Install LDD2004 Alongside Civil3D 2011 in Win7(64)?

I am sure it won't work. I tried installing LDD2004 on Vista and kept getting the message that it was not compatible and it would not work.

We run multiple installs of AutoCAD on single desktops primarily to troubleshoot. Our IT guys tell me that if you do things in the right order the multiple installs usually go OK.

AutoCAD is very finicky about install sequences, and AutoDesk's advice is to install the oldest software version first, get it running OK against the license manager then install the next oldest, get it running OK, then the next oldest... You get the idea.

Now, our experience with this is in the 32-bit Windows XP Pro environment using a networked license manager. We are just breaking trail with Civil 3D 2011 in the 64 bit Windows 7 environment. I'll tell you from personal experience that AutoDesk (and plenty of other software developers) has not yet worked through the complexities of moving to 64-bit software platforms AND dealing with Windows 7's maddeningly complex permissions and security issues. They are two separate yet invariably related issues.

I don't think you have anything to lose by trying the install & configure approach I've outlined above. We've used it on several machines with luck.

And of course you'll let us all know how well things went... 😉

Thanks!

After our IT Section told me that it was "absolutely impossible" to install LDD2004 on a Windows7(64) machine without using Virtual XP-Mode, I shocked them by inserting the disc and installing it without so much as a hiccup... I think that may have pi$$ed them off a bit...

Anyhow, fast-forward 3 years to last week when my box died and had to be rebuilt. They tell me that they will no longer install LDD2004, so they went ahead and installed 2011. Ive heard that installing "chronologically" seems to work ok, however the cat is already out of the bag and 2011 is currently running. I have the 2004 install disc and the license code, so I plan on trying myself as soon as I get the nerve...

Thanks again!

Bob K.
Anchorage, AK

Bob,
Good evening.
The computer I'm typing this message on has LDD 2005 (which saves to .dwg 2004), Civil3D 2011, and Carlson 2011.
It is a 64-bit Windows 7 machine purchased at Best-Buy...a pretty decent machine, but not a super-computer.
I was told I had to run the older version through some kind of virtual mode...I think this virtual mode is only available with the Ultimate Edition of Windows (which I don't have)...Maybe I'm lucky or something, but I have this configuration on 2 machines...no problems.
I can't remember the install order, but I think it was different on each machine.
Feel free to email me regarding any of this...though I'm not a wizard with this stuff (hence the 2005 version).

Just keep in mind that you're violating the terms of your subscription agreement, unless your 2004 seats were never upgraded. If you're on subscription, Autodesk only allows you to install the current version + the previous three, and LDD is considered part of your C3D subscription. So LDD 2008 is about to be retired, and LDD 2009 will soon be the only version that can be used without violating the subscription terms.

Autodesk still hasn't said what's going to happen to Land Desktop next year, when the 2009 products are retired.

Sinc, I am not sure that is correct. I know that may be the way the license agreement reads now, but I think AutoDesk lost their last court case on the older version issue. I believe that the court ruled that the buyer could maintain an older license because that is what they paid for. They ruled against a forced upgrade but allowed AutoDesk the "right" to no longer "support" older licenses. That's why you see old copies of AutoCad on eBay. The courts ruled that was legal. AutoDesk has surely appealed, but I believe this is how it now stands.

That's nice if it's true. It always struck me as being rather punitive, setting up the terms in such a way that we had to make sure to remove old versions after three years or be in violation of our license terms. A couple weeks back, I noticed that one of our computers still has C3D 2007 on it. We haven't used C3D 2007 in years, but it was never uninstalled from that machine, and nobody noticed.

I looked at the subscription terms, and they've been changed to just say that Autodesk will only support the current version and three previous releases. As far as which versions you are allowed to install, it says to check in your Subscription Center account, and it should say there.