DriveWorksXpress
Free Entry-Level Design Automation Tool for SOLIDWORKS
DriveWorksXpress provides entry-level design automation with every license of SOLIDWORKS
DriveWorksXpress is the easy to use, rules-based design automation tool for SOLIDWORKS engineers. DriveWorksXpress provides entry-level design automation inside world-leading, 3D CAD design software, SOLIDWORKS. DriveWorksXpress is ideal for everyday repetitive design tasks. Use it to create multiple variations of parts, assemblies, and drawings quickly and accurately. Save time, reduce repetitive tasks and minimize costly errors.
DriveWorksXpress is a free, easy to use design automation tool that allows you to quickly and accurately create multiple variations of your SOLIDWORKS parts, assemblies, and drawings. If you offer many different product options or every customer order is bespoke, DriveWorksXpress can help you capture your design rules, recreate variations of existing designs, reduce repetitive tasks, save time, and improve product quality.
Looking for help implementing DriveWorks into your SOLIDWORKS environment?
With experience in DriveWorks implementation, support, training, and project management, InFlow Technology will help you get the best return on your automation investment.
Learn more about DriveWorks Services
Why choose DriveWorksXpress?
- DriveWorksXpress is included in every license of SOLIDWORKS.
- Create multiple variations of parts, assemblies, and drawings quickly and accurately.
- Reduce repetitive tasks.
- Online tutorials.
- FREE downloadable content to get you started.
Key Benefits:
- Capture and re-use your design knowledge
- Incorporate design rules to minimize errors and the cost of manual mistakes
- Automate repetitive tasks to reduce design time when specifying new variants
- Liberate design engineers from repetitive tasks to concentrate on new and special designs
Activate to Automate
DriveWorksXpress is already installed inside SOLIDWORKS, all you need to do is activate it to start automating.
How to Activate DriveWorksXpress
- Step 1: Open SOLIDWORKS
- Step 2: Go to Tools, Xpress Products, DriveWorksXpress
- Step 3: Click on the link for My.SolidWorks.com/xpress to get your free activation code for DriveWorksXpress.
- Step 4: Copy the DriveWorksXpress activation code.
- Step 5: Go back to SOLIDWORKS, paste the activation code into the product code box and press OK.
- Step 6: Start automating!
DriveWorks Comparison Overview
Whether you are an engineer looking for a design automation solution or a company wanting to provide CPQ product configurators and guided selling for your own teams, distributors, dealers, and even customers, DriveWorks software is modular and scalable so you can set up and use the products to your advantage and at your own pace.
Supported Operating Systems and Browsers
| DriveWorksXpress | DriveWorks Solo | DriveWorks Pro | |
| Windows 7 (SP1), Windows 8.1, Windows 10 (DriveWorks Desktop Applications) | |||
| All of the above plus Windows Server (2008 R2, 2012, 2012 R2, 2016) (DriveWorks Live Web application) | |||
| Google Chrome 8+, Mozilla Firefox 4+, Microsoft Edge 12+, Microsoft IE 11+, Safari 5.1+ (Configuring products in a Browser through DriveWorks Live) |
- DriveWorks Pro is made up of a number of Software Modules – Please check the DriveWorks Pro Data Sheet for specific functionality of each to meet your needs.
- Preview Generation (On Demand) is available for DriveWorks Solo and Pro modules that run as an add-in to SOLIDWORKS and is not available in DriveWorks Pro Live.
- The modules DriveWorks Pro user and DriveWorks Pro Live provide access for Users to enter data.
- DriveWorks Pro Live provides seamless conversion of DriveWorks projects for web access.
- DriveWorks Pro Autopilot is required for some features.
- Multiple DriveWorks Pro Autopilots are required for some features.
- DriveWorks Pro User is required for some features.
