Open Files Selectively in SolidWorks

For large assemblies, use the Open Files Selectively feature to improve performance.

This enables you to select which components to load, leaving others not downloaded and not visible. Before you start, make sure that Open Files Selectively is enabled for Vault. (Vault > Vault Options > Open Files Selectively.)

1. Click Open on the Vault toolbar or context menu.
2. Select the assembly file you want to open and click OK.
3. If Large Assembly Mode is not enabled in SolidWorks, click Tools > Large Assembly Mode to enable it.

   You must be working in Large Assembly Mode to open files selectively.

4. Select the components you want to open in the feature manager.
5. In the Selective Open dialog box that opens, click Selected Components.
6. In the Selective Open dialog box, click Open Selected.

Not all Vault commands work with unloaded components; for example, the Property Write-Back command. These commands will not be available in the Vault browser context menu if any selected files do not exist in the local working folder.