Installing VSTA

VSTA must be installed in order to use the Robot Programming translation commands (Create Robot Program, Import Robot Program, and NRL Teach). It is best to install VSTA during the installation of the 3DEXPERIENCE. Before running the 3DEXPERIENCE installer, you must install several prerequisites in order to be able to install VSTA.

This task shows you how to:

Before you begin:
  • For R2016x and later: To edit the translators, you must have a valid version of Microsoft Visual Studio installed before installing 3DEXPERIENCE.
  • Always install VSTA during the 3DEXPERIENCE installation.
  • If you have multiple versions of 3DEXPERIENCE, you must re-register the version you are currently using.
See Also
Importing and Loading OLP Translators

Installation Checklist

The following steps describe the preferred method to install VSTA and subsequently edit translators.

  1. To edit translators, you must have a supported version of Microsoft Visual Studio installed before installing 3DEXPERIENCE.
    Release Version
    R2015x and earlier N/A (uses VSTA built in editor)
    R2016x, R2017x

    Visual Studio 2012 (Professional edition only)1

    Visual Studio 2013 (Community or Professional edition)

    R2018x, R2019x

    Visual Studio 2012 (Professional edition only)1

    Visual Studio 2013, 2015, or 2017 (Community or Professional edition)

    Note: 1 Visual Studio 2012 is recommended with R2016x and later, as debugging does not work well with other translators. See Debugging Translators
  2. Install .NET prior to installing 3DEXPERIENCE (requires reboot).
    Release Version
    R2015x and earlier
    R2016x, R2017x 4.5.2
    R2018x, R2019x 4.6.2
  3. Install .NET 3.5 SP1 prior to installing 3DEXPERIENCE.
  4. Install 3DEXPERIENCE and check the box to install VSTA (Visual Studio Tools for Applications) during the installation.

    Note: If you are using the cloud (online) installer, this option does not exist. In this case, VSTA will be installed automatically if .NET 3.5 SP1 and the required version from the tables above are both installed on your computer.

Recovering from a Missing VSTA Installation

If you forgot to check I want to install Visual Studio Tool For Applications during the 3DEXPERIENCE installation, you can either uninstall and re-install 3DEXPERIENCE or perform the following steps.

  1. Install the appropriate .NET version indicated above.
  2. Install .NET 3.5 SP1.
  3. Install the correct version of VSTA.
    Release VSTA Version Installer
    R2015x and earlier VSTA 2.0 vsta20.exe and VSTAR20.exe
    R2016x, R2017x VSTA 2013 and VSTA 2012 installed with single installer DSVSTA2013Installer.exe
    R2018x VSTA 2017 vsta_setup.exe
    Note: Installers indicated above are located in the <installation directory>\win_b64\VSTA folder of your 3DEXPERIENCE installation.
  4. Run the VSTA registration steps described in Running Multiple Versions of 3DEXPERIENCE.

Recovering from a Missing Visual Studio Installation

If you did not install Visual Studio before VSTA and now want to edit the translator, you can perform the following steps.

  1. Uninstall Visual Studio Tool For Applications (VSTA). Uninstall all versions of Dassault Systems - VSTA and Visual Studio Tools For Applications, if they exist.
  2. Install a supported version of Microsoft Visual Studio.
  3. Re-install VSTA.
  4. Run the VSTA registration steps described in Running Multiple Versions of 3DEXPERIENCE.