Performance Options
Changes
to these settings do not affect documents that are already open.
To set performance options:
Click Options 
(Standard toolbar)
or Tools, Options.
Select
Performance.
Select
from the options described below, then click OK.
Click Reset to restore
factory defaults for all system options or only for options on this page.
Verification
on rebuild. Controls the level of error checking when you create
or modify features. For most applications, the default setting (cleared)
is adequate and results in a faster rebuild of the model.
Ignore
self-intersection check for some sheet metal features. Suppresses
warning messages for certain sheet metal parts; for example, when flanges
share a common edge and the part flattens correctly but displays a warning
message.
Transparency
High-quality transparency is similar to looking through clear glass.
Low-quality transparency (the default) is similar to viewing an object
through a mesh or screen. (This option is not available when Large Assembly Mode
is on.)
High quality
for normal view mode. While the part or assembly is not moving
or rotating, the transparency is high quality. When moved or rotated with
the pan or rotate tools, the application switches to low-quality transparency,
enabling you to rotate the model faster. This is important if the part
or assembly is complex.
High quality
for dynamic view mode. High-quality transparency is retained while
moving or rotating the model with the pan or rotate tools. Depending on
your graphics card, this option may result in slower performance.
If the display is slow when using transparent planes
in Shaded With Edges or Shaded mode, it may be because of the
Transparency you
specified. With some graphics cards, the display speed improves
if you do not use high-quality transparency.
Curvature generation
Select one of the following options. (This option is not available when
Large
Assembly Mode is on.)
Only on demand.
Initial curvature display is slower, but uses less memory.
Always (for every
shaded model). Curvature displays more quickly on the first display,
but extra memory is always used (RAM and disk) for every part that you
create or open.
Level of detail
Set the slider to Off
(for no detail) or from More (slower)
to Less (faster) to specify the
level of detail during dynamic view operations (zoom, pan, and rotate)
in assemblies, multi-body parts, and draft views in drawings. (This option
is not available when Large
Assembly Mode is on.)
Assemblies
Automatically
load components lightweight. Loads all the individual components
and sub-assemblies in assemblies that you open as lightweight. However,
if Always resolve sub-assemblies is selected,
sub-assemblies are not opened lightweight. For more information, see Lightweight
Parts.
Always
resolve sub-assemblies. Sub-assemblies are resolved when an assembly
opens lightweight. The components in the sub-assemblies are lightweight.
Check out-of-date
lightweight components. Specify how you want the system to
load lightweight components that
are out-of-date. (This option is not available when Large Assembly Mode
is on.)
Don't Check.
Loads the assemblies without checking for out-of-date components.
Indicate.
Loads the assemblies and marks them with an icon 
if the
assemblies contain an out-of-date component, even if the assembly is not
expanded. You can right-click an out-of-date top-level assembly and select
Set Lightweight to Resolved.
Always Resolve.
Resolves all out-of-date assemblies during load.
Resolve lightweight
components. Some operations require certain model data that is
not loaded in lightweight components. This option controls what happens
when you request one of these operations in an assembly that has lightweight
components. See also Loading
Additional Model Data.
Prompt.
Resolves lightweight components each time one of these operations is requested.
In the dialog box that appears, click Yes
to resolve the components and continue, or click Cancel
to cancel the operation. If you select Always
resolve (before you click Yes
or Cancel), the option is set
to Always.
Always.
Automatically
resolves lightweight components.
Rebuild assembly
on load. Lets you specify whether you want assemblies to be rebuilt,
so components are updated when you open them.
Prompt.
Asks if rebuild is desired each time an assembly is opened. Click Yes or No
in the dialog box that appears when you open the assembly. If you select
Don’t
ask me again (before you click Yes
or No), the option is updated
to reflect your choice (Yes changes
the option to Always, No
changes the option to Never).
Always.
Never.
This option also affects rebuilding
of parts. If you set this option to Never,
if a part had rebuild errors in an earlier save, the part does not rebuild
when you open it.
Update mass properties while saving
document. The next time you access the mass properties, the system
does not need to recalculate them (if the document has not changed). The
updating may slow the save operation. (This option is not available when
Large
Assembly Mode is on.)
Use shaded preview. You can
rotate, pan, zoom, and set standard views while maintaining the shaded
preview.
Use Software OpenGL.
Disables graphics adapter hardware acceleration and enables graphics rendering
using only software. For many graphics cards, this results in slower performance.
Select this option only if instructed to do so by technical support. You
can only select this option when there are no documents open.
If you select Use
Software OpenGL,
SolidWorks changes some of your options settings for optimum software
performance. Click
to see the options that change. You can override any of these settings
if desired.
This option is automatically selected and unavailable for change if your
graphics card does not
support hardware acceleration, or does not
support it for the current combination of resolution, number of colors,
refresh rate, and so forth.
No
preview during open (faster). Select to disable the interactive
preview, to reduce the time to load models. Clear to display the interactive
preview while the model is loading.
Go To Image Quality. Click to
switch to the Image
Quality options.