Copy Design

Create new design objects by copying existing data within a vault. Depending on which design application you are using, copying a design involves copying a drawing and its related files, or copying an entire design structure along with the related 2D drawings for 3D models.

The Copy Design feature creates a copy of the design in the same cone of influence as the source files. In the Copy Design dialog box, you can selectively choose which parts of an existing design to copy, reuse, exclude, or replace. The actions that can be performed are restricted based on the application and the type of file selected.

General Rules for Copying a Design

The following sections provide additional help for using Autodesk Vault with different design applications.

Autodesk Inventor

Additional rules for copying a design

By default, all Inventor files are set to Reuse except for the file initially selected to be copied.
Shared files, content center files, and files outside the project structure can be changed to Copy or Replace. When a outside file or a Content Center file is set to Copy, it is copied into the same folder as the new design.
When an Inventor .dwg file is selected, it is treated like an Inventor .idw file. The dependent Inventor files that can be copied, reused, or replaced are.
When Inventor files with iLogic rules is set to Copy, the files could be detected and shown in the dialog 'Remove iLogic Files' after click OK button. User can remove the ilogic rules by turn on the checkbox.

Copy

When setting Autodesk Inventor assembly and part files to Copy in the Copy Design dialog box, the related parent assembly files, presentation files, and drawing files are also automatically set to Copy.

In addition to .dwg files, the following file types can be copied:

.iam (assembly files)
.ipt (part files)
.idw (drawing files)
.ipn (presentation files)

Reuse

When setting Autodesk Inventor assembly and part files to Reuse in the Copy Design dialog box, the related parent presentation files and drawing files are also automatically set to Reuse.

In addition to .dwg files, the following file types can be reused:

.iam (assembly f iles)
.ipt (part files)
.idw (drawing files)
.ipn (presentation files)

Exclude

Autodesk Inventor files can only be excluded from the Where Used view in the Copy Design dialog box. If the Autodesk Inventor file is listed in the Uses view, then it can not be excluded. If an AutoCAD DWG file is selected for exclusion, then all of its children are excluded.

In addition to .dwg files, the following file types can be excluded:

.idw (drawing files)
.ipn (presentation files)

Replace

In addition to .dwg files, the following file types can be reused:

.iam (assembly files)
.ipt (part files)

An existing assembly can replace a part file and an existing part file can replace an assembly file.

NoteWhile a file can be replaced using the Copy setting and naming the new file the same as an existing file, the best practice is to use the Replace setting in the Copy Design dialog box.

Reuse Library Files

When CTRL click and copy all files, library files are set to copy as well. You can right click the assmebly file, apply command Reuse Library Files from context menu, then all Library Files under this assembly will be set Reuse.

AutoCAD, AutoCAD Electrical, AutoCAD Mechanical

AutoCAD Civil 3D

Users of Vault Professional or an ERP solution

Copy a Design

Follow the instructions in this section to copy an existing design. Some steps may vary depending on the design application you are using.

Copy a Design

Select a file in either the main pane or the preview pane. Automatically published .dwf files are not directly supported.
If you are using one of the following applications, click for additional notes:

AutoCAD Electrical

Select the project definition file, .wdp.
Autodesk Inventor
If an Inventor .dwg file is selected, the associated Inventor .ipt and .iam files can be reused, copied, or replaced. When an Inventor .dwg file is selected, all of the children associated with the .dwg are listed as dependents in the Copy Design wizard. Any .dwg files attached to child files are listed in the Documentation folder.

If the incorrect Autodesk Inventor project file is listed in the Copy Design dialog box, you can specify a different .ipj file. By selecting a different .ipj, you change where new files can be stored and from where existing files can be selected.
1. Right-click an Autodesk Inventor project file, .ipj, in the Copy Design dialog box and select Set Project File.
  NoteRight-click a file in the HIstory tab to copy historical data.
2. In the Select File to Replace dialog box, locate a different .ipj file. You can browse anywhere between the current project and the root of the vault.
3. Select the new .ipj file and then click Replace.
On the toolbar, click Copy Design. The Copy Design dialog box lists the starting data set for the design to be copied.
In the Copy Design From field, the source location in the vault of the design to be copied is displayed. If you want to select a different source design, click the browse button, ..., to locate a different design in the vault.
In the Copy Design To field, specify the target location in the vault to which the design will be copied. Click the browse button, ..., to locate a folder in the vault.
The version or revision that will be copied is displayed in the Revision to Copy field.
The files that comprise the design to be copied are listed in a tree view grouped by folder location by default.
- To view a flat list, click List View.
- To display a list of the children of the target file in an assembly tree structure, click Uses View.
- To display a list of the parents of the target file and of the target file's children, click Design View. The files listed depend on the options chosen in the Settings dialog.
Specify the file relationships to include in the copy process, either only the children or the children and all related documentation files. This feature is only available for Autodesk Inventor files.
An icon in front of each file in the list indicates whether that file will be copied, reused, replaced, or excluded.
Copy file

