Network Installations of Civil 3D Unable to Pull a Suite Network License

Any time users are unable to pull a network license for a product can lead to a fairly significant loss in productivity depending on the cause. We got this one in support the other day; luckily it was an easy fix. Read on for more info.

Scenario: A company just cross-graded their Autodesk Civil 3D Subscription seats over to the new Premium Infrastructure Design Suite, it includes products like AutoCAD, AutoCAD Map, Civil 3D and Navisworks. The user then requested a new network license file; properly replaced the existing one, and re-configured the license manager. Afterwards users could successfully pull AutoCAD licenses but could not get a license for Civil 3D, yet there were plenty of seats still available.

Since Civil 3D was installed prior to the Design Suite Cross-grade they were still looking to the regular Civil 3D increment in the license file. However, this shouldn’t be an issue because license files include a feature called “cascading” which automatically points the software to look to another increment if seats are unavailable. The cascading feature exists for all Autodesk Suite products, not just Civil 3D.

For example, a license file has Revit Architecture and a Building Design Suite. When launched, Revit will look to the standard Revit Architecture seat first, if none are available it will automatically roll over to the Suite for a license. More information on the cascading order for Autodesk products can be found here.

Solution: This is actually a known issue. Civil 3D in some instances is unable to cascade to the next product. Autodesk issued a hotfix that gets installed on the end users’ machines.

Luckily this was a simple solution which otherwise could’ve been very costly to troubleshoot.

If it should happen to you, hopefully this will save you some time trying to hunt down a fix!

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Derek Wielkopolski
Technical Support Manager/Application Specialist
Derek holds a Bachelor of Architecture degree from Roger Williams University, Rhode Island. He is experienced working within the AEC industry from concept design through construction administration for both small and large scale projects. As Ideate’s Support Manager he ensures a timely and quality response to support requests and questions. Follow Derek on Twitter: @dwielk

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Revit Structure Question: Where are the Architectural Walls?

Question: Currently I have an architectural model linked into my Revit Structure model. For some reason, I cannot see the architectural walls in my structural model. I have tried all combinations in the visibility graphics, the Reveal hidden elements button, reloading it as an overlay vs. attachment, changing the import categories visibility and nothing seems to be working.

Answer: It’s the View Discipline! In the Properties of the View, change the Discipline to Co-ordination. Coordination combines Architectural and Structural. Setting it to Structural would hide the non bearing walls from the view.

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Shruti Harve,
LEED AP, AEC Solutions Application Specialist
Shruti holds a Master of Science degree in Architectural Computing from University of Strathclyde, United Kingdom and is LEED accredited. Her experience includes working in Architecture and Construction firms in India and the United Kingdom as well as Structural Engineering firms in the Bay Area providing design, 3D modeling and drafting services. At Ideate, Shruti provides training and support for Revit Architecture, Revit Structure, 3ds Max, Ecotect and AutoCAD Architecture.

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