In this video, I'm going to show you exactly how to connect Claude to SolidWorks, so you can build and edit real parts just by describing what you want in plain English. We're going to use a free connector called Swappy Pilot, and by the end of this video, you'll go from a completely blank computer to actually watching Claude write and run code that changes a live SolidWorks part. If you've ever wished you could just say, "Make this bracket 60 mm instead of 40 in instead of digging through menus, or batch export all these parts to DXF." This is exactly that.

No SolidWorks macros to write by hand, no digging through the API documentation yourself. This video has clear steps in order, and I'll explain exactly what each command does as we go. Not just type this, but why you're typing it. Stick with me, and by the end you'll have this fully working on your own machine. Before we install anything, let's quickly cover what's actually happening under the hood, because it'll make every step that follows make a lot more sense.

Swappy Pilot is what's called an MCP. That stands for Model Context Protocol, and it's basically a way of giving Claude access to outside tools and information. But here's the important part. Swappy Pilot itself never touches SolidWorks. It doesn't open your part. It doesn't move anything. All it does is answer documentation questions. Things like, "What's the correct method to change a dimension?" Or, "What parameters does this function need?" So, where does the actual doing happen?

Claude code, that's the AI coding agent we're going to use, takes what it learns from Swappy Pilot and writes a small C# program based on that. Then it runs that program using a tool called .NET. That program is what actually reaches into SolidWorks using the same Windows automation that SolidWorks VBA macros have always used. Think of it as two separate connections. Claude Code talks to Swappy Pilot over the internet purely for documentation.

And separately, the C# program it writes talks to SolidWorks directly on your machine. Two different connections, two different jobs. Okay, with that mental model in place, let's actually build it. Step one. First thing we need is Claude Code itself. This is the AI agent that's going to do all the work. Open PowerShell. Just search for it in your start menu. You don't need to run it as administrator. Type this command and press enter.

This one line downloads and installs Claude Code completely on its own. No extra tools, nothing else to configure first. Once that finishes, close PowerShell completely and reopen it. This matters because if you check the version without restarting, it'll error out. Now, let's confirm it installed correctly. In PowerShell, type the Claude version command. If you see a version number like this, you're good. Now, let's log in.

Type just Claude. This opens a browser link. Sign in with your Claude account. I already have Claude installed in this computer. One important thing before we move on. Claude Code needs a paid plan. Pro, Max, Team, Enterprise, or an API or console account with credit all work. The free claude.ai plan on its own does not include Claude Code. So, make sure you're signed into an account. Once you're logged in, come back to PowerShell.

You're all set for this step. Step two. In this step, we need something called the .NET SDK. Remember from earlier, Swappy Pilot's whole job is to help Claude write little C# programs. Those programs need something to actually compile and run them, and that's exactly what {dot}net does. Head to {dot}net.microsoft.com and download the SDK. Make sure it says SDK, not just runtime, since runtime alone can't build new programs, only run pre-built ones.

Run the installer. It's about as simple as installing any other program. Click install, wait a minute or two, done. No configuration needed. Here again, I already have {dot}net installed. Step three. Now let's make a folder where all of this SolidWorks automation work is actually going to live. Still in PowerShell, type these two lines one at a time. The first line creates a brand new empty folder called SSW automation directly on your C drive.

To ensure the folder has been created properly, head to your C folder. Here you should see a folder created with the name SW automation. Next, type the second line in PowerShell and click enter. The line actually moves you inside it. Creating a folder doesn't automatically put you inside it, so you need both lines. You'll know it worked because your prompt changes to show the new folder name. That's PowerShell confirming exactly which folder it's standing in.

Step four. Now for the actual connection. Still inside that folder, type this single line. Before typing this line, ensure it is one continuous line. First copy and paste it into a text file to remove any space, and then copy and paste it into PowerShell. Let's quickly break this line down, because it's worth understanding rather than just copying blindly. Claude means we're talking to Claude code. MCP add means add a new connector.

Swap I pilot is just the nickname we're saving it under. Transport HTTP tells it to reach this connector over the internet, rather than running a program locally. And scope user is important. It means remember this everywhere, not just in this one folder. Skip that last part and the connection can look broken later just because you're standing in a different folder. Once that runs, you'll see a confirmation that it was added to your config.

But that only confirms it was saved, not that it's actually working. To check that, we run one more command and there it is, connected with a check mark. That's the real confirmation. One more thing worth knowing, unlike some other connectors, there's nothing to download here. Swappy pilot lives entirely on the internet. This one command is the whole install. Step five. In this step, we're going to add a small file that tells Claude code exactly how it should behave with this tool.

