Computers for SolidWorks

[daniel_dsouza]

Hello CD,

I was introduced to SolidWorks last year, and since then a few of our existing and incoming members have expressed an interest in learning how to use this tool. I had a chance to play with SolidWorks over our fall break, and one of the first things I discovered was that my computer was definitely not fast enough to assemble a drivetrain, much less a robot.

Now our problem is that except from our mentors (college students), I have the fastest computer that meets minimum requirements (including pro-edition of windows). Our team/students/school don't have enough money to build/buy us any computers. What can we do, and how have other teams found computers for SolidWorks? I have heard of some teams(I don't remember who) getting workstations free/cheap from HP. Is getting computers straight from the manufacturer an option?

Thanks,
Daniel D.

P.S. I run SolidWorks on my laptop with Intel Core2 Duo @ 1.5 Ghz w. 2GB RAM and Intel's mobile graphics.

[sanddrag]

It's the lack of RAM and the graphics that's killing the performance on your system. I don't have an recommendation for magical free or cheap computers that will run it, you just need to find some money or a sponsor and get some machines that exceed the minimum specs, and stick some good graphics cards in there. Have you asked the school? Sometimes they have funds specifically for computers that must be spent by a certain date or forfeited. I see this all the time around here.

There are some decent deals on refurbished systems out there, but honestly you may be better off buying new or even building custom systems.

My school district buys direct through HP and there's a small discount, but it really isn't a great price. You could build a better system for cheaper than we buy through HP.

I'd recommend a dual-core processor over 2GHz, 4 Gigs of RAM for general work, and 6 or 8 gigs for a full robot model, and a workstation-class video card from the nVidia Quadro or ATI FireGL or FirePro line. The cheapest video card to run it well is probably $100 alone. The RAM and video card is really going to make the difference. People have "softmodded" Geforce cards into Quadro cards, but I have no experience with that. Talk to Adam Heard, as he has done it. Or, you could go with one of the Intel SandyBridge Core iX series chips with the integrated Intel HD 3000 graphics which is pretty decent, but that isn't cheap either.

I'd recommend a system with DDR3 memory. And make sure you're running Windows 7 x64.

I came across this in the past, but I have no real knowledge of it http://computersforlearning.gov/

Also, I recall BestBuy has grants I think for $1000 that you may be able to apply for.

I quickly threw some hardware into a shopping cart on NewEgg. For a complete system worth of hardware, the cheapest Core i3 with Intel HD 3000 graphics, and 4 gigs of RAM, the total comes to $315, and I'd guess SolidWorks would run just fine on this system. The price includes case, power supply, motherboard, RAM, hard drive, and CD/DVD burner/reader drive. However, this cost does not include Windows 7 x64 which would run you another $100-$130 per machine roughly, depending on if you went with home or pro.

So, figure $450 for a new system to run SolidWorks. This is the cheapest system I'd be comfortable running it on. By the time you add in the cost of Windows, you don't save a whole lot by building your own system vs. purchasing something turn-key. However, you have to be careful with turn-key systems, as none in your price range will have Quadro or FirePro graphics and few will have Intel HD 3000 (not HD 2000) graphics.

For laptops, I bought myself one of these on sale for $450 a few months back: http://www.frys.com/product/6677364?...H:MAIN_RSLT_PG and it's a better machine than the desktop system I describe above, for the same price (and it has a screen, which the price I quoted for a desktop did not include). You could probably find an even better deal in a 15.6 inch laptop; I wanted a 14 inch specifically. I spent $35 for 8 gigs of RAM, and it runs a full robot model in Inventor 2012 just fine. I have not tried SolidWorks on it. Deals are out there if you keep your eyes open.

[daniel_dsouza]

Originally Posted by sanddrag

Have you asked the school? Sometimes they have funds specifically for computers that must be spent by a certain date or forfeited. I see this all the time around here.

I see. Our school district has the money to buy computers, but the only problem they have is letting us take the computers home (We don't have enough time in school to CAD).

Come to think of it, there is a very good chance I might get a Intel Sandybridge chip sometime next year, because Intel loans chips to its employees (My dad works at Intel).

Computers that our school buys generally come with Win 7 pro, but how important is having Win 7 Pro or higher for SolidWorks?

[O'Sancheski]

Originally Posted by daniel_dsouza

Computers that our school buys generally come with Win 7 pro, but how important is having Win 7 Pro or higher for SolidWorks?

I have used Solidworks on XP, Vista, and 7 and I prefer 7 only because that's what I run on my computer. Pro (Ultimate) is not necessary to run Solidworks. I have Home Premium and it is perfect.

Any OS runs it fine.

[sanddrag]

Originally Posted by O'Sancheski

Any OS runs it fine.

Careful with that word "any." I could mention quite a few that would not run it just fine. Additionally, a 64-bit OS is very-much preferred in order to utilize more than 2 Gigabytes of RAM, which is necessary for large assemblies. A FIRST Robot would qualify as a large assembly. The world is moving on from XP (and also 64-bit XP lacks a lot of driver support) and with 7, there's no reason for Vista. Go with some flavor of 64-bit Windows 7.

[Mk.32]

Ask for donations/grant money for computers.
Generally you wouldn't be able to take school computers home but see about getting access after hours/lunch/etc.
We got some of our computers from our mentor who is in IT, some of which are decent enough to run SW. However most of our computers are student computers that are well off enough to run SW.
The cheapest way to get decent computers, would probably be building custom desktops with parts from newegg/amazon.

As for win7 versions it doesn't matter which one, pro/ult,perm but make sure to get a 64bit version so you can use more then 3gb of ram. As for XP, there is no reason to get XP over 7 but SW does work under XP.

Spec wise my current laptop, i5 + 8gb ram + intel HD3000 + Win 7, runs Solidworks 2012 for the most part fine but it does slow down with large assemblies, such as a full drive train or robot. A desktop with at least a dual/quad core + 4gb ram + workstation graphics card is really what you need for large assemblies with Solidworks.
Also older versions of Solidworks tend to run better on slower machines, such as 2007/2008.

[s_forbes]

Have you tried running it without all of the graphics intensive display options? Get rid of the background image (options>colors - choose a plain color) and poke around through some of the other options to get rid of things you don't need.

I ran Solidworks for a few years on a 1.5Ghz Intel dual core with 1 gig of RAM (XP) and was able to build some pretty complex models without issue.

[baronep]

Ask any parents in the club who work for big corporations to go ask the IT guys. More often than not, they will have a few old but suitable computers sitting in the closet

[sanddrag]

Originally Posted by s_forbes

Have you tried running it without all of the graphics intensive display options? Get rid of the background image (options>colors - choose a plain color) and poke around through some of the other options to get rid of things you don't need.

I ran Solidworks for a few years on a 1.5Ghz Intel dual core with 1 gig of RAM (XP) and was able to build some pretty complex models without issue.

I've tried Solidworks 2008 on a Pentium T2330 (1.6 GHz Dual Core) with 2 gigs of DDR2 RAM and Intel mobile graphics and it was a real dog. You could use it, if you didn't mind waiting a while, for everything.

And to answer the OP, in my opinion yes, it is important to be running Windows 7 64-bit. I doubt there's much if any difference between the versions (home, pro, ultimate) for Solidworks use, but don't hold me to that.

Can you get more access time at school? Does the school have any capable computer lab they can put Solidworks on for you. Do you have a dedicated teacher they can give keys and an alarm code to for after-hours access?