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SOLIDWORKS for Makers Update Deadline: What 25 October Means for Your Files | SolidWorks | Register and Certify IP of CAD design

2026-10-22 14:57 News

From 25 October 2026, users of 3DEXPERIENCE SOLIDWORKS for Makers must install the latest 3DEXPERIENCE platform components to keep using SOLIDWORKS Design. Dassault Systèmes moved the Makers platform to release R2026x FD04 on Saturday 10 October and gave makers two weeks, until 24 October, to choose when to update.

For most hobbyists this is a routine click on the next launch. But the deadline is a good moment to look at the rules that come with the $48 a year licence, because they decide where your designs can go later. Files saved with a Makers account are digitally watermarked and open only with a Makers licence. They cannot be opened in commercial or academic SOLIDWORKS. Your cloud data is deleted two weeks after a subscription ends. And once your projects earn $2,000 or more a year, you are no longer eligible to use the licence.

Many professional engineers started this way: a side project, a 3D printed product on Etsy, a first freelance job. If that describes you, or someone you plan to hire, this article explains what changes on 25 October, what the Makers terms say about your files, and what to do now so your designs stay usable and provably yours.

TL;DR: update before 25 October and check where your files can go

The Makers platform runs R2026x FD04 since 10 October 2026. Until 24 October you can keep your installed SOLIDWORKS apps. From 25 October the update is mandatory to keep using SOLIDWORKS Design. Native Makers files (.sldprt, .sldasm, .slddrw, .3dxml) are watermarked and do not open in commercial or academic SOLIDWORKS, and there is no upgrade path from a Makers licence to a commercial one. Save local copies, export neutral formats for anything you may sell or hand over, watch the $2,000 revenue limit and keep dated proof of what you designed.

What exactly changes on 25 October?

On 18 September 2026 the Makers support team announced in the MAKERS | Support community on 3DSwym that the 3DEXPERIENCE MAKERS platform would move to R2026x FD04 on Saturday 10 October. During the maintenance window all services were down, and makers were asked to save their documents to the cloud before the work began. The platform address did not change.

The important part for desktop users is what happens after the update. The first time you launch SOLIDWORKS Design, you can either update to the latest version of the SOLIDWORKS apps or keep using the version you have installed. That choice lasts two weeks. In the words of the announcement:

"Starting on October 25th, upgrading the 3DEXPERIENCE platform components will be mandatory to continue using SOLIDWORKS Design."

Native apps such as SOLIDWORKS Design, SOLIDWORKS Visualize and Shop Floor Machining need to be installed on your computer, so the update is a real installation, not just a page refresh. Makers who use the browser-based SOLIDWORKS xDesign for Makers get the new release automatically at the same address.

The post does not say what happens to files, and nothing in it suggests a file format change. It also does not describe the 25 October lock in more detail than the sentence above. If you plan to stay on your current version for a project, plan to finish or pause that work before the 24th.

Why does a routine update matter for your designs?

SOLIDWORKS for Makers is a subscription that lives on the 3DEXPERIENCE platform. Dassault's FAQ says the platform is updated about five times a year, with notice in the support community about 21 days ahead and an email about 7 days ahead. During each update the platform is unavailable. Offline Mode lets you keep working for 1 to 30 days, but only if you start it before the update begins.

That rhythm is the same for commercial customers. SOLIDWORKS announced the R2026x FD04 release for its commercial 3DEXPERIENCE roles for 12 September, and our coverage of LEO and the Virtual Companions showed how new features and token rules now arrive between the big yearly releases described in our SOLIDWORKS 2027 overview. The practical lesson is that you no longer pick the moment of every change yourself. You can only prepare for it.

For a hobbyist the risk is small: a weekend project paused for a day. For anyone who earns money with their models, or wants to later, the bigger question is not the update. It is what the licence allows you to do with the files you create.

What do the Makers terms say about your files?

