Non Autodesk DWG. This DWG file was saved by a software application that not developed or licensed

Doug Wright

I figured that I could used BricsCAD ver 13, until I was done with a project, then save all the drawings using Autocad LT 2012 to get rid of the warning below, but it remains even after I save the drawings using AutoCad.

Where is this warning stored and how can I get rid of it before sending drawings to a customer?

BricsCad works perfectly for me but a certain customer will get back to us if there are any warnings.

"Non Autodesk DWG.  This DWG file was saved by a software application that was
not developed or licensed by Autodesk.  Autodesk cannot guarantee the
application compatibility or integrity of this file."

Thanks for any help

Jason Bourhill

Hi Doug,

Short answer is that there is nothing much you can do to "fix" this from your side. It is something you need to educate the AutoCAD recipient on.

My understanding is that around R14 of AutoCAD, AutoDESK introduced a header object into the DWG file to identify it as a "RealDWG". They copyrighted this object, which prevents anyone else from using it (I believe there was a lawsuit against the ODA to do with this). AutoDESK use this to identify whether the drawing has been produced by an AutoDESK product, and from this whether it is a "Trusted Drawing" or not. If it isn't it will notify the user to the fact. More background on this can be found here:
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/.dwg

In AutoCAD there is a variable called DWGCHECK that can be set to control what messaging is displayed when opening a non AutoDESK .dwg. If your recipient is seeing these messages, you would need to explain what the message means, and how they can control it. Some info on it can be found here:

http://autodesk.blogs.com/between_the_lines/2005/06/how_to_tell_if_.html
http://www.cadalyst.com/cad/autocad/bug-watch-opening-trusted-drawings-3430

You will see from the second article that it also drove AutoCAD users crazy when introduced. If you have AutoCAD circa 2007 you will get much more obtrusive messaging and alerts. In later versions they seem to have toned it down, so you can turn it completely off.

I see two choices in dealing with this:

1. Educate/Inform your client, and tell them how they can control the messaging from their end.
2. Down Convert your drawings to a version prior to R14 (can use _ETRANSMIT). However this may result in loss of drawing fidelity.
   

Of course you could also try and convince your client to by BricsCAD :-)

Regards,

Jason Bourhill

CAD Concepts

Doug Wright

Jason,

Thanks for the response. It appears that setting DWGCHECK to 0 results in only this at the command line when opening the drawing with Autocad LT 2012:

Regenerating layout.
Regenerating model.

Command:
...........................

DWGCHECK set to 1 through 7 results in

Regenerating layout.
Regenerating model.
*Cancel*

Command:

Non Autodesk DWG.  This DWG file was saved by a software application that was
not developed or licensed by Autodesk.  Autodesk cannot guarantee the
application compatibility or integrity of this file.
..........................

I don't think that educating the customer in this particular case is going to work here, but setting the variable to 0 seems to give the right result. Unfortunately that would mean running a script on all the drawings to save.

I will look into it some more.

Thanks,

Doug

Rakesh Rao

Hi Jason, Doug,

There is a solution we have adopted in India. Simply do a WBLOCK in AutoCAD and use the option "Save Entire dwg". This will force a complete rewrite (or save) of the DWG and result in a DWG with a native Autodesk header. There is no loss of data. The only drawback is that you cannot overwrite your current DWG, unlike the SAVE command. So, you will have to WBLOCK it into another name, close the current DWG and then rename the other wblocked DWG back to the original name.

You can deal with it using some Lisp, BAT etc.

Hope this helps.

Regards
Rakesh Rao
http://rakeshrao.typepad.com

 

Roy Klein Gebbinck

@ Doug:
Setting the DWGCHECK variable will only suppress messages at your end. You would still have to advise the recipient to do the same.

This other solution was posted on the Meeting Point:
Heinz Kempter Oct 12, 2012 9:32 AM
BauCaD*K+R* .. nur ein Hinweis zum Datenaustauch .. man kann die AutoCAD-Meldung: 'Keine Autodesk-DWG-Datei. ..' unterdrücken, indem die betroffene Zeichnung unter Bricscad als 'Vorlage' (*.dwt) speichert!

Translation:
.. a tip regarding data exchange .. the AutoCAD warning: 'Non Autodesk DWG. ..' can be suppressed by saving the drawing as a template (*.dwt) in BricsCAD.

I only use BricsCAD so I do not know if this actually works.

Torsten Moses

Another safe way to get rid of that warning - open and save the dwg file with "TrueDwg Viewer",
a freeware application by Autodesk ... you can download and install from Autodesk web sites. :-)

Doug Wright

Thanks to all for your suggestions. I will try them all and see what works for me and report back here.

Is this still an issue with Autocad 2013?

Thanks,

Doug

Doug Wright

So far the only method that works for me, is to

1. Copy all the Model space entities to the clipboard, Paste into model space in new drawing.

2. Copy  all Paper Space entities to the clipboard, Paste into Paper space in same new drawing.

3. Ditch old drawing

4. Rename new drawing with old drawing name.

I will keep looking.

Jason Bourhill

Doug,

I thought the number of different methods proposed was interesting, so using a BricsCAD generated drawing I undertook some tests. I generated check drawings using the following methods:

• DWG TrueView. Use DWGCONVERT to generate "TrustedDWG" .dwg
  
• BricsCAD. Leave drawing unchanged.
• BricsCAD. SAVEAS R13 (pre AutoDESK copyright header).
  
• BricsCAD. SAVEAS .DWT (Template)
• BricsCAD. WBLOCK
• BricsCAD. eTRANSMIT
  

Each generated drawing was then opened in DWG TrueView 2010, and the opening message recorded.

Of the above, 3 passed the DWGCHECK process (See results attached). From a practical point of view it would seem that using DWG TrueVIEW, as suggested by Torsten is the most efficient way to generate a "TrustedDWG" if it is required by the client. The ability to batch process means that you can easily process all your drawings as a separate task at the end of a project.

Note:

• all of the methods pass in AutoCAD 2012 if you set DWGCHECK to 0. This removes all DWGCHECK messaging, only prompts if a "real" issue is found. However earlier versions of AutoCAD may react differently.
• Applications like DWG TrueVIEW do not provide the option to change DWGCHECK, so you cannot turn this message off. Assume that this may also be the case for other applications based on AutoDESKs "RealDWG" engine.
  

Hope this is of help.

Regards,

Jason Bourhill

CAD Concepts

BricsCAD DWGCHECK Workarounds.pdf

BricsCAD DWGCHECK Workarounds.png

Doug Wright

Jason,

Thanks for your efforts in this. I downloaded the PDF and will try the Trueview DWGCONVERT method today.

Regards,

Doug

Doug Wright

Jason,

Thanks for your efforts in this. I downloaded the PDF and will try the Trueview DWGCONVERT method today.

Regards,

Doug

Doug Wright

I tried the TrueView DWGCONVERT method today and it works perfectly

Thanks