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Opened files becoming read only in 2014

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Message 1 of 48
BrandonHarmon8165
7387 Views, 47 Replies

Opened files becoming read only in 2014

My team is using AutoCAD 2014 and multiple people have noticed that while they're working, when they try to save the file it pops up a message saying the file is read only.

 

Multiple people on our team has had this issue and it only started recently. (We've had it installed a few months now) Can someone tell us what is happening? Could it be the new file tabs feature in 2014?

 

Any help would be appreciated.

 

Thanks,

47 REPLIES 47
Message 2 of 48
pendean
in reply to: BrandonHarmon8165

This seems to be a known issue with 2014 for some folks but it usually starts from the beginning: if the problem just started after not occuring for a long time could it be something file server based has changed for you all? Or a network change/upgrade perhaps?
Message 3 of 48
BrandonHarmon8165
in reply to: pendean

Spoiler
 

Since this is a known issue, has their been a solution to fix this?

 

I thought about our network/server at our company and have an email to them to see if they've done anything in the last week or so...

 

Thanks,

Message 4 of 48
pendean
in reply to: BrandonHarmon8165

If there was you would have found it or I would have linked you to it: it's a more common known issue for a few users in 2014, it's not universal or exclusive to 2014 (I had it occasionally in 2011/2012 but not in 2013 or 2014 for example). AFAIK there is no fix for random occurances by a few, but perhaps Autodesk has an idea or two and will publish a fix when it is ready.

Back to a better way to fix it: if it is a recent occurance, something 'else' changed with youtr setup or network or perhaps a recent failure on a switch or hub you all are connected to the server with (or a change in group policies on the server etc.). Like I said, those that report it state that it has always happened to them in 2014.

Message 5 of 48

We have this problem intermittently in our office with 2011 and 2013. It started when some of the CAD computers got upgraded to Windows 7 64 bit. Before when everyone had XP 32 bit we never had the issue.

Message 6 of 48


@BrandonHarmon8165 wrote:

....multiple people have noticed that while they're working, when they try to save the file it pops up a message saying the file is read only............it only started recently. 


Assuming you're saving files to a network server, it really sounds like a network/server issue. Has anything on that side changed recently? New switches, new file server(s), anything? AutoCAD is v_e_r_y particular about file storage.

R.K. McSwain     | CADpanacea | on twitter
Message 7 of 48

We are having the same issue, which started only after upgrading everyone to AutoCAD 2014. it's only happening to a small group of people, all of whom are working on the same files, although for us it happens immediately when the files are opened. I suspect it started with one person's installation causing some kind of corruption in drawings, which then affects other users working on the same drawings. NOTHING has changed on our network infrastructure that would cause this, unless we have a few bad ports on one of the switches. This seems highly unlikely to me as there are no other indicators of this type of problem, and believe me I've looked for it. Nearly every search result related to files opening as "read-only" talks about "network timing", so I checked this out early on.

 

What's strange and frustrating about the problem is that even those drawings that exhibit this behavior (pretty) consistently on certain machines don't do it on all of them.

 

Sorry, don't mean to hijack the thread. I just want to point out that I'm having a very similar problem, and I've explored the possibilities about "network timing" issues and the like, and I'm convinced that is not the cause.

Message 8 of 48
LogicNetworks
in reply to: walkermacy

walkermacey I too am dealing with this issue.

I work for an IT support company, one of our clients is reporting this issue with their AutoDESK 2014 software.
From the network side of this issue, we cannot pinpoint or find any cause why this is now occuring, nothing has been changed within the network infrastructure.

Initially, I spent a lot of time searhcing via google and what support documentation I could find here. That led me down the path of investigating the permissions on the directory the end user was attempting to save into - nothing related to this issue and the permissions were all correct anyway. It also becomes extremely diffuclt to get a direct answer from a support member of AutoDESK if you are not the direct end user the software is registered to - suggestion it would be reaaaaaaaly great to be able to email in a support request rather than having to ensure the product is registered or the subscription is valid.. the license information I can provide verifies this. (maybe im missing it, but is there somewhere I as an IT professional not an end point software owner can contact the support teams directly?)


I've come across a lot of "it must be a network issue" hot potato answers which simply deflect the issue from the product - in this situation, the product is the problem not the network. Perhaps some specifics from the support team could assist us as network support and helpdesk staff identify what exactly could be causing this "network timing" issue.

