Things to Consider When Installing AutoCAD Electrical In a Multi-User Environment

In this post I want to review some of the files, and folder structure, that AutoCAD Electrical needs to function properly in a multi user environment.

Shared Folders

A network share is required as the most efficient means of sharing the databases and libraries. Folder structure should resemble something of the following…

AutoCAD Electrical Standards
      Symbol Library
          Custom Symbols
          Standard Symbols (could also remain on the users C:\ drive from the standard install)
               Subfolders by standard name
     Custom Footprints
          Subfolders by Manufacture
               Subfolders by component type
          Standard Footprints (these could also remain on the users C:\ drive from the standard install)
               Subfolders by Manufacture
                    Subfolders by component type
     Circuits
Databases
     Catalogs
     PLC’s
Templates
Icon Menus
     Menu Icons
Support
Service Packs & Hotfixes

Shared Files

The Environment File (wd.env)

This is the mapping file that AutoCAD Electrical uses for most of its search paths. This file should live in the shared Support folder listed above. All users should add this location as the first path in AutoCAD’s Support File Search Path.

The wd.env file on the local disk should then be renamed or deleted. AutoCAD Electrical will then default to the one on the network. This makes changes to the environment file affect all users the next time the software is loaded. The default location is C:\Users\<<username>>\Documents\Acade 2015\AeData.

To verify the environment files location, right click on the active project and select Settings. The third path listed, is the path that is currently being used to find the environment file. Needed changes to the wd.env file can be found here. <<Understanding the wd.env file>>

Databases

The databases consist of the Catalog Lookup (default_cat.mdb), Footprint Lookup (footprint_lookup.mdb), Parametric PLC Lookup (ace_plc.mdb), and the Electrical Standards (ace_electrical_standards.mdb).

A secondary catalog lookup can be created as well and named whatever you desire. The secondary catalog lookup is defined in the environment file. Users can then switch to it anytime they are selecting catalog information. This gives you the option of having the default being the company standard components and a secondary containing everything else.

default_cat.mdb

The catalog data should be reviewed. Some companies like to start with a completely blank database and add only their information. Others want all of the catalog information supplied by Autodesk from the start. On a slower network, loading these tables can take some time.

The manufactures included in the database are selected during the installation of AutoCAD Electrical. If you find some manufactures missing, go to Add/Remove Programs, select AutoCAD Electrical and then press Uninstall/Change. You will have an option to Add/Remove Features. From there, select the manufactures desired.

Manufactures include, AB, ABB, ANIXTER, AROMAT, AUTOMATIONDIRECT, BECKOFF, BELDEN, BURKLIN, BUSSMANN, DELIXI, EATON, ENTRELEC, FESTO, FUJI, GE, HARTING, HOFFMAN, HONEYWELL, HUBBELL, LAPP, LEGRAND, LG, LITTLEFUSE, MERLIN GERIN, MITSUBISHI, MODICON, MOELLER, MURRELEKTRONIK, NEWARK, NORGREN, OMRON, PANDUIT, PARKER, PEPPERL FUCHS, PHOENIX CONTACT, PILZ, PROSOFT, RITTAL, SCE, SCHNEIDER ELECTRIC, SIEMENS, SQD, TELEMECANIQUE, TRICONEX, TURCK, WAGO, and WEIDMULLER.

For the most part, data is added/edited inside of AutoCAD Electrical. However these databases can be edited with Microsoft Access directly as well. This makes importing/merging existing part numbers and missing items quite easy at a mass level. There are three fields for additional information. USER1, USER2, and USER3. The headings can be changed to better fit the information entered. However do not change the order of the columns in the database or add any additional columns.

2D and 3D physical representation is now being added to this database as well under the SYMBOL2D and SYMBOL3D fields. These are being used by Inventor to create 3D representations based off of the schematic information.

footprint_lookup.mdb

This database is used to lookup the footprints needed for the 2D panel representation based off of catalog number. Since the same footprint can represent many catalog items, wildcards are used to limit the number of lines needed.

Note that the path starts at the “Footprints” folder. The manufacture and family subfolder names are still needed or AutoCAD Electrical will be unable to find the footprint drawing.

Icon Menus

The icon menus can, and should be, renamed. The default names are ace_jic_menu.dat and ace_panel_menu_jic.dat. Put the company name in place of the “ace” to easily verify that the correct menu is being used and edited.

These are simply text files, however editing them should be done using the Icon Menu Wizard inside of AutoCAD Electrical.

If editing/sharing of the extra menus (pneumatic, hydraulic, and piping and instrumentation) is needed, these files cannot be renamed and must live in the shared Support folder not the Icon Menus folder. New icons for these menus are saved in the Menu Icons folder with the other icon images.

The Project Properties determine which icon menu is used. Once the environment file is set to determine the menus location and name, update any existing projects Project Properties to match. Select the path headers that have changed, and then press Default.

Menu Icons

These images are created during the symbol creation process. They must be stored in a shared folder on the network.

