SAP2000 Version 14.2.

5
Copyright Computers and Structures, Inc., 2011
Release Date: 2011-07-08


SAP2000 Version 14.2.5 is an update to Versions 14.0.0 through 14.2.4. It is available as a full
installation on DVD, or from the ftp as a full installation or a patch.

PLEASE READ THIS FILE!
It contains important information about this new release.

Contents

1. Installation Instructions for SAP2000 Version 14.2.5
2. Patching from Versions 14.0.0 through 14.2.4
3. Installation Instructions for License Manager 8.0.5
4. File Compatibility with Older Versions
5. Significant Changes from Previous Version
6. New Features in SAP2000 Version 14
7. Important Note for Users of Version 11 and Earlier

1. Installation Instructions for SAP2000 Version 14.2.5

SAP2000 Version 14.2.5 is available as a full installation from DVD or downloaded from the ftp.
Installing SAP2000 Version 14.2.5 will uninstall Versions 14.0.0 through 14.2.4, but will not
uninstall older versions of SAP2000 (Version 12.0.2 and earlier).

The installation instructions are available in three places:
The SAP2000 Installation Card link on the SAP2000 DVD browser.
A printed document included with the program package.
In the file SAP_Install_Instructions.pdf in the root folder of the DVD.

The instructions include information about the software protection system used and installation
options and instructions. You can choose between a Standalone or Network installation.

Silent installation is also available for the Standalone and Workstation installations. Please contact
CSI Technical Support if you need further information.

A new key driver is available for users who have licenses tied to a USB hardware key. For
Standalone installations the new driver is available in the SAP2000 14\KeyDriver\ folder. For
Network installations the new driver is available in the SAP2000 14 Server \License
Manager\KeyDriver\ folder. If your key is not recognized, please install the new key driver.

Windows User Account Control (UAC)

For recent versions of the Windows operating system (Windows 7, Vista, and XP SP3), User
Account Control (UAC) is enabled by default. When UAC is turned on, you must explicitly give
permission to any program, such as SAP2000 or the installer, that wants to use "Administrative"
privileges. Any program that tries to use Administrative privileges without your permission will be
denied access.

Standalone, Server, and Workstation installations for SAP2000 require "Administrative" privileges
to run. When installing SAP2000 with UAC enabled, you should expect to be prompted to allow the
installer access to system folders and Windows registry. Please allow it to continue so that the
installation can complete.

2. Patching from Versions 14.0.0 through 14.2.4

Whenever possible, full installation is recommended. However a patch is available that can be
downloaded from the ftp and used to modify an existing SAP2000 v14.0.0 through v14.2.4
installation. If this fails for any reason, you should instead download and install the complete
Version 14.2.5, as described in Section 1 above. The patch cannot be applied to versions prior to
14.0.0.

The patch is a compressed zip file that contains only the files that have changed or been added since
Version 14.0.0. Unzip the contents of the patch into the folder where SAP2000 Version 14.0.0
through 14.2.4 is installed, allowing the new files to overwrite the existing files. You will need
administrative rights to do this.

This patch can be applied to a Standalone or Server installation. All Workstation users should
close SAP2000 before patching a Server installation, or the patch will fail. All Workstation
installations should then be updated by running the setup.exe which is located in the server
installation folder.

When SAP2000 is run for the first time after patching, you may need to Run as Administrator if
UAC is enabled on your system. See section Windows User Account Control (UAC) above for
more information.

3. Installation Instructions for License Manager 8.0.5

The information in this section does not apply if you are using standalone licenses.

For new Network installations, see the System Administrator's Help for more detailed information
about the License Manager and the License Manager Administration program WlmAdmin.exe.

This installation contains Sentinel RMS License Manager 8.0.5.
If you are currently running Version 8.0.5 or higher of SentinelLM you do not need to re-
install License Manager.
If you are currently running a version that is older than 8.0.5 then you must install version
8.0.5. Uninstall the older version prior to installing this version. IMPORTANT! All
commuter licenses should be checked in before uninstalling the old version. Note that
Sentinel RMS License Manager 8.0.5 will recognize older licenses for Computers and
Structures products. Please refer to the SAP2000 Installation Card or the
SAP2000_Install_Instructions file for information on how to do this.
If you are serving licenses on later versions of the Windows operating system (Vista,
Windows 7, etc.), you will need to use Sentinel RMS License Manager 8.3.0, which is
available from Computers and Structures, Licensing Department, upon request. This version
cannot be locked to a disk ID, but instead requires a computer ID key. Note that version 8.3.0
is not required when the license server is running on older versions of Windows. It does not
matter what operating system is used to run SAP2000.

To speed up finding a network license when SAP2000 is launched, you can do either or both of the
following:
Create a text file, LEVEL.TXT, and enter the ProgramLevel in a single line. The
ProgramLevel should be one of the following:
BASIC/PLUS/ADVANCED/BASICC/PLUSC/ADVANCEDC/ADVANCEDI
Save this file to the folder where SAP2000 is installed. This file will cause the program to
find the license faster. Note that this file will be included when a new license is sent.
Create a text file, LMHOST.INI, and enter the network name or IP address of the machine
that is running the License Manager. If you are serving licenses on more than one machine,
enter each name or IP address on a separate line of text. Save this file to the folder where
SAP2000 is installed.