I've attached a copy of the error appearing for my client, some details have been blanked due to client details in the file path.

So, some quick dot point to confirm what I've attempted:
-Checked the folder permissions for the directory, confirmed staff have the full ownership of the directory in question
-Tried deleting the temp files as per support documentation suggest, no resolution
-Attempted saving to a local folder (on the users work station, no issue and this is where it lead me into the "must be a network problem" saga)
-Then confirmed the software is exempt from all security and application controls (AV software etc..) still no change.
-Attempted turning off the "create backup copy with each save" option, no change.
-Performed a full AutoDESK reinstall and SP1 update, no change.

Any further suggestions would be fantastic.

Our forum account is registered as Logic Networks, my name is Dan.


 

Message 9 of 48
rkmcswain
in reply to: LogicNetworks


@LogicNetworks wrote:

 

I've come across a lot of "it must be a network issue" hot potato answers which simply deflect the issue from the product - in this situation, the product is the problem not the network. Perhaps some specifics from the support team could assist us as network support and helpdesk staff identify what exactly could be causing this "network timing" issue.

Any further suggestions would be fantastic.


Please read this so that you understand what happens when a drawing is saved in AutoCAD.

 

Once you understand that, you'll see that AutoCAD is doing its job of saving the drawing (to a .TMP file) and the O/S cannot finish the job due to the original .DWG stored on disk being locked.


I have seen this error on multiple occasions, and so far it has *always* been a network issue. Whether it was a flaky switch, bad network cable, or in our latest case - we were accessing DWG files on a SAN/NAS virtual server and found out very quickly this is a no-no (among other problems with this server set-up)

 

FYI: We didn't get much help out of Autodesk support once they learned we were not using a pure Windows O/S server, but once we moved those DWG files back to our other server, the problem vanished. In the other one-off cases I mentioned, it was something local such as a switch or cable, etc.

 

 

R.K. McSwain     | CADpanacea | on twitter
Message 10 of 48
rkmcswain
in reply to: LogicNetworks


@LogicNetworks wrote:

It also becomes extremely diffuclt to get a direct answer from a support member of AutoDESK if you are not the direct end user the software is registered to - suggestion it would be reaaaaaaaly great to be able to email in a support request rather than having to ensure the product is registered or the subscription is valid.. the license information I can provide verifies this. (maybe im missing it, but is there somewhere I as an IT professional not an end point software owner can contact the support teams directly?)

 


Get a hold of the end users VAR (autodesk reseller). They should be able to intervene and make some "back door" contact with someone on the Autodesk team. I can point you to a couple of names via PM if you want to try that.

R.K. McSwain     | CADpanacea | on twitter
Message 11 of 48
walkermacy
in reply to: rkmcswain

I found a solution, and it's NOT a network issue. It's a corrupted Windows user profile. I completely deleted and recreated the Windows profile for both users having the issue and...no more problem (for now). I stil contend it's caused by AutoCAD 2014, as I have never seen this problem before we upgraded the whole office, and we have used every version from 2008 onward, 20 people using it every single day. These people have NO problems with anything else on their computers, and everything we do runs through the network, including our phones.

 

If it was a network issue or server issue, many more people in my office would be having the problem, considering everyone runs through the same equipment to the same server. It's not like I didn't test to try and isolate the problem to a network issue, considering that the few hits I can find on AutoCAD drawings switching to read-only all indicate some kind of "network timing" problem. I don't doubt that what you've seen in the past was network issues, but that does not mean that every instance in the future is also going to be a network issue.

Message 12 of 48
rkmcswain
in reply to: walkermacy


@walkermacy wrote:

I found a solution, and it's NOT a network issue. 


Well, I know that AutoCAD is very particular about saving DWG files, and any kind of file i/o inturruption or glitch, can cause problems. The brute force approach of starting over with a new windows profile almost always works for a variety of problems (not just saving), and isn't a bad idea when the issue can't be identified quickly.

 

I wonder though, if this is a core AutoCAD bug/issue/etc., why does it goes away with a new windows profile?

 

Also, I may have missed it, but did you happen to try this first?
http://upandready.typepad.com/up_and_ready/2012/07/the-easiest-way-to-reset-autocad.html

R.K. McSwain     | CADpanacea | on twitter
Message 13 of 48
walkermacy
in reply to: rkmcswain

Well, the fix didn't last long. The problem came right back for both users. When I first tested after the new profile was set up, dwg's opened fine, but within an hour it started up again. I'm at my wit's end. I've tried everything I can think of and nothing fixes it. The only connection between users/workstations is that they are working on the same files.