Head to the Swappy pilot GitHub page. I'll have the link in the description and find the file called claude.md. Use GitHub's download button to save this file directly and save it straight into your SW automation folder. So what is this file actually doing? .md just means markdown, a plain text file with light formatting, nothing special or proprietary. Any text editor can open it. But this specific file name matters a lot.

Claude code automatically looks for a file called exactly claude.md in whichever folder it's working in and reads it automatically at the start of every session as standing instructions. In our case, this note tells Claude code one really important rule. Always look up the real SolidWorks API through Swappy pilot before writing any code. Never guess. That single habit is what makes this whole workflow reliable instead of a total gamble.

Quick way to confirm it saved correctly. In file explorer, check that the file's type column says MD file, not text document. If it says text document, Windows probably snuck a hidden {dot} txt onto the end and you'll want to rename it. Step six. Now, simply open SolidWorks like you normally would with a part or assembly loaded. For this first test, even a totally blank new part works fine. All right, this is the moment.

Let's actually wake Claude code up and see it work. Back in PowerShell, inside our SW automation folder, type just Claude. This opens the actual chat. Different from the setup command earlier. Let's start with something small and safe just to prove the connection works. We'll ask it to list the features in the currently open SolidWorks part. Watch what happens. Claude code searches SW I pilot for the right API pattern, figures out which methods it needs to walk through the feature tree, then writes a small C# project to actually do that.

Before it actually runs anything, it pauses and asks for your permission. This is a safety feature. It's not being unsure of itself. It's making sure you stay in control before it does anything on your machine. Go ahead and approve it. And there we go. It ran the program with {dot}net, reached into our live SolidWorks session, and reported back the actual feature list. In our case, since this is a blank part, it just found the standard empty scaffolding, reference planes, origin, no custom geometry yet.

But that's exactly what we expected and more importantly, it worked. Now, let's prove it can also build something, not just read. Same chat. We'll ask it to create a sketch with a rectangle and extrude it. Same loop again. It searches for the right sketch and extrude API calls, writes a new C# program, asks permission, and runs it. And look at that. A real rectangular block just appeared in our SolidWorks window. That's the full loop working end-to-end.

Swappy Pilot for the documentation, Claude code to write the code, .NET to run it, and SolidWorks actually building the part. One important habit before we move on, none of this auto saves. If you like a result, save it yourself, or explicitly tell Claude to save the document. Otherwise, closing without saving loses the work. If you'd rather not work out of PowerShell every time, there's a nicer way. The code tab inside the Claude desktop app.

Click new session, and before typing anything, set two things. Environment, set to local. This matters. It means run on my own machine, since SolidWorks only exists here, not in the cloud. And project folder, set to our same SW automation folder. Since we added Swappy Pilot with that remember everywhere setting earlier, it carries over automatically here, too. Same underlying config file, just a different window. One thing to know, if you go looking for Swappy Pilot in the apps connectors or directory pop-up, the one with Gmail, Slack, and so on, you won't find it there.

That's a completely separate system for a different kind of connector. To actually check Swappy Pilot status in this app, there's a small {slash} command you can type inside an active session instead. And from here on, it behaves exactly like the terminal did. Same connector, same Claude.md notes, just a friendlier window. A couple of things that'll make this workflow noticeably better the more you use it. First, be specific.

Something like change the channel size is too vague for Claude to act on confidently. It'll have to stop and ask you which channel and what new size. Give it the specifics up front, and you'll skip that round of back and forth entirely. Second, grow your Claude.md file over time, but only with things that are actually worth remembering. Not every successful task needs a note. Good candidates are things like a workaround Claude had to figure out, a preference you find yourself repeating, or a real engineering default, something like using a specific K factor for a specific sheet metal material.

You can just ask Claude in plain English to add a note like that, and it'll edit the file for you. And last, it's worth understanding that Claude doesn't get smarter about SolidWorks on its own between sessions. Each new session starts fresh. Claude.md is the actual mechanism for improvement here, not the AI learning quietly in the background, but notes you deliberately leave for your future self. And that's the complete setup, from a blank computer to Claude code to .NET to Swappy Pilot, all the way through to watching Claude actually read and build geometry inside a live SolidWorks session.

If you followed along, you should have this fully working on your own machine right now. One downside with this method is that Claude takes a long time to perform the task. In the next video, I want to push this further and find a method that will run SolidWorks using Claude in a faster way, and I'll see you in the next one.