Reuse file

Exclude file

Replace file

Click the icon to switch between Copy or Reuse. Right-click on a file name to change the action using the context menu. Changing the action for a parent file does not change the children. Changing the child does not change the parent file. To change the action of the children with the parent, press Ctrl and change the action of the parent.
- For AutoCAD and AutoCAD Civil 3D files, only Copy and Reuse are available.
- For AutoCAD Electrical projects, only Copy and Exclude are available. By default, all of the files are initially set to Copy.
- For Autodesk Inventor files, Copy, Reuse, Exclude, and Replace are available.
Tip: Place the cursor over an action icon to see what other actions are available for a file.

Click the icon to switch between Copy or Reuse. Right-click on a file name to change the action using the context menu. Changing the action for a parent file does not change the children. Changing the child does not change the parent file. To change the action of the children with the parent, press Ctrl and change the action of the parent.
If a file is set to Copy, click the browse button in the Vault Folder column for that file and specify a new location in the vault for the new design. If a shared file is changed from Reuse to Copy, you are prompted to select which shared file instance to use everywhere the shared file is used in the design.
For AutoCAD Electrical

When copying an AutoCAD Electrical project, the Vault Folder is automatically set to match the name of the new vault location specified earlier. If the project to be copied has files scattered throughout the vault, the new project is automatically structured so that the drawing files and necessary subfolders are now in the same directory as the new project file.

NoteThe name of an AutoCAD Electrical project file can be changed. Click in the New File Name filed for the .wdp file and enter a new name. Once a new name is entered, all related configuration files are renamed to correspond. Configuration files cannot be renamed independently of the project file.

For Autodesk Inventor

If a file is set to Replace, click the browse button in the New File Name column for that file and specify a replacement file from within the vault. Autodesk Inventor part files, .ipt, and assembly files, .iam, can be replaced. A part file can replace an assembly file. AutoCAD .dwg files can only be replaced with other .dwg files. You are prompted to confirm that replacing a file could result in data loss. Click Yes to proceed.
Specify a naming scheme for the new files that will be created.
1. Optionally specify whether or not to add either a prefix or a suffix to the new files.
2. Turn on the Increment checkbox to sequentially update any file names that end in an integer.
3. Click Match Name to have presentation and drawing files match the file names of their direct part or assembly child.
4. Click Apply to preview the naming scheme in the file list.
5. To return to the original naming scheme, click Revert.
Click OK.

Find and Replace Text

Select a file in the Copy Design view.
Right-click in any of the grid cells for the file to display the context menu.

Find

NoteFind searches only for file names when selected in either the File Name or New File Name column and searches only for folder names in the Vault Folder column. Find searches for actions in the File Status column.

From the context menu, select Find.
In the Find dialog box, enter a text string to search for in the current column. If you are searching the File Status column, select a file action from the list.
For a text string search, optionally turn on the Match case checkbox to find the strings that exactly match the capitalization of the search string.
Select either Up or Down to search above or below the current cell location.
Click Find Next. The next file matching the search criteria is highlighted in the Copy Design dialog box. Continue clicking Find Next to progress through the list.

Once a search string is entered in the Find dialog box, you can select Find Next from the context menu to continue searching for that same string without opening the Find dialog box again.

Replace

NoteReplace is only available for the New File Name and Vault Folder columns.

From the context menu, select Replace.
In the Replace dialog box, enter a text string for which to search in the current column.
Enter a text string to replace the search string when it is located.
Optionally, turn on the Match case checkbox to find the strings that exactly match the capitalization of the search string.
Select either Up or Down to search above or below the current cell location.
Click Find Next. The next file matching the search criteria is highlighted in the Copy Design dialog box.
Click Replace to replace the found string or click Replace All to substitute all occurrences of the search string with the new text.