File Association
Hi jdr1102,
I believe the issue has to do with both applications using the roamer.exe file name. I’ve found a simple workaround:
1. Browse to the Freedom 2011 program folder:
- C:\Program Files\Autodesk\Navisworks Freedom 2011
2. Right-click on “roamer.exe” and copy.
3. Right-click and select paste in the folder. You should now have a “roamer – Copy.exe” file located in the folder. If you like you can rename it to whatever you want.
4. Right-click on an NWD file, and select Open with.
5. Click the Browse button and browse to the copy of the roamer.exe file you created that has a different file name and click ok.
In my testing, when you double click an NWD, it will open in Freedom.
Best regards,
John Lipp
Product Support Specialist
Autodesk Product Support
Hi greggbehmer,
I found that if you try to run a copy of roamer.exe from the 2012 versions, it fails to open. I’m not seeing the error message you are seeing, but the process of the copy of roamer starts in the task manager and then quits without ever opening.
Here is an article on how to setup your “open with” list:
- http://msdn.microsoft.com/en-us/library/bb166549(v=vs.80).aspx
Warning! Problems caused by improperly editing the Windows Registry could render your computer operating system unusable. Microsoft provides a wealth of critical information that you need to know about the registry in the Microsoft Knowledge Base.
Use the Microsoft Registry Editor only at your own risk and only after backing up the registry as well as the system.dat and user.dat files as outlined for your operating system in the Microsoft Knowledge Base and in the related Autodesk solution, http://usa.autodesk.com/getdoc/id=TS66513. Additional information about the registry is also contained in the Help topics in the Microsoft Registry Editor.
Using the information from the article above, I created some keys for the different versions of Navisworks under the key: HKEY_CLASSES_ROOT\Applications
1. Open Regedit
2. Browse to HKEY_CLASSES_ROOT\Applications
3. Right click it and select New > Key
4. Name the key “NAVMAN2012.exe”
5. Right click the newly created key, and select New > Key
6. Enter the key name “shell”
7. Right click the newly created key, and select New > Key
8. Enter the key name “open”
9. Right click the newly created key, and select New > Key
10. Enter the key name “command”
11. In the (Default) key of the command key, enter the following:
C:\Program Files\Autodesk\Navisworks Manage 2012\roamer.exe "%1"
Here is what it looks like in Regedit after creating keys for Freedom 2012 and Manage 2012:
You can repeat the above for the other versions of Navisworks. For example, use NAVFREE2012.exe in step 4, and the following path in step 10:
C:\Program Files\Autodesk\Navisworks Freedom 2012\roamer.exe "%1"
Or if you have a previous 2011 version of Simulate installed:
Use NAVSIM2011.exe in step 4, and the following path in step 10:
C:\Program Files\Autodesk\Navisworks Simulate 2011\roamer.exe "%1"
Now that the keys for the application versions are created, you can add an OpenWithList key to your .nwd, .nwf., .nwc extensions:
1. In Regedit, browse to the key HKEY_CLASSES_ROOT\.nwd
2. Right-click it and select New > Key
3. Name the key OpenWithList
4. Right-click the “OpenWithList” key and select New > Key
5. Enter the name NAVMAN2012.exe
6. Repeat steps 4 and 5 to add the other application versions that you created in the Applications key
You can repeat the above for the HKEY_CLASSES_ROOT\.nwc, and HKEY_CLASSES_ROOT\.nwf keys.
Now, when you right-click an NWD and select “Open with”, you’ll see the Manage and Freedom Icons. If you want to set one to default when you double click a file, click the choose default program, select one from the Recommended Programs list, and with the “”Always use the select program” box marked, click OK.
Best regards, 
John Lipp
Support Specialist
Product Support
Autodesk, Inc.
Hi Patrick_Aps_9121,
The description comes from the roamer.exe. If you right-click the roamer.exe under either C:\Program Files\Autodesk\Navisworks Manage 2012 or C:\Program Files\Autodesk\Navisworks Freedom 2012 and select properties, in the General tab of the properties window, you’ll see the description is Navisworks. Since this is coded in the exe, you can't change it.
Regarding where in the registry it is determined what application is the default application for a file type, for an NWD file, that key would be:
HKEY_CLASSES_ROOT\nwd\shell\open\command
Best regards
John Lipp
Support Specialist
Product Support
Autodesk, Inc.