The SOLIDWORKS for Makers FAQ is unusually clear. Here are the points that matter for ownership and future use of your designs:

Watermarked native files. Files created with a Makers account are digitally watermarked and open only with a Makers licence. This covers .sldprt, .sldasm, .slddrw and .3dxml.
No opening in other licences. Makers files cannot be opened in commercial or academic versions of SOLIDWORKS.
Neutral exports are free. STL, STEP, IGES, DXF and DWG exports can be shared and used without that restriction.
Revenue limit. The licence is for personal, non-commercial projects. You may sell parts you make while revenue stays under $2,000 a year. Above that you need a commercial or startup licence.
No upgrade path. The FAQ states there is no upgrade path from a Makers licence to a commercial one. You buy the commercial licence separately.
Storage. 25 GB of 3DEXPERIENCE cloud storage across 3DDrive and 3DSpace, with versioning, history and recovery. It cannot be expanded.
End of subscription. Access stops at the renewal date if you cancel. The 3DS store FAQ says your data is deleted from the servers two weeks after the subscription ends.

None of this says Dassault owns your designs. The FAQ does not address ownership at all. But it does decide practical control: which software can open your native models, how long your cloud copy exists, and when you must move to a different licence.

How does a Makers file compare with a commercial SOLIDWORKS file?

The table summarises what Dassault's Makers FAQ states, read on 22 October 2026, and what it means in practice. Check the current terms before you rely on them.

Question	3DEXPERIENCE SOLIDWORKS for Makers	What it means for you
Who may use it?	Personal, non-commercial use, revenue under $2,000 a year	A growing side business must switch licences
Can commercial SOLIDWORKS open the native files?	No, native files are watermarked	Clients and employers cannot open your .sldprt files
Which formats travel freely?	STL, STEP, IGES, DXF, DWG	Keep neutral exports of anything you may sell or hand over
Is there an upgrade path?	No, a commercial licence is bought separately	Plan how you will rebuild or reuse key models
How much cloud storage?	25 GB, not expandable	Keep local copies and clear out old versions
What if you stop paying?	Access ends at renewal; data deleted after two weeks	Download everything before the subscription ends
When do updates happen?	About five times a year, platform down during updates	Save to the cloud and start Offline Mode before each update

Keep proof of what you designed, whatever licence you use.

BORIS for SOLIDWORKS registers your CAD files with a blockchain timestamp from inside SOLIDWORKS and gives you a certificate of ownership for each registered version.

👉 Try BORIS for SOLIDWORKS

What does this mean for freelancers and the companies that hire them?

The watermark becomes a real problem the day a hobby turns into paid work. A maker who designs a bracket for a local manufacturer cannot hand over a native part file that the manufacturer's commercial SOLIDWORKS will open. The FAQ also says that work done as a business needs a commercial licence, so a paid design job may fall outside the Makers terms even below the $2,000 limit. Our report on the Delhi court order over unlicensed SOLIDWORKS use shows that Dassault does enforce its licence terms.

For companies, the check is simple. When you hire a freelancer or accept a design from a new supplier, ask which licence produced the files and agree on the delivery format in the contract. Our articles on CAD file ownership in freelance relationships and IP protection for freelance engineers and designers list the clauses that decide who owns the work. Neutral STEP files are often the safest handover from a Makers account, but they carry their own risks, explained in our guide to neutral CAD formats. You lose the feature tree, and anyone who receives the file can reuse the geometry.

For makers who plan to grow, the honest answer is to move early. If your project is turning into a business, compare the startup and commercial options before you have hundreds of native files that only a Makers licence can open. Our case study on building an IP portfolio as a startup shows how early records pay off later.

What should makers do before 25 October?

Most of these steps take minutes:

Run the update on your next launch. Accept the new SOLIDWORKS apps before 24 October so you are not locked out mid-project on the 25th. Check the prerequisites in the update guide linked from the announcement.
Save to the cloud first. Make sure open work is saved before you update, as the support team asked before the 10 October maintenance.
Keep local copies. Use Save to This PC in the File menu for designs that matter, and back them up outside the platform. Our article on cloud storage security for CAD files explains why one copy is never enough.
Export neutral formats. Save STEP for anything you may sell, share or rebuild later, and STL or OBJ for printing. Neutral files are not watermarked.
Watch your revenue. Keep a simple record of what you earn from your designs. At $2,000 a year you need a commercial or startup licence.
Plan the end of a subscription. Download your data before you cancel. The store FAQ says it is deleted two weeks after the subscription ends. See data retention policies for CAD files.
Use Offline Mode wisely. If you must work during a future update, start Offline Mode before the platform goes down. It lasts up to 30 days.
Keep dated proof of authorship. Version history inside a platform you rent is useful, but an independent dated record stays with you if you change licence or provider.

