Problem installing Inventor Interoperability for AutoCAD 2026

[Sergei_Komarov]

Hi, AutoCAD gurus! Some of my students are experiencing problems installing the Inventor Interoperability Extension in AutoCAD 2026.1.1 while learning to use the VIEWBASE command. In some cases, when they run VIEWBASE for the first time, the installation starts automatically. However, in other cases, the MOVE command is triggered instead, prompting them to “select objects,” and the Inventor Interoperability installation does not start. In such situations, they attempt a custom AutoCAD installation and manually select the Inventor Interoperability Extension. Sometimes this works, and a “New Package” shortcut appears on the desktop. When launched as an administrator, the installation completes successfully. In other cases, however, the installer does not start or displays the message “another installation is in progress.” As a workaround, we restart the computer, locate the installation subfolder (…\Autodesk\…\WI), and run a file such as Inventor2026.exe as an administrator. This usually works. The issue occurs on both Windows 10 and Windows 11, but only with AutoCAD 2026. Version 2025 works correctly, and earlier builds of 2026 also worked without issues. 

Could you please advise on how to resolve this problem w/o such a headache?

[deepti_bhardwaj · Accepted solution]

Hello @Sergei_Komarov 

Thank you for reporting this issue.

Based on similar cases we have reviewed, this behavior is most commonly caused by an incomplete installation package or deployment, where required dependent components are missing. For AutoCAD 2026, Inventor Interoperability 2026 is a required component for certain 3D and interoperability features, and if it is not available locally during installation, the setup may fail or roll back (often with Install Error 5).

Recommended solution:

1. Verify installation logs

   • Check the installer logs under:
     %localappdata%\Autodesk\ODIS
   • In affected cases, the logs explicitly indicate that Inventor Interoperability 2026 (and sometimes RealDWG 2026) is not present or cannot be located.

2. Install Inventor Interoperability 2026 manually

   • Download and install the standalone Inventor Interoperability 2026 installer.
   • This component is not always included automatically, especially when using custom deployments or partial installations.
   • After manual installation, relaunch AutoCAD 2026 and retry the workflow. Multiple users have confirmed this resolves the issue. Confirm RealDWG 2026 is installed
   • In several cases, AutoCAD installation packages were missing RealDWG 2026, which is also required for interoperability.
   • Installing both components manually resolved the installation failure. [dessein-tech.com], [cadgeneration.com]

3. If using a deployment

   • Review the deployment configuration and ensure Inventor Interoperability 2026 and RealDWG 2026 are explicitly included.
   • Recreate the deployment if necessary, as incomplete deployments are a known cause.
   • Run installers with elevated privileges
   • Use the full installer (not the web installer).
   • Place installation media locally (for example, C:\Autodesk) and Run as Administrator during installation, which has helped avoid rollback failures in similar scenarios. 

Once these components are installed and available locally, AutoCAD 2026 should no longer attempt (and fail) to install Inventor Interoperability on demand.

If the issue persists after confirming the above, we recommend opening a support case and attaching the ODIS logs so the installation can be reviewed in more detail.

Kind regards,
Autodesk Support

[pkomatlapalli]

Hello @Sergei_Komarov ,

Did the information provided by @deepti_bhardwaj  help you and answer your question?

If yes, please click on the "Accept Solution" button. This will assist other community users in finding and benefiting from this information.

If not, please do not hesitate to give an update in this thread so all community members receive an update on the progression of your question, and can suggest next steps that may be helpful for you to achieve what you're looking for.

All the best,

Pavan Kumar | Community Manager

[Sergei_Komarov · Accepted solution]

I did notice a pattern: if AutoCAD 2026 was installed several months ago, the Inventor Interoperability installation is automatically prompted the first time VIEWBASE is used. If the user agrees, it installs successfully. However, on freshly installed versions of AutoCAD 2026 and 2027, the behavior is erratic. I suspect there might be a bug in the latest installation packages.

Fortunately, I've found a workflow that consistently works. Assuming AutoCAD is already installed with the default settings:

1. Select the custom installation for the appropriate AutoCAD version from the Autodesk Educational site.

2. Under Extensions, select Inventor Interoperability.

3. Download and run the installer file.

4. Check if a shortcut named New Package appears on the Desktop. Do not run it! (It sometimes fails.)

5. Restart the computer. Otherwise you can get a message "Another installation is in progress" while following the next steps.

6. Navigate to the C:\Autodesk\WI folder.

7. Sort the subfolders inside it by date.

8. Open the subfolder with the most recent creation date/time. Its name contains 20 random digits.

9. Right-click and run the INVINTEROP_202X.exe file inside as an administrator.

For me, that always worked.