peak hours, however, is not the ideal solution (because of the time difference of a few hours, which can be a problem on urgent plans to send back to a customer or supplier).
A broader question for other users of the solution: your pdfs are created on a dedicated server (only one authorized workstation: the dedicated server), on user workstations with EPDM distribution control, on a workstation chosen by the user for each task, on the user workstation that launched the task?
For my part, the pdfs are generated on a dedicated workstation, but this is done by a myPDMtool task. At the moment this station is HS (for other reasons) and the build starts on the computer of the user who started the task (or more precisely who started the state change, calling the build task himself). And it is indeed very heavy for the user who sees his workstation blocked for a few minutes when it comes to a very heavy overall plan, especially since we launch several tasks in a row: writing the revision table, generating the pdf, and also generating neutral 3D files (step, dxf, easm). This can open up to 4 successive SW windows since myPDMTools does not know how to use the active window... Hence the idea of using a dedicated separate workstation (by running a routine that kills all the SW windows in the evening, and that clears the cache from time to time as well).
The temporary postponement is not possible for the same reasons as you suggest.
Since we also have this concern at home, on a smaller scale because our plans are relatively light, we use a ruse so as not to be too annoyed by the automatic generation. We approve our documents before going to a meeting, eat or anything else that takes us away from our PC, so that the automatic generation doesn't bother us because we don't have the :-)
In the case of using an EPDM task that supports scheduling (see first answer above) and to avoid the:
"Generation during off-peak hours, on the other hand, is not the ideal solution (because of the time difference of a few hours, which may pose a problem for urgent plans to be sent back to a customer or supplier). "
You have to plan to be able to launch this add-in either by right-clicking or by the EPDM task, and I'm sure it's doable.
For us, it's launching a conversion task (without planning), on a dedicated PC, during a transition with also access to launch the add-in by right-clicking (with the processing that is also done on the dedicated PC).
Yes that's right, a dedicated PC (an old CAD station no longer used so no investment.) and a dedicated SW PDM Pro license. This was mandatory anyway because plan approvers don't necessarily have SW installed on the machine they use to approve and therefore launch the build task (e.g. office laptop ). The cost is substantial , but it is less recurring man/machine downtime.