How do you prove a design is yours if it lives on a rented platform?

Platform version history shows when a file changed inside that platform. It is tied to your account and your subscription. If the subscription ends, the history ends with it. If you later rebuild a design in a commercial licence, the new file starts with a new date.

That is why makers who sell products, or freelancers who may one day argue about who designed a part, should keep proof that does not depend on one vendor. Our guides on how to prove authorship of CAD designs and blockchain timestamping explain the options. BORIS for SOLIDWORKS, the add-in by CADChain, registers CAD files with a blockchain timestamp from inside SOLIDWORKS and issues a certificate of ownership for each registered version. Setup is described in the BORIS plugin installation guide. It does not change your licence terms and it does not unlock watermarked files. It adds an independent, dated record that stays valid whatever software you use next.

Also check your licence position as a whole. Our overview of SOLIDWORKS licence management and security covers the commercial side, and SOLIDWORKS cloud security explains what the 3DEXPERIENCE platform protects and what stays your job.

How does this fit the bigger picture for CAD users?

Across our network this week, the common thread is control: software updates, patches and terms that someone else schedules, and what you can still decide yourself:

PLM patches. On CADChain, read about Oracle's October 2026 Critical Patch Update with 43 fixes for the Agile PLM family, and why a PLM breach is not the same as losing control of each CAD file.
Trusted installers abused. BORIS Inventor explains how attackers used a genuine, signed Siemens Software Center build in ClickFix attacks, and which checks Inventor workstations need.
Terms that change under you. Blended BORIS looks at Meta's new Commercial Terms and their website crawling clause, and what artists can still control with robots.txt and dated proof.

The link with SOLIDWORKS for Makers is direct: the platform decides when you update and which software can open your native files. You decide whether you keep local copies, neutral exports and your own dated records. If you need to roll back a model after an update goes wrong, see how to recover previous versions of CAD files.

Conclusion

The FD04 update itself is routine. Update before 24 October and you will not notice the 25 October deadline. The terms around it are not routine for anyone who earns money with their designs: watermarked native files, no upgrade path to a commercial licence, a $2,000 revenue limit and cloud data that disappears two weeks after you stop paying.

Use the deadline as a reminder to do three things: keep local copies and neutral exports, choose the right licence before your side project becomes a business, and keep dated proof of what you designed that does not depend on any single platform.

Make your designs provably yours, on any licence.

BORIS for SOLIDWORKS adds blockchain timestamps and certificates of ownership to your CAD files, right inside SOLIDWORKS.

👉 Get BORIS for SOLIDWORKS

FAQ: SOLIDWORKS for Makers and the 25 October update

What happens on 25 October 2026 for SOLIDWORKS for Makers?

From 25 October, upgrading the 3DEXPERIENCE platform components to the R2026x FD04 level is mandatory to keep using SOLIDWORKS Design on a Makers licence. Until 24 October you can still keep your installed version.

When was the Makers platform updated to R2026x FD04?

On Saturday 10 October 2026, as announced in the MAKERS | Support community on 18 September. All services were down during the maintenance window.

Does the update change my files?

The announcement does not mention any file change. It asks users to save documents to the cloud before the update and to install the new SOLIDWORKS apps.

Can a company open my SOLIDWORKS for Makers files?

Not the native ones. Dassault's FAQ says Makers files are digitally watermarked and cannot be opened in commercial or academic SOLIDWORKS. Neutral exports such as STEP, IGES, STL, DXF and DWG can be opened anywhere.

Can I sell products designed with SOLIDWORKS for Makers?

Yes, while your revenue from them stays under $2,000 a year. Above that, Dassault says you need a commercial or startup licence.

Can I upgrade my Makers licence to a commercial licence?

No. The FAQ states there is no upgrade path from a Makers licence to a commercial one. A commercial licence is bought separately.

What happens to my data if I cancel?

You keep access until the renewal date. The 3DS store FAQ says data is deleted from the servers two weeks after the subscription ends, so download everything before then.

How can I prove a design is mine if I change licence later?

Keep local copies, neutral exports and an independent dated record. BORIS for SOLIDWORKS registers CAD files with a blockchain timestamp and gives you a certificate of ownership for each registered version.

Violetta Bonenkamp, CADChain co-founder