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Pro/ENGINEER Wildfire 4.0 Interactive Tour

Pro/ENGINEER Wildfire Training FAQ

I need help in installing Pro/ENGINEER Wildfire 3.0 Student edition?
I have purchased the Pro/ENGINEER Wildfire Student Edition CD, how do I get started?
What Pro/ENGINEER capabilities are provided with the Pro/ENGINEER Student Edition?
What are the minimum system requirements for the Pro/ENGINEER Student Edition?
What languages are supported by Pro/ENGINEER Student Edition?
I am trying to install the Pro/ENGINEER Student Edition in a language other than English. What do I do?
I am having problems running the Pro/ENGINEER Student Edition. Are there any known problems or special installation procedures that I must follow?
I launch the Pro/ENGINEER Student Edition and get the splash screen, then it goes away but the program does not start. What do I do?
What are the differences between the Commercial version and the Training Edition of Pro/ENGINEER?
What kinds of help tools (online tutorials/printed manuals/general help) are provided with the Pro/ENGINEER Student Edition?
How is the Student Edition licensed?
Why does the error: "The page cannot be displayed" appear in my web browser after I select "Create a New License File" in PTC.Setup?
I have just created my PTC online account. Do I need to upgrade my account before requesting the license file?
Can additional modules/functionality be purchased to expand the Pro/ENGINEER Student Edition?
Are the Pro/ENGINEER Student Edition files compatible with Commercial Licenses of Pro/ENGINEER?
Does the Student Edition have an expiration date that disables its use after a period of time?
What does the error "error in plpfhost" refer to?
What does the error "could not detect network adapter" refer to?
How do I locate my computer's Host ID?
What does the message "Could not detect network adapter" mean?
Why does Pro/ENGINEER not find the load point at startup?
Why does my computer select a wrong network connection?
Why is the wrong Host ID displayed on Windows 2000/XP/Vista?
What happens when the offline license is embedded into the e-mail from PTC?

I need help in installing Pro/ENGINEER Wildfire 3.0 Student edition?
Please download the Install Guide for Pro/ENGINEER Wildfire 3.0 Student Edition:

Pro/ENGINEER Wildfire 3.0 Student Edition (pdf, 590K)
For additional support, please send an email to student@ptc.com

I have purchased the Pro/ENGINEER Wildfire Student Edition CD, how do I get started?
Once you have your Student Edition CD's, you must install and register the software before it can be used. This installation and registration process is initiated when you insert the Student Edition CD's into your machine and start PTC.Setup. PTC.Setup will guide you through this process. The first step of this process is registering for a PTC Online account and generating your license file.

For more detailed installation and registration instructions refer to the installation guide.

What Pro/ENGINEER capabilities are provided with the Pro/ENGINEER Student Edition?
The Pro/ENGINEER Student Edition includes the following Pro/ENGINEER Modules:

Pro/ENGINEER-Foundation Advantage*
Interactive Surface Design
Advanced Assembly
Behavioral Modeling
Design Animation
Mechanism Dynamics
Pro/ENGINEER MECHANICA (Structure & Thermal)
Advanced Rendering

Also included:

PTC's On-line Help
Installation Guide (PDF files on CD – English language only)

*Pro/ENGINEER Wildfire 3.0 Student Edition does not include the following modules that are part of the commercial Pro/ENGINEER Foundation-Advantage Package: Pro/Interface for CADDS, Pro/Interface for CATIA, or PDGS.

What are the minimum system requirements for the Pro/ENGINEER Student Edition?
Before installing Pro/ENGINEER Student Edition, your computer must meet the requirements in the next two tables.

Printable Version

Opertating System	Service Pack	Processor
Windows XP Professional and Home Edition, 32-bit	Base OS, Service Pack 1 and 2	INTEL Pentium/Xeon family
Windows 2000, 32-bit	Base OS, Service Pack 1,2,3 and 4	INTEL Pentium/Xeon family
Windows Vista	32-bit Base OS	INTEL Pentium/Xeon family

Minimum platform requirements follow. For computers upgraded from Windows 95/98/Me to Windows 2000/XP, delete the winbootdir variable, otherwise Pro/ENGINEER fails to start.