CAD – Controlling SOLIDWORKS 3D Models and 2D Drawings
| DriveWorksXpress | DriveWorks Solo | DriveWorks Pro | |
| Drive Dimensions, Features and Custom Properties | |||
| Drive Color, Material and Textures | |||
| Drive Advanced Feature Properties (Hole Wizards, Sheet Metal, Weldments) | |||
| Drive Advanced Feature Properties | |||
| Drive Instances | |||
| Replace Components (with existing files or dynamically driven files) | |||
| Create additional model file formats (drive3D, STEP, STL, PDF, DXF, JPEG, etc.) | |||
| Full control over new model file names and locations | |||
| Control multiple model sets from a single project | |||
| Run SOLIDWORKS Model Macros | |||
| Generative design – create new features on the fly (configurations, insert components, mates, etc.) | |||
| Create a drawing for each part and assembly | |||
| Create multiple drawings for each part and assembly | |||
| Full control over new drawing file names and locations | |||
| Create additional drawing file formats (PDF, DXF, DWG, JPEG, etc.) | |||
| Control Drawing Sheets (Re-scale, Rename, Delete) | |||
| Control Drawing Views (Re-scale, Re-position, Delete) | |||
| Control Annotations (Dimension Text, Notes, Symbols, etc.) | |||
| Control Dimension positions | |||
| Control Custom Properties, Break Lines and Layers | |||
| Run SOLIDWORKS Drawing Macros | |||
| Run additional tasks on the fly (Auto Balloon, Arrange Dimensions, Rescale and Position Views, etc.) |
- DriveWorks Pro is made up of a number of Software Modules – Please check the DriveWorks Pro Data Sheet for specific functionality of each to meet your needs.
- Preview Generation (On Demand) is available for DriveWorks Solo and Pro modules that run as an add-in to SOLIDWORKS and is not available in DriveWorks Pro Live.
- The modules DriveWorks Pro user and DriveWorks Pro Live provide access for Users to enter data.
- DriveWorks Pro Live provides seamless conversion of DriveWorks projects for web access.
- DriveWorks Pro Autopilot is required for some features.
- Multiple DriveWorks Pro Autopilots are required for some features.
- DriveWorks Pro User is required for some features.
Document Creation
| DriveWorksXpress | DriveWorks Solo | DriveWorks Pro | |
| Create documents (such as Sales Quotes, Purchase Orders, Bills of Materials, etc.) | |||
| Built in document templates | |||
| Fully customizable document creation (from Word, Excel, XML, etc.) | |||
| Send HTML emails with attachments | |||
| Create Additional File Formats (PDF, HTML, TXT, XML, etc.) |
- DriveWorks Pro is made up of a number of Software Modules – Please check the DriveWorks Pro Data Sheet for specific functionality of each to meet your needs.
- Preview Generation (On Demand) is available for DriveWorks Solo and Pro modules that run as an add-in to SOLIDWORKS and is not available in DriveWorks Pro Live.
- The modules DriveWorks Pro user and DriveWorks Pro Live provide access for Users to enter data.
- DriveWorks Pro Live provides seamless conversion of DriveWorks projects for web access.
- DriveWorks Pro Autopilot is required for some features.
- Multiple DriveWorks Pro Autopilots are required for some features.
- DriveWorks Pro User is required for some features.
Output Generation
| DriveWorksXpress | DriveWorks Solo | DriveWorks Pro | |
| Immediate generation of SOLIDWORKS models and drawings | |||
| Real Time Preview (On Demand) – updates model while specifying | |||
| Manual release of generation queue – allows multiple specifications to have their models generated from a queue | |||
| Automatic generation – unattended generation of outputs | |||
| Load balancing – distributes output generation over multiple machines | |||
| Priority processing – Change the order that outputs are created based on rules | |||
| Output Tagging – Generate outputs on targeted machines or in specific locations |
- DriveWorks Pro is made up of a number of Software Modules – Please check the DriveWorks Pro Data Sheet for specific functionality of each to meet your needs.
- Preview Generation (On Demand) is available for DriveWorks Solo and Pro modules that run as an add-in to SOLIDWORKS and is not available in DriveWorks Pro Live.
- The modules DriveWorks Pro user and DriveWorks Pro Live provide access for Users to enter data.
- DriveWorks Pro Live provides seamless conversion of DriveWorks projects for web access.
- DriveWorks Pro Autopilot is required for some features.
- Multiple DriveWorks Pro Autopilots are required for some features.
- DriveWorks Pro User is required for some features.
