There are two ways to view an older PDM file version. Which way you use will depend on what your settings are in the PDM Admin Tool:
If you have ONLY the “Always works with latest version of files.” checked then you will not be able to see an older version in the vault at all. However, if both options are checked for “Always work with latest version.” and “Enable the get version command in SOLIDWORKS Add-in.” then you will be able to get an older version within Solidworks itself.
Option 1 For Opening An Older PDM File
With both settings checked, open up SOLIDWORKS and your file. Inside of the PDM add-in right click and choose the “Get Version” dropdown.
From here you’ll be presented with several versions to choose from.
Simply choose which option you’d like to use and SOLIDWORKS will open it for you to view or create a new part from!
Option 2:
If you do not have either of the settings “Always work with latest version.” and “Enable the get version command in SOLIDWORKS Add-in.” checked then you will be able to get an older version in the vault itself.
First right click the file you’d like to get an older version from and select “History” from the context menu.
Select the older version you’d like to see and click on the “Get” button to have the file pull an older version.
Close the History window and you'll see in the Version Tab that the older version is now being displayed in the Preview Window. At this point you can also open the file in SOLIDWORKS to view the older version.
Alternatively, you can also highlight your version and choose "View" to open in Edrawings.
