If you're experiencing delays or failure when saving through the standard CATIA Connector, you can use the Emergency Save (also called Toolbox) function as a fallback to manually upload your work.
You can also use this tool to open existing CAD Documents for which you already experienced issues when opening or saving.

This guide walks you through the required steps, important limitations, and best practices to ensure your data is securely backed up.

Known Limitations

• No New Documents: The Toolbox will not handle new (never saved) CAD documents. These must be handled with the standard CATIA Connector before using this feature (see below).
• No BOM Computation will be launched after the save via the Toolbox. And running the e-BOM sync from the Profile Card of the assembly will not work.
  So, at a point in time, it will be mandatory to save your structure with PWB, or to consider to update your BOM manually.
• The CAD Documents open in CATIA using the toolbox will not display any PLM metadata in the CATIA tree, and appears as “Not in PDM”, thus cannot be saved using the usual CATIA Connector save. But they can be saved via the toolbox.

Using the Toolbox Save Command

If after a regular CATIA Connector save, you notice a failure, you can use the Toolbox Save Command.
The connector will save all the CAD Documents which are claimed in PLM AND modified in the CATIA Session before uploading them in the PLM.

1. Let your CATIA session running. DON’T log off from the Catia Connector. 
2. Close the CATIA Connector Save window (if relevant).
3. Access the tool following this link: 
   \\cern.ch\dfs\Applications\PLMApps\CATIAPLMToolbox\StartCATIAPLMToolbox_v1.exe
   Note: for a regular usage, you can copy this shortcut on your desktop:
   \\cern.ch\dfs\Applications\PLMApps\CATIAPLMToolbox\StartCATIAPLMToolbox.bat - Shortcut.lnk
4. The tool will start and will be associated to the PLM Desktop:
   
   
5. Click the Save & Upload button.
6. Read carefully the report and check the result in the PLM.
   
   

In case of doubt, call the CAD & PLM Support team.

Using the Open Command

1. Open the CATIA session (or if CATIA is already running, use this session).
   You do not have to log-in to the PWB CATIA Connector. However, if you want to work with PWB with other CAD Documents or if you will have to save brand new CAD Documents to the PLM, you must log-in.
2. Access the tool following this link:
   \\cern.ch\dfs\Applications\PLMApps\CATIAPLMToolbox\StartCATIAPLMToolbox_v1.exe
   Note: for a regular usage, you can copy this shortcut on your desktop:
   \\cern.ch\dfs\Applications\PLMApps\CATIAPLMToolbox\StartCATIAPLMToolbox.bat - Shortcut.lnk
3. Click on Open and use the filters in the new pop-up window that appears to find the CAD document to open.
4. Select it and in the “Open in CATIA” window, choose the expand strategy and the options you need, then validate.
5. The tool will download the necessary files to your local machine then will open the selected CAD Document in CATIA.

Attention, CAD Documents open via the toolbox can only be saved with the toolbox. (And not via the usual CATIA Connector save)

Using the Open Profile Card Command

1. Select one or several Documents or instances node in CATIA (the selection of features in a CATPart will be ignored)
2. Click on the Open Profile Card button.
   The Profile Card(s) corresponding to your selection will be displayed in the PLM Desktop.

Best Practices

• Use the Toolbox only as a last resort when standard saving is not responding, reports an blocking error or is taking too long or if you already experienced an issue when working with the same CAD Document.
• Always verify the saved structure afterward within the CATIA Connector interface.
  Check for each of your recent modified and saved CAD Documents that the date & time of last modification of the native file is coherent with the save time.
  
• Notify the PLM Support Team if you consistently encounter performance issues or errors with the standard CATIA Connector.
• When you are aware that opening a given CAD Document returns an error, open directly via the Toolbox.
• In case you have inserted a new CAD Doc in your CATIA structure you are about to save with the toolbox:
  Open this new CAD Doc in the new CATIA Window, save it using the CATIA Connector, and come back to the assembly window to save the assembly with the toolbox.

If you need further assistance, please reach out to our support team via the Contact Page or consult the detailed troubleshooting guide for CATIA connector issues.