AutoCAD 2012 Installation FAQ
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Contents Chapter 1 Introduction . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 1 Installation Overview . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 1 Chapter 2 Installing AutoCAD on a Single Computer . . . . . . . . . . . . . 5 How can I prepare for a successful installation? . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 5 How can I choose the language in which the Installer instructions are presented? . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .
Chapter 3 Creating a Deployment of AutoCAD . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 13 How can I prepare to create a successful deployment to multiple computers? . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . How do I select a license type? What is the difference between a stand-alone license and a network license? . . . . . . . . . . . . How can I choose the language in which the Installer instructions are presented? . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .
Introduction 1 Installation Overview The process of installing or deploying AutoCAD 2012 consists of the three main steps shown in the diagram above. ■ Preparation is very important for achieving a trouble-free and successful installation. ■ Entering Information varies depending upon the kind of installation or deployment you need. ■ Installation or Deployment executes quickly once you have made and specified your choices.
provided here. Note that complete details for creating deployments are provided in the Network Administrator's Guide. What kind of installation will you perform? Here are the four main installation types with a summary of the data and decisions they require: ■ Typical installation with default options. For a typical installation, begin with a proper preparation (page 5). Then, just click through the installer, providing your serial number (page 6), product key (page 6), and license information (page 7).
■ Which features (page 10) (such as Express Tools) to install with AutoCAD. ■ Whether to install any available service packs (page 19) and whether to merge them with the deployment or append them. ■ Whether to add additional files (page 20) to the deployment. ■ A folder or folders where support content (page 20) will be installed. ■ What modifications to make to the default search paths and the location of some program files. ■ User preferences.
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Installing AutoCAD on a Single Computer 2 How can I prepare for a successful installation? You can avoid problems and ensure a smooth installation of AutoCAD by employing the following best practices: ■ Confirm that your computer meets the minimum System Requirements. (Click "System Requirements" at the bottom of the Installer window.) Important: Microsoft .NET Framework 4.0 (available on product disc) must be installed before you install AutoCAD. ■ Be sure you have Administrator permissions in Windows®.
software, although later you can change that by selecting another language from the Product Language drop-down list on the Install > Configure & Begin Installation page of the Installer. How do I choose the language for my software? If other languages are available, you can choose the one you want to use within AutoCAD. Select a language from the Product Language drop-down list on the Install > Configure & Begin Installation page of the Installer.
How do I know if I have enough disk space for the installation? The Install > Configure & Begin Installation page of the Installer shows you how much disk space is required for your installation and how much disk space you have available. How do I select a license type? What is the difference between a stand-alone license and a network license? Choose the type of installation to deploy based on the type of software license you purchased: stand-alone license or network license.
What is the purpose of a client log file? A client log file contains detailed installation information for each workstation. This information may be useful in diagnosing any installation problems. The client log file is located in your Windows "Temp" folder. How do I register and activate my software after I have finished the installation? After you've installed your software, the easiest way to register and activate your software is with the Product License Activation wizard.
Where do I customize my installation? Click on the AutoCAD band of the Install > Configure & Begin Installation page of the Installer to reveal the configuration area. Optional features are listed there, many of them pre-selected for installation.
If you select the option to download and apply a service pack from Autodesk, it will be downloaded automatically. If your installation is up-to-date, a message will tell you that a service pack is not available. What features can I customize? Most features are pre-selected for installation with AutoCAD. However, you can de-select any feature you choose not to install or select one of the few features that have not been pre-selected.
■ Migrate Custom Settings: Utility to migrate custom user settings and files from a previous version of AutoCAD. When this utility is installed, it will present a dialog box for migration on the first launch of AutoCAD. You will also be able to run the utility later from Windows Start > All Programs > Autodesk > AutoCAD 2012 > Migrate Custom Settings. ■ Reset Settings: Utility to reset AutoCAD to its original settings.
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Creating a Deployment of AutoCAD 3 How can I prepare to create a successful deployment to multiple computers? You can avoid problems and ensure a smooth deployment of AutoCAD by employing the following best practices. ■ Confirm that your network, servers, and client workstations meet the minimum System Requirements for AutoCAD. (Click "System Requirements" at the bottom of the Installer.) Be sure that you have installed the .NET 4.0 Framework. ■ Understand the type of license you have purchased.
■ Before you create the deployment, exit all applications and turn off anti-virus programs. How do I select a license type? What is the difference between a stand-alone license and a network license? Choose the type of installation to deploy based on the type of software license you purchased: stand-alone license or network license. A product with a stand-alone license is registered and activated for an individual computer.
What is the benefit of a network licensed version of the software? With a network license, you can use the Network License Manager to install your software on more systems than the number of licenses you have purchased. At any one time, you can run the software on the maximum number of systems for which you have licenses. What is the purpose of a client log file? A client log file contains detailed installation information for each workstation.