A number of AutoCAD Slide Libraries (.slb) and their matching .dll files are needed in this folder as well. Without them the default icons will all be blank.

Templates

The term templates and title blocks are used interchangeably. However they are two different things. Templates contain a title block but also are the source of quite a bit of other information as well. The following is a quick list of things that should be included in company templates.

AutoCAD Electrical uses the same template format as AutoCAD (.dwt). The default template location is set in the AutoCAD Options Files tab. (see image on right)

Title Block
Each template should contain a border and title block. Both can be contained in the same block as well. The actual ‘title block’ block name must be named consistently between different sizes and types of templates. Also, consistent attributes must be used between the different title blocks. The block names and their attributes are referenced by the .wdl and .wdt files that drive the title block update process.

Wire Types
Wire types are simply layers designated as “wires.” However additional information can also be included with each wire type.

Layers
Layer naming, color, and style should be setup to match the company’s standards. The names need to match the Layers called out in the Drawing and Project Properties.

Properties
The template’s Drawing Properties should be reviewed and updated as needed.

Project File (.wdp)
A template project file should be created with all properties set as desired. The project file’s properties will be referenced when creating new projects.

Miscellaneous Files

Title Block Mapping Files (default_wdtitle.wdl/default.wdt)
Both of these files are needed for the Title Block Updates utility to function properly. Both files should reside in the networked support path.

Installation and Location Reference Files (default.inst/default.loc)
These files store commonly used installation and location codes. Both files should reside in the networked support path.

Component Description Reference File (wd_desc.wdd)
Commonly used descriptions and labels are stored in this file for easy repeated use. This file should reside in the networked support path.

Considerations for Remote Users

Since so much of what AutoCAD Electrical needs to fully function now lives on the network, users working remotely need special consideration. Disconnecting from the network will leave users with no environment file, icon menus, symbols, and more. There are several options for this type of user.

Full Time VPN Connection
This is the easiest option if a VPN connection is already available for users.

• Pros/Cons
  Users have a consistent work environment.
  Always requires a network connection to work.
  Can affect performance with a slow internet connection.

Network Folder Made Available Offline
Right click on the network share and choose Make Available Offline. This will bring a copy of everything in the folder local. Whenever a network connection is present these files will sync.

• Pros/Cons
  Easy to setup. Easy for users because no paths change. When the network is down users still see the offline network paths.
  Modifying the sync partnerships inside of Microsoft Sync Center allows a one way data transfer. This sync should only pull from the network. Users should not be modifying any shared files while offline.
  Setup Microsoft Sync Center will sometimes lose its associations due to changes on the network.
  It can be hard for users to tell when they are truly connected and when they are working on local files.

Manage the Shared Files with Vault
All shared files are checked into Vault and users pull a copy locally.

• Pros/Cons
  This method works best if a ‘librarian’ is the only one making changes. Changes are made and then users are notified to re-pull the AutoCAD Electrical library files.
  The databases can be quite large and pulling a new copy can take some time on a slow connection.
  Users lose the ability to quickly add/modify the databases. Instead the file must be checked out from the Vault Client and then later checked back in.
  Users can control when updates are pulled down from the network

Batch Files to Update Local Copy
This method involves two batch files. One to swap environment files between a work online and a work offline environment. A second file, to refresh the local files to match the network files.

• Pros/Cons
  Takes a bit of setup followed by training on the end users part.
  Gives end users the control of when they are offline/online
  Users can control when updates are pulled down from the network
  This method works best if a ‘librarian’ is the only one making changes. Changes are made and then users are notified to re-pull the AutoCAD Electrical library files.
  More complex environment to manage and control. Also makes upgrades a bit more challenging.

I hope that gives some good food for thought. Feel free to continue this discussion below in the comments.

Customizing The Marking Menu in AutoCAD Electrical

First we should discuss what the marking menu is and how it works. If you recently upgraded from 2012 or previous, you noticed the right click menu has changed into a circle of commands instead of the usual menu.

This menu can be used exactly like the previous one. By first right clicking and then left clicking the desired command. However once you know the location, or direction, of the commands, simply hold right click and drag in the general direction and the command in that direction loads.

Depending on your workflow, you may find that several of the options on the marking menu are not used that often. In my case I use Copy Wire Number far more than Bend Wire. In this example I will replace the Bend Wire command with Copy Wire Number.

For the most part, everything about the user interface is driven by the .cuix file. Modify this file by selecting CUI at the command line. There are may things that can be done here but we will focus on modifying the right click menu on this post.

The marking menus are found under the heading “Shortcut Menus.” Expanding one of them shows the commands that would be shown on the marking menu when that menu was called for.

Not the number of menus… this isn’t as simple as changing one menu and your done. These menus are context sensitive. So there are several of each type.

For wires there are the following menus: Wires, Hot Wire menu only – Wires, and Hot Wire menu only - Wires with no gaps. So all three may need to change depending on the command.

Next we need to make sense of the order of the commands. The CUI editor shows them in list form. But the right click menu is a circle. I know we can simply swap out the one being replacing but its good to know the order. From the Electrical help I found the following.
 