Platform	Minimum Requirement
Main Memory	256 MB (512 MB or higher)
Available Disk Space	900 MB (Pro/E), 1.2 GB (with Pro/ENGINEER Mechanica)
Swap Space	500 MB (1024 MB or higher)
CPU Speed	Pentium III 700 MHz (1 GHz or higher)
Graphics Cards	Cards must support OpenGL. Supported Graphics Cards.*
Browser	Microsoft Internet Explorer 6.0 SP1 or later
Network	Microsoft TCP/IP, Ethernet network adapter
Monitor	1024 X 768 (or higher) resolution with 24-bit or greater color
File Systems	NTFS
Mouse	Microsoft approved 3-button mouse
Distribution Media	CD-ROM or DVD drive

*In the event that a users machine does not support OpenGL, PTC has include Software OpenGL technology into the installation. This will be controlled by a new config.pro option called use_software_opengl=yes. When activated, Pro/ENGINEER will utilize the software OpenGL and ignore the standard graphics config.pro option.

What languages are supported by Pro/ENGINEER Student Edition?
The Pro/ENGINEER Student Edition supports the following languages: English, French, German, Italian, Spanish, Japanese and Chinese (traditional and simplified). The desired language(s) is selected at the time of installation.

I am trying to install the Pro/ENGINEER Student Edition in a language other than English. What do I do?
If you would like to install the Pro/ENGINEER Training Edition in a language other than English follow these instructions:

Windows 2000/XP/VISTA:

Right-click on My Computer and select Properties.
In the Advanced tab, select the Environment Variables button.
Under the "User" section, select New.
In the Variable Name field, type "LANG"
In the Variable Value field, type "language", for example: if the language desired is German, type "german".

In order for the language to be installed, it must be selected while defining the installation components. Setting the LANG environment variable enables both the installer (PTC.Setup) and Pro/ENGINEER Studen Edition to display in the desired language.

NOTE: For all Operating Systems, you will need to have a Japanese version of the OS in order to run in Japanese. For European languages, this is not required.

I am having problems running the Pro/ENGINEER Student Edition. Are there any known problems or special installation procedures that I must follow?

The Pro/ENGINEER Student Edition requires an NTFS File System. In many cases Windows XP Home Edition is setup with a FAT File System out of the box. The file system may need to be converted to NTFS if not already done.
Try setting the config.pro option "graphics win32_gdi" or "use_software_opengl yes".

I launch the Pro/ENGINEER Student Edition and get the splash screen, then it goes away but the program does not start. What do I do?

Windows 2000/XP/VISTA

Right-click on the desktop and select Properties from the menu
On the Settings tab, click the Advanced button
There will be a Hardware Acceleration dialog box on the Troubleshooting tab. Move the slider from Full to None, and apply the changes

If Pro/ENGINEER Student Edition still doesn't run, select the Settings tab and locate the Color setting. Set this value to be 256 colors. Apply it and exit the Display Properties box. You should now be able to run the program.

Alternatively, you can create a text file called config.pro file and place it in <Student Edition Installation Dir>/text/config.pro. In the text file you can add the option 'USE_SOFTWARE_OPENGL Y'. This will ignore the graphics card in the system and use software opengl. Save the file and restart Pro/ENGINEER.

What are the differences between the Commercial version and the Training Edition of Pro/ENGINEER?
The Pro/ENGINEER Student Edition includes features that make it uniquely suited for personal, educational use. These restrictions do not inhibit personal, educational use of the software.

