Passing Parameters to SOLIDWORKS Macros through SWBasic Macros

Solution for passing parameters to SOLIDWORKS macros by replacing text in SWBasic macros

labels: [parameters, swb]

SWBasic (*.swb) macros are a type of traditional macros that are still supported in the SOLIDWORKS application.

One advantage of this macro type is that it is saved in plain text. This allows third-party applications to dynamically create macros. In particular, this technique can be used to simulate passing parameters to SOLIDWORKS macros.

For example, you can create the following template macro:

template.swb

Dim swApp As SldWorks.SldWorks

Sub main()
        
    Set swApp = Application.SldWorks
        
     swApp.SendMsgToUser "Specified parameter: {{Argument1}}"
    
End Sub

Where {{Argument1}} is a placeholder for the parameter value that will be filled by an external application or script:

static void Main(string[] args)
{
    var macroPath = args[0];
    var param = args[1];
    
    var templateMacro = File.ReadAllText(macroPath);
    var macro = templateMacro.Replace("{{Argument1}}", param);

    var tempMacroPath = Path.Combine(Path.GetTempPath(), Path.GetFileName(macroPath));
    File.WriteAllText(tempMacroPath, macro);

The generated file can be run like a regular SOLIDWORKS macro.