Platform Support

Pro/ENGINEER and CADDS 5 Hardware/Platform Support Policy

Introduction

The hardware configuration information supplied by PTC is intended to help customers work with their hardware partners to establish suitable workstation configurations for running PTC software. The specific hardware configuration for a platform is heavily dependent on the size of models, the number of models in a working session, other applications running concurrently, the size of archive files created, and the trade-off between response time and cost.

In particular, main memory sizes greater than the minimum system requirements specified may be desirable for higher performance processors or for larger parts and assemblies. Swap space sizes greater than the minimum system requirements may be required for larger assemblies. These issues should be resolved between the customer and hardware partner.

Certified hardware

PTC certifies complete configurations (processor, graphics, operating system, etc.) provided by PTC's enterprise platform partners. A certified configuration is one that PTC has thoroughly tested, specifically for the current release.

Supported hardware

To provide our customers with the benefits available in the latest technology, PTC continually enhances and improves our software. A supported configuration is one that has been previously tested and certified for an earlier release. PTC expects that the current release will run without issue on this configuration, although it has not been specifically tested.

Technical Support

PTC encourages customers to run the latest release of PTC software on fully-certified configurations. However, PTC Technical Support will provide assistance to customers using hardware that is neither certified nor supported according to the above definitions. Technical Support will use certified hardware that is in-house and that is similar to the hardware being used at the customer site. The following guidelines will be followed when assisting customers:

Verify the customer's hardware using the most recent version of the PTC Platform Support Hardware Notes, for the version of PTC software being used.
If the hardware configuration is neither certified nor supported, inform the customer and continue to assist with the issue.
Try to replicate the customer's issue on a similar configuration with the same version of PTC software.
If the problem can be replicated on a certified configuration, file a Software Performance Report (SPR) and assist the customer with a viable solution.
If the issue is directly related to the uncertified hardware configuration, inform the customer that s/he should contact their hardware partner for assistance.

Graphics Drivers

If a listed graphics driver is no longer available from the manufacturer, PTC recommends you install the latest available driver for the graphics card. Where more than one driver is listed for a specific graphics card, PTC recommends you install the most recent driver.

Operating System Support

The operating system information in this document, together with any listed patches, are requirements, rather than guidelines. In most cases, PTC supports more than one operating system for a specific platform with each release. This support may or may not include the most recently released OS version from the hardware vendor.

PTC encourages customers to migrate to the most current PTC-supported OS version at their convenience to be able to take advantage of the most recent OS functionality supporting our products. As PTC adds support for subsequent versions of an OS, we will discontinue support of older OS versions with successive product releases.

Frequently, hardware partners issue operating system patches. PTC lists patches required for successful certification. If an issue is discovered after certification is complete, a patch may be issued to resolve the issue. Occasionally, hardware partners issue a new patch that supersedes an older patch PTC has certified. Customers should work with their hardware partner, typically through the partner's technical support organization, to obtain the original patches that PTC certified. Superseding patches may potentially introduce new issues that were not present during PTC certification testing. Customers should work with their hardware partner to report issues that may arise with these superceding patches.