Support & training

The PASS/Hydrosystem user manual covers installation and license key setup:

• System requirements and installation
• Key access settings (license key)

If you can't find your answer, write to support@fluidsandco.com.

The installation fails

• Run the installation package from a local disk, not from a network share or a virtual disk.
• Uninstall the program completely, then reinstall it with a package freshly downloaded from passuite.com/start.
• A previous installation completed with errors can leave invalid entries in the Windows registry. Microsoft's tool “Fix problems that block programs from being installed or removed” can clean them; contact us if the problem persists.

The program does not start

• Check that your PC meets the system requirements described in the PASS/START-PROF Knowledge Base.
• Check that the materials database exists (C:\ProgramData\PASSUITE\data\MaterialsCore.mdb) and that the user account has permissions on this folder.
• Send us the exact error message or a screenshot.

Message about an incomplete update

The update program could not resume a previous attempt because its temporary files could not be deleted. Delete them manually in C:\Users\<user>\AppData\Local\Temp\.lms and disable automatic update checking for now.

PASS web licenses are attached to a PASS ID (a personal account). To activate your license:

1. The person who will manage the license (the administrator) registers a PASS ID on the PASS ID registration page.
2. Send us the email address used for this PASS ID.
3. We assign the license to this PASS ID and send you the license file (.txt) with the Letter of Grant.
4. Download and install the latest release from passuite.com/start.
5. On the first PASS/START-PROF run, choose “I want to setup the license file” and upload the .txt file (see the article on installing a license file).

If you already created a PASS ID during your trial, simply tell us which email address it uses.

More information: video guide on PASS web licenses · Enjoy the new web licensing option of PASS Suite · PASS/START-PROF Knowledge Base.

Only the license administrator (the PASS ID the license was assigned to) can give access to other users.

1. Each new user registers his own PASS ID on the PASS ID registration page.
2. The administrator adds this PASS ID to the company license, as shown in the video guide on PASS web licenses.

A company can have more than one administrator: ask us if a second administrator is needed (for example when the usual one is away). We will send an updated license file.

The user still cannot use the license? Check again after the administrator has added the PASS ID. If the license is still not accessible, send us a screenshot of the error message.

With every new or renewed license you receive a license file (.txt) and a Letter of Grant.

1. Save the .txt file on the PC where PASS software is used. It must stay stored on this PC.
2. On the first PASS/START-PROF run, choose “I want to setup the license file” and upload the .txt file.

If we send you a new license file (for example after a change of administrator), simply replace your current license file with the new one.

For dongle licenses, the dongle update files (.sntlupx) must be applied first – see the article on updating a Sentinel HL dongle. If the update code was already applied before the dongle was shipped, you only need the license file.

Error 20012 – license expired

The license stored in the dongle has expired. If you have renewed, the renewal must be applied to the dongle: insert the dongle, open the Dongle Update Tool (KeySt) for Sentinel HL (passuite.com/start), save a state string and send it to us. We will send the update files (see the article on updating a Sentinel HL dongle).

Error 40027 – remote access

This error means the license was accessed remotely (for example through Remote Desktop), which is not possible with a local dongle. If you need remote access, switch to a web license: you do not lose any functionality. See Enjoy the new web licensing option of PASS Suite.

Other error codes are described in the PASS/START-PROF Knowledge Base.

PASS software and your work files are stored wherever you install them: on your PC, on a company server, or on a server rented by your IT department. Nothing is stored at PASS or at Fluids & Co.

• Dongle license: the dongle is physically at your site.
• Web license: the license utility only checks online that you have a valid license.

A dongle must be updated after each renewal, or to run a newer PASS/START-PROF version.

1. Prepare

Install from passuite.com/start: the Drivers and network key manager for Sentinel HL dongles (Windows) and the Dongle Update Tool (KeySt) for Sentinel HL. They are included in recent PASS/START-PROF packages.

2. Send us a state string

Insert the dongle into the PC, open KeySt, save a state string and send it to us.

3. Apply the update

You will receive update files (.sntlupx), a license file (.txt) and a Letter of Grant. Upload the .sntlupx files into KeySt and click Upgrade. Then load the license file on the first PASS/START-PROF run (see the article on installing a license file).

Older dongles may first need a conversion: we send a conversion code, you upload it into KeySt, click Upgrade, then save and send us a new state string. We then activate the latest version in the dongle.

Error during the upgrade?

• Switch off the network connection during the dongle upgrade (specific to Sentinel HL dongles), then send us a new state string.
• Check that the Sentinel HL drivers are installed, not the older SuperPro dongle drivers.
• Error codes are described in the PASS/START-PROF Knowledge Base.

PASS/Nozzle-FEM is included in PASS/START-PROF and must be launched from the START-PROF menu. Opened on its own, it may not work with your START-PROF license.

Using Nozzle-FEM standalone (outside START-PROF) requires a separate Nozzle-FEM license. Contact us for a quote.

An anchor cannot be placed directly on an elbow in START-PROF.

Recommended method (START-PROF team): insert 3 nodes into the elbow (both ends and the middle) and place an anchor on each of the 3 nodes.

Simpler alternative: place a node close to the elbow on the straight pipe (a user reported about 1.5 ft away) and put the anchor there.

The PASS/START-PROF on-demand training is an online course on pipe stress analysis for above-ground and underground piping and pipelines. It is based on START-PROF but is also useful to users of other pipe stress tools.

• Format: pre-recorded video lectures, quizzes, examples and handouts, at your own pace.
• Duration: about 25–30 hours (an introduction and 8 sections).
• Topics: user interface, piping supports, stress analysis theory and results evaluation, underground pipe modelling, static and rotating equipment, expansion joints, flexible hoses and couplings, non-metallic piping, external interfaces.
• Audience: process, piping and mechanical engineers working on piping stress analysis and design.
• Certificate: a certificate of completion from the learning platform and a certificate from the PASS team.
• Bonus: trainees receive a free 30-day PASS/START-PROF license.

Details and enrolment: PASS/START-PROF on-demand training. The course is hosted on Udemy; the price may vary by country.

A series of about twenty short videos showing the basic modelling steps in PASS/START-PROF. It was produced by Moonish Engineering, the PASS distributor in Australia, and is also available on Whatispiping.com.

Topics include: creating a new project, adding pipes and load cases, anchors, bends, nodes (adding, moving, renumbering, global coordinates), units, tees, reducers, valves, and supports (resting support, guide, line stop, special supports).

Watch the START-PROF video training series

For a complete course, see also the PASS/START-PROF on-demand training.

The PASS team publishes a free series of short video tutorials on PASS/HYDROSYSTEM on YouTube (24 videos). They walk you through the software step by step, starting with how to enter fluid properties.

• Start with video 01 – How to enter the fluid properties in Hydrosystem
• See the full HYDROSYSTEM playlist
• More videos on the PASS YouTube channel

Questions while following the tutorials? Write to support@fluidsandco.com.