User Interface Design
| DriveWorksXpress | DriveWorks Solo | DriveWorks Pro | |
| Automatic Form designer | |||
| Expert Form Designer (Resolution and Control Guides, Control Grouping, Control Property Grid, etc.) | |||
| Multiple form creation with dynamic navigation | |||
| Basic Form Controls (Text Box, Numeric Text Box, Drop Down, Spin Button, Check Box) | |||
| Enhanced Form Controls (Hyperlink, Label, List Box, Option Group, Picture Box, Slider) | |||
| Advanced Form Controls (3D Preview, Child Specification List, Data Table, Date Picker, Frame Control, Macro Button, Upload Control, etc.) | |||
| Dynamic options for list controls | |||
| Dynamic control of Enable and Visible properties of form controls | |||
| Dynamic control over fonts and colors | |||
| Static validation and validation messages | |||
| Dynamic validation and validation messages | |||
| Copy and paste form controls | |||
| Re-skin controls | |||
| Support for responsive forms (allows re-positioning of controls when used on screens of different sizes) | |||
| Project hierarchy (run a specification inside a specification to any level (For example a contract with multiple configurable line items) |
- DriveWorks Pro is made up of a number of Software Modules – Please check the DriveWorks Pro Data Sheet for specific functionality of each to meet your needs.
- Preview Generation (On Demand) is available for DriveWorks Solo and Pro modules that run as an add-in to SOLIDWORKS and is not available in DriveWorks Pro Live.
- The modules DriveWorks Pro user and DriveWorks Pro Live provide access for Users to enter data.
- DriveWorks Pro Live provides seamless conversion of DriveWorks projects for web access.
- DriveWorks Pro Autopilot is required for some features.
- Multiple DriveWorks Pro Autopilots are required for some features.
- DriveWorks Pro User is required for some features.
Working with Data and Rules
| DriveWorksXpress | DriveWorks Solo | DriveWorks Pro | |
| Use tabular data to calculate rules | |||
| Copy and paste Excel data | |||
| Create internal data tables | |||
| Use dynamic data from ODBC Data sources in rules (SAP, Oracle, MySQL, SQLServer, etc.) | |||
| Export data to ODBC data sources (for example SAP, Oracle, MySQL, SQLServer) | |||
| Pull and Push data dynamically to and from SQL Server Databases using SQL or Windows authentication | |||
| Create Group Level Tabular data for use across an entire implementation | |||
| Create Calculation tables where each cell can be calculated from other cells | |||
| Create Rollup data tables – where information such a price or BOM Quantities is rolled up through the project hierarchy | |||
| Web Service integration – communicate with any web service OR use DriveWorks as a web service | |||
| Over 240 engineering, mathematic and scientific functions | |||
| Rules builder with function wizard and rule insight (rule breakdown and drill down, function assistance, syntax highlighting and function helper text) | |||
| Reusable rules (Variables) | |||
| Pervasive search/filtering capabilities |
- DriveWorks Pro is made up of a number of Software Modules – Please check the DriveWorks Pro Data Sheet for specific functionality of each to meet your needs.
- Preview Generation (On Demand) is available for DriveWorks Solo and Pro modules that run as an add-in to SOLIDWORKS and is not available in DriveWorks Pro Live.
- The modules DriveWorks Pro user and DriveWorks Pro Live provide access for Users to enter data.
- DriveWorks Pro Live provides seamless conversion of DriveWorks projects for web access.
- DriveWorks Pro Autopilot is required for some features.
- Multiple DriveWorks Pro Autopilots are required for some features.
- DriveWorks Pro User is required for some features.
Maintainability, Reporting and Diagnostics
| DriveWorksXpress | DriveWorks Solo | DriveWorks Pro | |
| Rules commentary | |||
| Rules revisioning | |||
| Reporting on model generation success or failure | |||
| Reporting on specification process success or failure | |||
| Real time testing during form design | |||
| Rules analysis and breakdown | |||
| What-if scenarios (Specification Test Mode) | |||
| Interactive step through of model generation | |||
| Rule Profiling (rule specific error debugging, performance solving and insight features) |
- DriveWorks Pro is made up of a number of Software Modules – Please check the DriveWorks Pro Data Sheet for specific functionality of each to meet your needs.