 

I did not try the "reset" for AutoCAD. I suppose it would be easier than a full profile recreation.

Message 14 of 48
rkmcswain
in reply to: walkermacy


@walkermacy wrote:

 

I did not try the "reset" for AutoCAD. I suppose it would be easier than a full profile recreation.


I mentioned that because it's somewhat of a "subset" of starting with a whole new windows profile.

If that fixed the problem (even temporarily), then you would pretty much know it's isolated there.

 

Try this too:

* Close AutoCAD

* Go to %appdata%\Autodesk\<product>\<lang>\Support\Profiles\<profile_name> and look for a file named "Profile.aws". 

* Rename this file to something like "Profile.aws.old"

* Restart AutoCAD.

* Any difference?

R.K. McSwain     | CADpanacea | on twitter
Message 15 of 48
pendean
in reply to: walkermacy

What is unique about this small group of people with this unique problem in your office?
Message 16 of 48
walkermacy
in reply to: pendean

The only thing that sets them apart is the project files they are working on, and I believe they are the only ones working with those drawings. However, here's the awesome part: I open those drawings on my computer, which has AutoCAD 2014, and I never get read-only; I've opened them on several other machines and never get read-only; and one of the two people can open them totally fine on one computer he uses, but not another one (he mans the front desk part time and works from that machine).

 

Now it has spread to another person, but I'm not certain what files he's working on. I believe it's a different project but I forgot to ask him about it today.

 

what I discovered today is that it usually only seems to happen when opening drawings from Windows Explorer. If they are opened from within AutoCAD or from the Start menu "jump list", they won't do it (usually). I just tested several drawings on the worst of the machines with this problem and didn't get a read-only until I opened from Windows Explorer. Maybe the problem is the AutoCAD Launcher?

Message 17 of 48
Subje
in reply to: walkermacy

almost the same problem, i can only open the file in read only while no one is using this drawing. Could there be a link with the 360 feature? only that drawing has been opened in the autcad drawing browser.

 

A few day's ago we got all 2014 installed on our PC. 

 

it's strange when i open the "read only" it showing a not saved version from yesterday. so i needed to open a BAK file out of my autosaves to have the last changes.

__________________________________________________________________________________
There isn't anything you can't to do if you keep believing.

Met vriendelijk groeten, With best regards,
Sincères salutations,

Dieter Bevernage
Message 18 of 48
walkermacy
in reply to: Subje

I have removed Autodesk 360 from all our workstations, as we don't use it and it doesn't need to be running in the background. Also, SP1 for 2014 doesn't seem to solve the problem either (if it is an Autocad issue).

 

The newest "victim" says he's working on different projects, so that seems to rule out some kind of drawing corruption. He did mention that AutoCAD treats the whole drive as being locked, so he can't save or overwrite PDFs out of CAD either.

 

I have been trying to rule out network issues, which is tough because we have a number of switches and trying to isolate to just one is not a simple task.

Message 19 of 48
kadmonkee8
in reply to: walkermacy

We have been experiencing something similar and it was attributed to Network activity

but after further review we discovered that users who have the preview pane open in windows explorer were getting the read only issue.

They were unable to save the file live and had to save as (new name).

This is more towards ADOBE than Autodesk but worth a test anyway.

I have not been able to recreate the issue consistently enough to provide a solid solution.

Our network issues are also still pending.

if you find it is specific drawing files then look at wblock out the file into a new template file and see if it is file specific.

 

Message 20 of 48
walkermacy
in reply to: walkermacy

I encountered this issue with PDFs a good while back, after we migrated everyone to Windows 7, and once everyone knew about it, it ceased to be something that was complained about. I did suspect this to be the cause of the drawing read-only issue, but I tested it yesterday, and turning off preview doesn't make any difference.

 

After power cycling all the switches in our phone system (we have IP phones, and all the workstations run through the phones & their associated switches to get to anything else on the network), the person who was having this problem first and worst said yesterday that it stopped. I have not yet confirmed with the other two whether it's continuing to happen.

 

I'll retract my earlier assertion that it's "not a network issue". it's looking more and more like it is, even if it's a strange one that's limited in its effect.

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