Compare Features - Select Parts to Compare

First, you must select two parts to compare.

Use the Compare Features utility to compare the features of two similar parts. For example, if you have an original and a modified version of a part, the Compare Features utility analyzes the features, then groups them according to unique or modified features. The results are displayed in the graphics area and in a tree-structured format so you can easily see the differences in the two parts.

  1. Download and extract the sample files for this tutorial:
    1. Click here to download swutilities.zip to your Downloads folder.
      For more information on downloading and managing sample files, see Sample Files.
    2. Browse to the Downloads folder and extract swutilities.zip to a convenient location.
      For example, to organize your tutorial sample files, create a folder in your Documents folder named tutorial_files. Then extract into that folder to create a subfolder named swutilities that contains the SOLIDWORKS part files named bracket_a.SLDPRT (original part) and bracket_b.SLDPRT (revision of bracket_a.SLDPRT) .
  2. Click Compare Features (Tools toolbar) or Tools > Compare > Features.
  3. In the Task Pane, in Reference document, select Bracket_A.SLDPRT.
    The Reference document (original document) is the document to which the Modified document (revised document) is compared.
    If the Compare tab closes, click to redisplay it. Click Auto Show to keep the Compare tab visible.
  4. In Modified document, select Bracket_B.SLDPRT.
    The Modified document (revised document) is the document that is compared to the Reference document (original document).