Issues when Opening AutoCAD Drawings
- Last UpdatedAug 05, 2025
- 2 minute read
The following are the common issues found when open AutoCAD drawings.
Can’t Start AutoCAD Error
On every client PC on which AutoCAD is going to be used to produce drawings etc. from AVEVA Electrical, the following variables must be set to 0 (zero):
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STARTUP
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STARTMODE
If they are left at their default AutoCAD setting (for example), the error will be caused when a user attempts to open AutoCAD from AVEVA Electrical.
Error Decrypting Data Message
When attempting to open an AutoCAD Template, from within AVEVA Electrical the following message may be received:
Error Decrypting Data
This is caused by the fact that the original drawing was created by an application that is not trusted by AutoCAD. To bypass this problem the following action should be completed:
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Open the drawing in native AutoCAD.
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At the command line enter: Dwgcheck.
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Enter a new value = 0.
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Save the drawing.
This will prevent this error occurring.
AutoCAD 2016 SP1 and above File Loading Security Concern
When launching AutoCAD 2016 SP1 and later versions, warning messages such as the following may be displayed:

This is because AutoCAD 2016 (and above) has inbuilt functionality for checking the trusted locations of dlls when they are loaded. To prevent these types of message being displayed, implement the following steps:
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Open any drawing in AutoCAD 2016 or above.
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Right-click in the drawing area.
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Select the last option, Options.
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Open the Files tab.
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Expand the Trusted Locations node.
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Add the following path under the Trusted Locations node:
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<AE Installation Path>\<AutoCAD version>\ACAddIn32 (for a 32-bit operating system) or ACAddIn64 (for a 64-bit operating system)
For example, for an installation in the default folder, using AutoCAD 2018, and running on a 65-bit operating system, enter the following:
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C:\Program Files (x86)\AVEVA\Electrical12.2\AutoCAD2018\ACAddIn64
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Click OK and then open the drawing from Designer. The warning message should no longer be displayed.