Pro/ENGINEER Student Edition does not have access to floating options
Plotted deliverables generated with Pro/ENGINEER Student Edition display a plot banner along the four page borders indicating that the object being printed was created with an educational version of Pro/ENGINEER. This banner will be present on Pro/ENGINEER plotted deliverables including drawings
Pro/ENGINEER Student Edition is compatible with Pro/ENGINEER Educational Edition found in College and University labs. Pro/ENGINEER Student Edition is NOT compatible with commercial.

(*Provided that the Student Edition and Educational Edition are both the same Pro/ENGINEER release)

What kinds of help tools (online tutorials/printed manuals/general help) are provided with the Pro/ENGINEER Student Edition?
PTC Online Help (English Only) for Pro/ENGINEER Student Edition is installed by default. The Online Help can be started from within Pro/ENGINEER by selecting #Help, #Pro/E Help System. Printed documentation is not provided. Other language help is available from a secondary install from the launch page.

How is the Student Edition licensed?
The Pro/ENGINEER Student Edition is a node locked license. This means a license will need to be created for the machine you are installing the edition on. The license is not locked for a user, but linked to the physical address for the Ethernet Card in the machine. The Student Edition also utilized a specific Product Code that is required in order to generate a license file. The Product Code will either be sent to you from PTC following the purchase of the product from the PTC Online Store or listed on the back of the CD case. The Student Edition cannot be installed on more then one machine. This is reinforced by the Product Code.

There is no technical support for the Student Edition. Users who experience installation issues should contact student@ptc.com for assistance.

Note: You cannot use the Student Edition software for commercial, professional, or for-profit purposes. The software is not compatible with commercial or other educational versions of Pro/ENGINEER.

Why does the error: "The page cannot be displayed" appear in my web browser after I select "Create a New License File" in PTC.Setup?
The error is received because DNS on the machine requesting the license file is not configured properly. You should be able to ping the machine by its fully qualified hostname to be able to access this site. This issue can be resolved by doing one of the following:

Remove the DNS suffix from the URL and refresh the page. For example, change: http://<customershostname>.<dnssuffix>:8080/PS_TRANSLATE?filename=webreg.html to http://<customershostname>:8080/PS_TRANSLATE?filename=webreg.html - or - Replace the fully qualified hostname in the URL with the word 'localhost' and refresh the page. (Ex. http://localhost:8080/PS_TRANSLATE?filename=webreg.html)
Configure DNS properly and make sure that the DNS suffix listed in TCP/IP Advanced Properties "DNS suffix for this connection" is the correct DNS suffix for that machine

I have just created my PTC online account. Do I need to upgrade my account before requesting the license file?
No. A basic username and password from www.ptc.com is sufficient for requesting a license file for the Student Edition via the online or offline method.

Can additional modules/functionality be purchased to expand the Pro/ENGINEER Student Edition?
No, the Pro/ENGINEER Student Edition cannot be expanded to provide additional capabilities.

Are the Pro/ENGINEER Student Edition files compatible with Commercial Licenses of Pro/ENGINEER?
No, the Pro/ENGINEER Student Edition is not intended for commercial use. Files created within the Student Edition cannot be opened with commercially licensed Pro/ENGINEER. In addition, files created with commercially licensed Pro/ENGINEER cannot be opened with the Pro/ENGINEER Student Edition.

Does the Student Edition have an expiration date that disables its use after a period of time?
No. The Pro/ENGINEER Student Edition is a perpetual edition. It does not expire after registration.

What does the error "error in plpfhost" refer to?
This error may occur for one of two reasons.

An Ethernet network adapter is not installed or configured properly. An Ethernet network adapter is required to start the Pro/ENGINEER Student Edition. Refer to your hardware vendor for information on installing and configuring the network adapter.
A new feature implemented within Windows 2000, Media Sense, causes the PTC Host ID (Ethernet network adapter address) to not be detected due to the network card being disabled.

What does the error "could not detect network adapter" refer to?
An Ethernet network adapter is required to start the Pro/ENGINEER Student Edition. Refer to your hardware vendor for information on installing and configuring the network adapter.

