Critical HotFix: FAQ and Troubleshooting

Following the announcement of the availability of the Hotfix, several questions have been asked, either just confirming the announcement, concerning the topic  or in the sequence of the process. Please see below a selection of the most frequently asked questions on the topic:

"I received emails from different senders warning about a Critical Hotfix for DraftSight"

-              The email/warning is a legitimate email sent by the DraftSight team. In order to make sure that all DraftSight Users received the information, we have used different databases in the SOLIDWORKS/3DS domain. Saying this, if you don’t want to access the download page via the link in the email or the link is disabled for security reasons, you can access the Hotfix file through the DraftSight Download page (https://www.3ds.com/products-services/draftsight-cad-software/free-download/). Please note that the email doesn’t contain any file/patch, only information concerning the need to install the hotfix.

"To which DraftSight version the Hotfix applies/is required?"

-              The Hotfix applies and is required to ALL DraftSight versions released until now, including the current DraftSight 2017 SP0, and to all DraftSight products (Free version, Professional, Enterprise). Due to the nature of the issue, it does not apply to the Beta versions/releases (Mac and Linux).

"What issue does the Hotfix addresses?"

-              The Hotfix addresses a Windows certificate that will expire on the 1st of March, that if not updated, and if replaced/Hotfix not applied, will cause DraftSight to fail to launch (on the 1st of March and beyond). The Hotfix does not address any other issue in the application, and it’s not expected to impact the application in any way.

"The email I received doesn’t have any visible links."

-              The email contains links to the download page, from which the users can download and install the Hotfix: If the link(s) are not visible/available in your email, it’s possible that it has been disabled by security software in place.

If this is the case, the hotfix (and correspondent information) can be found in the DraftSight download page:  https://www.3ds.com/products-services/draftsight-cad-software/free-download/.

"What is the Hotfix? Do I need to download/install the latest DraftSight version?"

-              Please note that installing the Hotfix does not require the installation/update of the DraftSight version, and the installation of the Hotfix does not impact the Licensing of the product. For additional clarification, the correct download link in the page as shown below:

"Is there a Deployment package I can use to broadcast the Hotfix to multiple users?"

The Hotfix is a single file install (not a DraftSight version update), that requires the install in every machine. Saying this, in order to avoid an “individual install” in every machine, your client can use command line to deploy the Hotfix to the multiple users: See the example below

1-            After extracting the HotFix contents, run from an administrative command prompt:

2-            \\hotfix.exe /s /k

(Note: step #2 can be scripted by the local IT team as needed) 

"Multiple Users use DraftSight in my machine: Do I need to install the Hotfix under each User Account?"

No. The Hotfix will only need to be installed/applied once in the machine.

"I tried to install the Hotfix, and came across a message “ERROR 5 Running Command HOTFIX.EXE” or “Not valid Win32 application”"

The error you are facing  is likely to be linked with a corrupted downloaded package, but there could be another possible cause for the behavior:

-              Corrupt download/Antivirus software

This error occurs due to corruption of the downloaded package.

Antivirus software will sometimes scan and corrupts downloaded files.

SOLUTION: Temporarily disable any antivirus software and download a new copy of the Hotfix.

-              Attempting to run installer without extracting from zip

The error occurs if the installer executable (.exe) was not extracted from the zip.

The installation files come packaged in a WinZip self-extractor and the files must first be extracted.

SOLUTION: select 'Extract to' from the WinZip menu, and choose an empty destination folder.  Once the zip file has been extracted, run the installer executable (.exe) from the new folder.

-              Windows Permissions

The error occurs if the .exe file does not have sufficient permissions to run.

SOLUTION: Navigate to the folder where the .exe was extracted and right-click on the .exe file and select "Run as administrator".  If you do not have administrator privileges, please contact your IT department for further information on obtaining these privileges and installing the Hotfix.

Troubleshooting

-          Addressing issues reported/identified in earlier DraftSight versions/releases, a revised Hotfix file is now available: If you experienced any issues applying the Hotfix, please repeat the download of the Hotfix file, and run the file in your machine.