- Preview Generation (On Demand) is available for DriveWorks Solo and Pro modules that run as an add-in to SOLIDWORKS and is not available in DriveWorks Pro Live.
- The modules DriveWorks Pro user and DriveWorks Pro Live provide access for Users to enter data.
- DriveWorks Pro Live provides seamless conversion of DriveWorks projects for web access.
- DriveWorks Pro Autopilot is required for some features.
- Multiple DriveWorks Pro Autopilots are required for some features.
- DriveWorks Pro User is required for some features.
Scale-ability
| DriveWorksXpress | DriveWorks Solo | DriveWorks Pro | |
| Import DriveWorksXpress Projects | |||
| Import DriveWorks Solo Projects | |||
| Underlying database – Microsoft SQL Server | |||
| Security – Users and Teams | |||
| Security – Active Directory compatibility | |||
| Granular permissions | |||
| Zero-Conversion web access | |||
| Unattended model generation | |||
| Standalone user seats | |||
| Fully customizable work flow – (who, what and when) | |||
| Automatic processing of external data | |||
| Fully documented API with Software Development Kit | |||
| Plugins |
- DriveWorks Pro is made up of a number of Software Modules – Please check the DriveWorks Pro Data Sheet for specific functionality of each to meet your needs.
- Preview Generation (On Demand) is available for DriveWorks Solo and Pro modules that run as an add-in to SOLIDWORKS and is not available in DriveWorks Pro Live.
- The modules DriveWorks Pro user and DriveWorks Pro Live provide access for Users to enter data.
- DriveWorks Pro Live provides seamless conversion of DriveWorks projects for web access.
- DriveWorks Pro Autopilot is required for some features.
- Multiple DriveWorks Pro Autopilots are required for some features.
- DriveWorks Pro User is required for some features.
Integration
| DriveWorksXpress | DriveWorks Solo | DriveWorks Pro | |
| SOLIDWORKS PDM Professional (Automatic check-in of models, drawings and documents) | |||
| Salesforce | |||
| 3rd party system Integration through file import and export | |||
| 3rd party system Integration through SQL ODBC connections | |||
| 3rd party system Integration through web services | |||
| 3rd party system Integration through fully documented Application programming Interface |
- DriveWorks Pro is made up of a number of Software Modules – Please check the DriveWorks Pro Data Sheet for specific functionality of each to meet your needs.
- Preview Generation (On Demand) is available for DriveWorks Solo and Pro modules that run as an add-in to SOLIDWORKS and is not available in DriveWorks Pro Live.
- The modules DriveWorks Pro user and DriveWorks Pro Live provide access for Users to enter data.
- DriveWorks Pro Live provides seamless conversion of DriveWorks projects for web access.
- DriveWorks Pro Autopilot is required for some features.
- Multiple DriveWorks Pro Autopilots are required for some features.
- DriveWorks Pro User is required for some features.
Online Configurator and DriveWorks 3D
| DriveWorksXpress | DriveWorks Solo | DriveWorks Pro | |
| Direct web access through the application | |||
| Run as a service through Internet Information Services (IIS) | |||
| Application Mode – replicate desktop running directly on the web | |||
| Web Theme with basic re-skinning | |||
| Choice of fully responsive skins | |||
| Session Management – control license usage over the Internet | |||
| Image gallery – display image files as they are created | |||
| Configurable 3D in a browser | |||
| Server side rendering of web optimized DriveWorks 3D files | |||
| Image fall back mode when no WebGL on client machine | |||
| Model click interaction | |||
| Transparent image support |
- DriveWorks Pro is made up of a number of Software Modules – Please check the DriveWorks Pro Data Sheet for specific functionality of each to meet your needs.
- Preview Generation (On Demand) is available for DriveWorks Solo and Pro modules that run as an add-in to SOLIDWORKS and is not available in DriveWorks Pro Live.
- The modules DriveWorks Pro user and DriveWorks Pro Live provide access for Users to enter data.
- DriveWorks Pro Live provides seamless conversion of DriveWorks projects for web access.
- DriveWorks Pro Autopilot is required for some features.
- Multiple DriveWorks Pro Autopilots are required for some features.
- DriveWorks Pro User is required for some features.