How do I locate my computer’s Host ID?
The Pro/ENGINEER Student Edition license is locked to the Host ID (physical address) of your computer. To find out your Host ID, click Start and choose Run. In the Run dialog box, type cmd and press RETURN. In the DOS window, type ipconfig/all. Look for the network Physical Address for your Host ID. The Host ID also appears in the bottom-left corner of the first screen in the Pro/ENGINEER installation.

Insert your Pro/ENGINEER Student Edition CD-ROM in to the CD-ROM drive of the computer on which you want to install Pro/ENGINEER. Start PTC.Setup as outlined in the Installing PRO/ENGINEER WILDFIRE 3.0 Student Edition section. On the first installation screen, in the lower-left corner, you will see a 12-digit number on the second line similar to the figure below. The number on your screen is your Host ID.

Hostname: computerName
PTC HostID: 00-00-03-D6-28-39

The 12-digit number on the second line is your Host ID.

Open a Windows command prompt (Start > Run, type cmd, and press ENTER.)
At the C:\> prompt, type ipconfig /all and press ENTER. The Windows IP Configuration information appears.
Locate the line with the words Physical Address. This is your Host ID:
Physical Address: 00-11-22-33-44-55

What does the message "Could not detect network adapter" mean?
See your hardware vendor for information on installing and configuring the network adapter if you get this message: Could not detect network adapter. An Ethernet network adapter is required to start the Pro/ENGINEER Student Edition.

Why does Pro/ENGINEER not find the load point at startup?
If you get the message Cannot Find <Loadpoint>\i486_nt\filename, the PATH environment variable for the Pro/ENGINEER load point is either is not set or is incorrect. You may have a syntax or spelling error. To correct this, follow these steps:

Click Start > Settings > Control Panel. (For Windows XP, click Start > Control Panel). The Control Panel appears.
Double-click System. (XP users, if you do not see System in the Control Panel, click Switch to Classic View in the upper-right corner.)
Click the Advanced tab and click Environment Variables. The Environment Variables page appears.
Look under System variables for the variable PATH. Check to see if PATH contains <loadpoint>\bin. (All values are separated by a semicolon. Therefore, if there are other paths before and after Pro/ENGINEER, the Pro/ENGINEER path will have semicolons both before and it).

Note: The load point is the directory into which Pro/ENGINEER was installed. If you accepted the default location, then your load point will be C:\Program Files\ProENGINEER Student Edition. If you installed Pro/ENGINEER into a directory other than the default load point, you must reflect that change.

Between the semicolons, fix the PATH variable to the correct location of your load point.

Why does my computer select a wrong network connection?
If your computer automatically selects the wrong network connection, for example, WiFi instead of your preferred land-line connection, your computer is most likely using Media Sensing. Consider disabling Media Sensing. For information on how Media Sensing works and how to disable it, see the following link:
http://support.microsoft.com/default.aspx?scid=kb;EN-US;q239924

Note: Ethernet cable 10b2 or coaxial cable RG-58 is not a connection-based media. Windows does not attempt to detect a connect state if this type of cabling is used. Also, NetBEUI and IPX do not recognize Media Sense.

Examples of some side effects exist for disabling the Media Sensing feature follow.

Your computer has two network adapters, and the Media Sensing feature is enabled. If one network adapter does not work, it is unbound, and associated routes are removed. As a result, all traffic goes through the other network adapter, assuming a default gateway is there.
You are a roaming (portable) user. With the Media Sensing feature, you can connect to any network and have everything work, without restarting, releasing and renewing, and so on. After disabling Media Sensing and restarting your computer, Windows still shows the Network Disconnected icon on the task bar. In addition, the ipconfig command still shows a Media State: Cable Disconnected message when the cable is disconnected. However, the Network Interface is bound to TCP/IP. You can verify this by looking at the route table. Use the route print command to show the interface IP address. (You can also use the ping command to get the IP address assigned to the NIC).

