SolidWorks license & version changes...

[KChat]

Hello there! New member here & I have a question that hopefully someone here has dealt with previously & can advise...

It seems that SolidWorks Educational is due for an update soon, from the 2019 version to 2020. From some online digging it appears this typically happens upon the release of SP3 (expected in May) when the majority of bugs have been addressed in the version.

So my question is this: if I download & register SolidWorks 2019 now, will I be able to upgrade to 2020 upon its release, or will I be stuck with the 2019 version for the 12 months it is registered? I don’t want to wait, but if I can’t upgrade in a month I know I’ll wish I had...

Thank you in advance, & I look forward to engaging with you all here!
-KChat

[Jeffrey Meyer]

Hi KChat,

I'm no expert on the SW Licensing policies, but I suspect that educational version is, as the name implies, aimed at the academic users. In other words, the validity of your license is not dependent upon the date of registration, but the timing of the academic year.
Bottom line: IMHO it doesn't matter when you register, it will only work until there is a new release.
Of course I may be wrong, so I too would like to hear if somebody else has a different experience.
Hope this helps.

Jeffrey.

[Cory Puuri]

I am the "expert" on the license. You can download the software and you get 12 months of use from the day you activate it with a serial number over the SOLIDWORKS servers. You must activate the software before June of each year or the serial number will not be valid. If you want to install now and then upgrade to 2020, you will need to install 2019, activate it and do a full uninstall (before you click the confirmation to uninstall, click CHANGE next to Advance and checking all boxes to remove the 2019 serial number from your Windows Registry). Then, install and activate 2020.

In case you forget to do a clean uninstall, the uninstall instructions are included with the 2020 installation instructions.

[actruck]

Cory,

I completed the SW install on 5/7 but the activation shows it expires 12/31/2020. Is this correct or will I need to reactivate it in December to get the remaining months? I understood the license to be good for 1 year. I'm a current SW user at the company I work for so I understand the SW installation/activation. I also handle the SW deployments for the yearly upgrades. We use a network license so maybe the licensing structure is different.

I also sent you a PM on the subject.

[Jeffrey Meyer]

I stand corrected.

[actruck]

I assume Cory's tied up on other projects so while I'm waiting for him to see my original message, has anyone else ran into this where the activation says it expires at the end of the year rather than 12 months from the activation date? Just curious.

Thank you

Cory,

I completed the SW install on 5/7 but the activation shows it expires 12/31/2020. Is this correct or will I need to reactivate it in December to get the remaining months? I understood the license to be good for 1 year. I'm a current SW user at the company I work for so I understand the SW installation/activation. I also handle the SW deployments for the yearly upgrades. We use a network license so maybe the licensing structure is different.

I also sent you a PM on the subject.

[piepermd]

My 2019 version also says it expires at the end of 2020 even though I got it in March of 2020. I tried to download the Solidworks 2020 installation package but it said this was not compatible with my license. Can I buy the 2020-2021 student version for $99 and have it work with my EAA student license?