3D Inspection System software is compatible with both Windows 10 and 11.  Many wonder if anything special is needed to upgrade to Windows 11.

The vast majority of Windows 11 users have reported no issues. That being said, a few people in general have reported general issues with upgrading to Windows 11 on certain hardware, as you'll find from a general online search, so issues can albeit rarely occur when upgrading. 

Before Upgrading Windows

We advise to take normal precautions and make sure you have anything important backed up (just in case, Murphy's law!).  Don't forget to make a precautionary backup of your 3D data files using File > Backup All files from inside 3D, since this backup would contain more custom 3D information than a general backup of folders or items made on your computer may contain. More information can be found here: http://www.3dinspection.com/Tips-and-Tricks/safeguarding-your-important-3d-inspection-system-data.html
To keep backups small and fast, we'd recommend archiving and moving any older inspection reports more than a year old out of your data folder (a good idea to save space and clean house while making future backups smaller), see http://www.3dinspection.com/Tips-and-Tricks/how-can-i-archive-and-remove-old-reports-from-my-hard-drive.html

Be sure to store your 3Dbackup zip file along with your program installer on a removable drive or in cloud storage for safe keeping, as good practice dictates that you always store important backups off the hard drive of the computer you are using. These backup items should not normally be needed after upgrading unless something unexpectedly and catastrophically were to go awry. As the adage goes, one is only tempting fate by not maintaining current backups.

Also it is a good idea to finish up any pending inspections or deadlines first, before choosing to start the installation, since one may not know how long downloading and upgrading windows may take on a given computer as it records the prior setup. 

We can always send a new installer to subscribers if needed, but we do recommend storing your last downloaded installer along with your periodic 3D backups in the same place for convenience, just in case you ever need them.

Other than that you may want to do a quick search for your particular model computer and Windows 11 upgrading issue online just to make sure there's no known issues with your particular hardware. The Microsoft wizards are designed to check for compatibility before offering the upgrade, but there always seems to be an exception out there somewhere. I wouldn't generally expect an issue though.

 

Moving to a new Windows Computer

If you are upgrading or switching to a new computer, then before installing 3D on a new computer we recommend checking for any pending updates first and restarting Windows to make sure nothing pending interferes with installation (new computers off the shelf often are missing a few updates).

Also if you wish to use Windows with a local account (optional) instead of a Microsoft account you may wish to reset it to set it up that way and mind find some information here helpful: https://3dinspection.com/en/discussion-forum/10046-general-and-computer-hardware/702-reset-windows-to-use-a-local-windows-account-instead-of-microsoft-account

  

After Upgrading Windows

If 3D Inspection System was previously installed, after upgrading Windows (and sometimes after a general windows update), you will need to reinstall the PDF driver used by the software: https://3dinspection.com/en/component/cjforum/topic/10047-general-forum/installation-and-upgrading/704-fixing-printer-not-activated-error-code-30?Itemid=159

That should be all that is needed for 3D Inspection System software after upgrading, however a handful of folks experienced a SQL connection error when SQL services hadn't automatically restarted after upgrading windows.  If you experience this, you may find it can be resolved by restarting windows a couple times to allow any final updates or settings windows needs to complete, or you may restart SQL services manually: https://www.3dinspection.com/forums-discussion/10047-installation-and-upgrading/463-restart-sql-services-in-windows-10

If you have any issues with your mouse not working as expected after upgrading, this topic may help: https://www.3dinspection.com/forums-discussion/10046-general-and-computer-hardware/467-mouse-not-working-right-in-windows-10

Finally, it's worth saying (this applies to any version of Windows), when something goes wrong with your computer or something isn't working properly, restarting is the first thing you should try. In fact, you should be restarting your computer periodically if you don’t shut it down each night. This allows windows updates to properly finish installing, which could be holding up other processes or tasks and impeding normal operation.  Although it may be waiting to prompt you to restart later at a more convenient time, it may be worth restarting sooner if something isn't working properly as expected.