Why is the wrong Host ID displayed on Windows 2000/XP/Vista?
The wrong Host ID is displayed when a Windows 2000 computer is not physically connected to the network. The Ptcstatus utility shows the license server up with available licenses before Pro/ENGINEER is started. As a result, a Pro/ENGINEER licensing error occurs. Ptcstatus displays COUNTED after attempt to run Pro/ENGINEER.

Ptclmgrd.log shows the wrong \Host ID. When a machine is booted off the network, the registry shows the network cards in an incorrect order at the following path:

HKEY_LOCAL_MACHINE\SOFTWARE\Microsoft\Windows NT\CurrentVersion\NetworkCards

When you connect to the network, the order of the cards is correct when the network card that goes with the generated FLEXnet license is in the first folder. When you are disconnected from the network, the network card folders must be put in the correct order. It is recommended to always have the license tied to the internal Ethernet card address as this will always be there.

Re-ordering Network cards on laptops

Select Start > Run
Type regedit
Navigate to the following location – HKEY_LOCAL_MACHINE\SOFTWARE\Microsoft\Windows NT\CurrentVersion\NetworkCards
How many folders are there under the NetworkCards?
Select the first folder
On the right side there will be three items the second one being description.
Look what the value is. Look for the folder that has the description of the internal Ethernet card and rename the folder to number 1.
Then rename the others 2, 3, 4, and so on.
Close regedit.
Start setup and what is the PTCHOSTID?

This issue is related to the Media Sensing feature of Windows 2000. Disabling the Media Sensing resolves the issue. For more information on Media Sensing, see http://support.microsoft.com/support/kb/articles/Q239/9/24.ASP.

What happens when the offline license is embedded into the e-mail from PTC?
Depending on your e-mail provider, when you generate a license via the offline method, you might receive an e-mail with the license file embedded. Typically, the license file is included as an attachment. To generate your license, please select and cut (CTRL+C) the text, which is similar to the text shown below.

Caution: Do not edit or change any information in the text or it will corrupt the license file.

In WordPad, paste (CTRL+V) the selected text and save the file with the name license.txt. During installation of Pro/ENGINEER, you will browse to this file.

######### Pro/ENGINEER Wildfire Student Edition 3.0 #########: #Feature Line Type = INCREMENT; #Feature Name = PROE_StudentEdition2; #Feature Version = 27.0; #Version = Wildfire 3.0; #Number of Copies = uncounted locked license; #Supercede = Y; #Issue Date = 14-JUN-2007; #Expiration Date = 01-JAN-0; #Node Locked Option = Pro/NOTEBOOK; #Node Locked Option = ASSEMBLY for NC Options (> = R20); #Node Locked Option = Pro/FEATURE; #Node Locked Option = Pro/MESH; #Node Locked Option = Pro/DETAIL; #Node Locked Option = Pro/INTERFACE; #Node Locked Option = WLO; #Node Locked Option = Pro/SURFACE; #Node Locked Option = Pro/PLOT; #Node Locked Option = Pro/LIBRARYACCESS; #Node Locked Option = Pro/ECAD; #Node Locked Option = Pro/REPORT; #Node Locked Option = Pro/SCAN-TOOLS; #Node Locked Option = Pro/LEGACY; #Node Locked Option = Pro/INTERFACE for STEP; #Node Locked Option = Pro/WELDING; #Node Locked Option = Pro/PHOTORENDER; #Node Locked Option = Pro/PROCESS for ASSEMBLIES; #Node Locked Option = Pro/WEB PUBLISH (> OR = 18.0); #Node Locked Option = Pro/Student; #Node Locked Option = Pro/SHEETMETAL-DESIGN; #Node Locked Option = Mechanism Design License; #Node Locked Option = Behavioral Modeling License; #Node Locked Option = Design Animation License; #Node Locked Option = Advanced Rendering Extension License; #Node Locked Option = ModelCHECK License; #Node Locked Option = Interactive Surface Design Extension Module; #Node Locked Option = Mechanism_Dynamics - Module