As an alternative to using the LEVEL.TXT file, you can specify the program level as a command-
line option. To do this, use the Windows Run command or create a shortcut pointing to
SAP2000.exe in the installation folder. Add the following text to the command line after
SAP2000.exe
/L ProgramLevel
where ProgramLevel is one of the values listed above for the LEVEL.TXT file. Specifying
ProgramLevel on the command line will supersede the value in the LEVEL.TXT file.

If you experience problems with the license please refer to the appropriate License Trouble
Shooting Guide... located in the SAP2000 program folder.

4. File Compatibility with Older Versions

SAP2000 Version 14.2.5 can open model files (*.SDB) from older versions of SAP2000, as well as
import older SAP2000 database files (*.S2K, *.$2K, *.XLS, and *.MDB.) Note that once you save
or run these models in Version 14.2.5, they will not be usable by older versions of the program, so
you should save them under a new name after opening or importing them in V14.2.5.

5. Significant Changes from Previous Version

We have listed only significant changes here. For a complete list of changes, please see the separate
file ReleaseNotes.PDF in the SAP2000 folder and available by using the Help > Documentation
command in SAP2000. Note that most changes do not affect most users.

Note that all Incidents listed below (as well as others) have also been resolved in either SAP2000
v15.0.0 or CSiBridge v15.1.0 or both, as applicable. We recommend that you upgrade to SAP2000
v15.0.0 and/or CSiBridge v15.1.0 at your earliest convenience.

Changes from Version 14.2.4 to Version 14.2.5 (issued 07/08/2011)

Incidents Resolved
Incident 33123 (Loading): An issue was resolved where the cable diameter used when
calculating open structure auto wind loads on cable objects may be incorrect leading to
incorrect loads being applied to the cable. The diameter was usually too large, causing the
load to be overestimated.
Incident 34732 (Loading): An incident has been resolved where the point of application of
the user-defined automated quake (seismic) loads on the diaphragm could be incorrect. This
only affects the statically applied quake loads of type "User Loads" where the loads were
specified to be applied with respect to the center of mass of the diaphragm. The center-of-
mass location was approximate and was not being correctly calculated from the assembled
mass matrix from analysis. This has been corrected.
Incident 32130 (Frame Design): An incident was resolved where in a particular model file
the indexing of steel design data was corrupted. The design was done correctly and was
displayed correctly on screen and in the tables, but would show an incorrect frame object
name in the design details. This has now been trapped and corrected in the opening of files.
A message is given if such corruption of indexing is found.
Incident 34570 (Frame Design): An incident is resolved for steel frame design using code
"AS 4100-1998" where the parameter lambda_n as specified in section AS 6.3.3 was
incorrectly calculated. The term fy/250 was taken to the fourth root rather than to the square
root. This could underestimate lambda_n in the common case where fy is greater than 250
MPa, which would then overestimate the nominal member capacity (Nc) and be under-
conservative.
Incidents 34908 (Frame Design): An incident was resolved for steel frame design using the
Australian code "AS 4100-1998" in which the compactness criteria for the web of I sections,
box, channel, double-channel, and T-sections could be incorrectly computed for major and
minor direction bending. The b/t ratio being checked for the web was actually taken as the b/t
for the flange. Here web means the portion of the section that is parallel to the local 2 axis of
the member, regardless of the direction of bending. Results were unaffected for compact
sections. For non-compact and slender sections, the classification, and hence the moment
capacities, could be unconservative in the case where the b/t ratio for the web is larger than
that for the flange.
Incident 34577 (Results Display and Output): An incident was resolved for bridge modeler in
which the stress results for section cuts in steel I-girder deck sections could be incorrect at
locations within a span or span segment where the cross section of the steel I-girder changes.
At each section cut within a span or span segment, results are always calculated just
BEFORE and just AFTER the section cut. Previously, the section properties of the steel I-
girder used AFTER the section cut were being taken to be the same as those BEFORE the
section cut. This may adversely affect the stresses reported in the steel I-girder at the AFTER
location. The results at the BEFORE location were correct. Forces and moments at the
BEFORE and AFTER locations were not affected. Results at the ends of a span or span
segment were not affected. Versions affected: v14.2.0 to v14.2.4.
Incident 34828 (Results Display and Output): An incident was resolved where, in some rare
cases, the request for Section Cut forces would result in a runtime error or cause incorrect
results to be reported. The problem was due to an indexing error that could only be triggered
if line constraints were present due to incompatible area or solid meshes, and even then it
was uncommon. Only user-defined or drawn Section Cut results were affected, no other
results were affected. Section cuts that are internally created to calculate bridge forces and
stresses for design, display, and output were not affected. This issue affected versions 12.0.1
to 14.2.4.
Incident 30642 (External Import/Export): An incident was resolved for the export to SAFE
where the wall loads were not being exported when the "Loads from above" option was
selected. This had no effect on the results in SAP2000, and was obvious in the model
imported to SAFE.
Other minor Incidents as detailed in ReleaseNotes.PDF.

6. New Features in SAP2000 Version 14

For a full list of features, capabilities, and enhancements, please visit the SAP2000 v14 news page at
http://www.csiberkeley.com/SAP2000_news/v14/

7. Important Note for Users of Version 11 and Earlier

If you are upgrading from Version 11 or earlier, you should be aware that there was a significant
change in nomenclature regarding loading starting with Version 12:

The term load pattern replaces load case of older versions
The term load case replaces analysis case of older versions
The term load combination has not changed

These changes are being made consistently in all future releases of CSI products. These are simply
changes in terminology; the concepts and behavior remain the same, and models from Version 11
and earlier will open in Version 14 without any action required by you.