Is the SOLIDWORKS PDM Convert Task crashing Windows Explorer?

Is the SOLIDWORKS PDM Convert Task crashing Windows Explorer? Did you recently perform an upgrade on a SOLIDWORKS PDM client? See below for a possible explanation:

In SOLIDWORKS PDM 2017, when client machines were upgraded to a newer PDM version, it was still possible to run the SOLIDWORKS PDM Convert task but the new features would not be available. In SOLIDWORKS PDM 2018 however, using the incorrect version of the SWTaskAddIn with the incorrect client version can cause explorer to crash. To Avoid crashing, ensure the following:

• SOLIDWORKS PDM 2018 SP4 is using SWTaskAddIn 2018 SP4
• SOLIDWORKS PDM 2018 SP0-SP3 is using SWTaskAddIn 2018 SP0-SP3

To check the SOLIDWORKS Task Add-in, right click and open the SWTaskAddIn:

Open the SOLIDWORKS Task Add-in

The SOLIDWORKS Task Add-in version will be listed as shown:

SOLIDWORKS Task Add-in version

If the versions do not match, the SWTaskAddIn will need to be updated:

Browse to C:\Program Files\SOLIDWORKS Corp\SOLIDWORKS PDM\Default Data on the client machine and open the “Convert_gb.cex” task

Drag-and-drop “SWtaskAddin” into the vault and select Yes to update the existing add-in:

SOLIDWORKS Task Add-in conversion

Check the version of the SWTaskAddIn again and if it matches the PDM version, the crashing issue should now be resolved.

Note: Keep in mind that updating the SWTaskAddIn will update it for all clients. As such it is important to ensure all clients are running the same version otherwise this will cause the same problem to other clients.