VW itself takes 15min to launch if workgroup file is on VPN

[Ben Jameson]

We’re now working from home and having VW issues related to the workgroup folder. We’re using a split tunnel VPN that uses our local wifi for everything, except connecting to our office server which uses the office internet. File transfer to the server over internet is still relatively fast (over 20mbps).

 

The issue we’re having is VW takes 15min to open without any project, and once open nearly every project file will crash VW.

 

The temporary solution has been to remove the workgroup file link, and then VW opens in less than a minute and opens files normally.

 

We heavily use the workgroup folder to coordinate resources between projects so this is only a temporary solution for us.

 

Please could you help.

 

Thank you

[Jeremy Best]

Hi @Ben Jameson, 

 

I provide Tech Support for Vectorworks users in New Zealand and the Pacific Islands. I've had a few encounters where users are being hampered by the limitations of VPNs that have been set up for them. In all cases so far, performance issues have been factored by one or more of the following; network communication speeds, the amount of network traffic, the speed and availability of the server. These factors apply to LANs as well. 

 

Vectorworks recommend the use of Dropbox for shared files/resources (Workgroup folders) as well as Project Sharing specifically. That way your workflow can't be impeded by inadequate network traffic, network speed, server availability or server speed, because all files are stored locally and syncing occurs for everyone, automatically, in the background. I suggest you request such a service be set up for your office. 

It's great you've confirmed that the Workgroup folder is the source of the delay. If using Dropbox is outside company policy, perhaps your IT people can set up a synced, shared folder to put it in. - A sort of in-house implementation like Dropbox. 

 

If you wish to use Project Sharing with Dropbox (etc) please refer to official documentation about this from Vectorworks Inc. See this topic in Vectorworks Help.