What is an administrative image? An administrative image is a collection of shared file resources created during the deployment process and placed in the shared network deployment folder from which multiple workstations install the product. Where should the administrative image of my deployment be located? The administrative image for your deployment should be stored in a shared folder (a network share) you have created before you launch the deployment.
What are the additional products available for installation? The following additional products are available to install: ■ Autodesk Design Review — Allows users to review, measure, redline, and annotate DWG, DWF, and DXFx files without the original Autodesk creation software.
feature tree, which is hidden when you choose a Typical install in the configuration area. To reveal the feature tree, choose the Custom install option. Here are the features available when you install AutoCAD: ■ Model Documentation: Interface for Autodesk Inventor Server, a programming component that allows you to open and query the geometry and feature information of an Autodesk Inventor part file or other imported models and to create the corresponding data within AutoCAD.
■ Reference Manager: Utility that allows users to view and edit the paths of externally referenced files associated with a drawing. ■ Samples: AutoCAD samples, DesignCenter samples, and Visual Lisp® samples.
What are support content folders? Under Support Content, you can specify where your support content will be installed. You choose between four destination options for support content. ■ Local user profile folders: Default. ■ Program install folder: Content installed to your application installation folder on individual user station. ■ Single shared folder: Allows for one unique local folder to be specified for all content types.
What are the services of the Communication Center? During a custom deployment, you can choose whether or not to activate user preferences for Communication Center services. ■ Enable live updates: Allows users to check for updates when an internet connection is established. If a product patch is available, notification of its availability is received on the program's status bar; the patch can be either downloaded directly from an Autodesk server or modified before being copied to workstations.
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Maintaining and Reconfiguring Your Installation 4 How do I add or remove features after installation? To add or remove features from AutoCAD, navigate from Windows Start to the control panel for adding, changing, and removing programs. When you select AutoCAD as the program you want to change, the Installer will open in maintenance mode. Click Add or Remove Features and follow the instructions in the Installer.
What if I accidentally delete or alter required files? Can I replace or repair them? You may be able to fix a problem that stems from a missing or altered support file by running the Installer to repair or reinstall AutoCAD. To launch the Installer, navigate from Windows Start to the control panel for adding, changing, and removing programs. When you select AutoCAD as the program to change, the Installer will open in maintenance mode. Click Repair or Reinstall and follow the instructions in the Installer.
What are the tools and utilities available for installation? You can install the following products from the Tools & Utilities section of the Installer. ■ Autodesk Network License Manager — Manages network licenses for AutoCAD by "checking out" and "checking in" licenses. ■ Autodesk CAD Manager Tools — Utility to allow CAD administrators to modify resource settings after a deployment is completed.
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5 AutoCAD 2012 System Requirements AutoCAD 2012 System Requirements Here are the minimum system requirements for both 32-bit and 64-bit operating systems. Recommended requirements: In addition to the minimum requirements, these system requirements also include recommended requirements for memory and graphics cards. The recommended operating system is Windows 7 (64-bit).
■ Microsoft Windows Vista Business ■ Microsoft Windows Vista Ultimate ■ Microsoft Windows Vista Home Premium The following operating systems: ■ Microsoft Windows 7 Enterprise ■ Microsoft Windows 7 Ultimate ■ Microsoft Windows 7 Professional ■ Microsoft Windows 7 Home Premium ® Browser Internet Explorer 7.0 or later Processor Windows XP ® ® Intel Pentium 4 or AMD Athlon™ Dual Core, 1.6 GHz or Higher with SSE2 technology Windows Vista or Windows 7 Intel Pentium 4 or AMD Athlon Dual Core, 3.
Additional requirements for 3D Modeling Intel Pentium 4 processor or AMD Athlon, 3.0 GHz or greater or Intel or AMD Dual Core processor, 2.0 GHz or greater 2 GB RAM 2 GB free hard disk available not including installation requirements 1280 x 1024 True color video display adapter with 128 MB (recommended: 256 MB for normal images and 512 MB for Medium Image Material Library images), Pixel Shader 3.0 or greater, Direct3D® capable workstation class graphics card.
® Browser Internet Explorer 7.0 or later Processor AMD Athlon 64 with SSE2 technology AMD Opteron™ with SSE2 technology ® Intel Xeon with Intel EM64T support and SSE2 Intel Pentium 4 with Intel EM64T support and SSE2 technology Memory 2 GB RAM (8GB Recommended) Display resolution 1024x768 with True Color Disk Space Installation 2.0 GB Pointing Device MS-Mouse compliant Media (DVD) Download and Installation from DVD .NET Framework .NET Framework Version 4.
Requirements for GPO (Group Policy Objects) Deployments In addition to the minimum system requirements, addtional items are needed for a successful GPO deployment. See the Network Administrator's Guide for further information about GPO deployments. Available on the product disc Microsoft .NET 4.0 DirectX 9.
Microsoft Installer Package (MSI) 4.5 Microsoft Windows Media Format 9.