So that translates into the following.
  
On to making the command swap. I have found the command I wish to swap out…

And now to find the command I wish to replace it with. Simply type the name of the command into the command search bar of the CUI window.

Next drag the command from the search results up into the menu above.

After Removing the Bend Wire command I’m done with this menu. On to the other wire menu with Bend Wire.

             And finally test the menu.
    

Adding a Category (Family Table) to the Catalog Database

This command is a little hidden. It’s under the Other Tools drop down off of the Project tab.

 

In this post I’ll add a category named AT for my “test.” First we confirm that AT is missing from the category drop down. (Image on left)

 

The command first asks what database you wish to modify. Choose your current default_cat.mdb.

Type in the new Category code and its description. This will create the table as well as modify the _FAMILY_DESCRIPTION table.

  

And of course we need to verify that the new category is actually there…

Linking the Schematic to the Drawing’s Sheet Number

Wouldn’t it be nice if changing the order of the sheets in the project didn’t screw up the ladders, components, and wire numbers? If your drawings follow a numbering scheme that is directly tied to the sheet number, it is time to update a few property settings.

What things are tied to sheet number in this type of numbering scheme? Well there’s the ladder rung numbers for one. Then we have the components tag finally the wire numbers.

Lets start out creating a new project. I’ll go over modifying an existing project at the end of this post.

The Ladder

Before the ladder is placed, the style needs to be selected from the drawing’s properties.

From the Drawing Format tab, select Setup. This new dialog allows us to set ‘Sheet and numbers’. After choosing this setting, place the ladder, or ladders, on the sheet. Remember that the sheets number will be in front of each rung. So the starting rung number will be 00 or 01.

If no sheet number has been placed on the current sheet, the rung numbers will start with question makes. Add a sheet number to the drawing and watch the ladder update. Pretty sweet right? Wait until the components and wire numbers updates as well.

 
We can’t stop here. Because the rungs are actually named 00, 01, ect. So components and wire numbers will be missing the sheet numbers and that would lead to duplicates.

Note: If the drawing had a sheet number and it is blanked out, the rung numbers are given two zeros in place of the question marks.

The Components

To update this numbering style on the components, it’s back to the Drawing Properties. This time we are adding a %S between the %F (family) and %N (reference number). So the number is %F%S%N or Family, Sheet, Reference Number. All with no spaces or extra characters. Make sure these letters not in lowercase.

While we are here we can take care of the cross-reference style as well. Here we do not need the family but do need to add the sheet number (%S).

If the sheet number is blank, the component will have question marks in place of sheet numbers just like the ladder did. However unlike the ladder, the component tags do not automatically update after a sheet number change. To update the components tag, simply run the ‘Retag Components’ command.

 

If there are existing cross-references that should be updated as well, be sure to run the Component Cross-Reference command to update these cross-references to match the new style.

The Wire Numbers

And finally we have the Wire numbers. By now you should know where we are headed. Back to the Drawing Properties again. This time the Wire Numbers tab. Simply add the %S to the front of the Wire Number Format cell and we’re done.

Wire numbers are easy. If they are already placed, simply rerun the Wire Numbers command again and they update. Either way, run the Wire Numbers command.

With these settings the drawings can be placed in any order at any time. Simply update the sheet numbers manually, using the Title Block Update, or the Project Wide Update/Retag commands. Then rerun the ‘Retag Component’, ‘Component Cross-Reference’ and ‘Wire Number’ commands Project Wide to refresh the sheets to match the new numbers.

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Updating an Existing Project to Reference Sheet Number

The component tags and wire numbers are easy. Simply follow the instructions above and then run the ‘Retag Component’, ‘Component Cross-Reference’ and ‘Wire Number’ commands Project Wide to refresh existing components.

All of these can be run at the same time using the Project Wide Update/Retag command. But that’s a blog post for another day.

 

The big problem with changing an existing project to this new numbering style is the ladders. The %S%N is actually a different MLR (Master Ladder Reference) block that the ladders use. So changing the ladder style in the drawing properties will not update the existing ladders. I wrote a post on swapping MLR blocks here… Changing a Ladder Reference Style Project Wide

Hiding Location (LOC) and Installation (INST) Codes Project Wide

There is a check box in the Project Properties that will hide any LOC or INST code that matches the Drawing Properties codes. When first checking this you will be informed of the following alert…


If the Drawing Properties codes ever change, a Component Cross-Reference is all that is needed to update the LOC/INST visibility again.

But I want them ALL hidden!

So the build in tool only turns off the visibility if the values match the drawings same code. What if all location and installation codes need to be hidden? Well the easiest way would be to simply turn off their layer. It’s LOC by default. The layer names are set on the last tab of the drawing and project properties.

Checking the Freeze check box here will freeze the layer on the drawing. For some reason these boxes are not available on the Project Properties side.

This is really no different then using the standard AutoCAD Layers tools. It simply freezes the layer.

However this doesn’t help someone with a 60 page project who was just told to hide all location codes project wide. This would require manually opening 60 pages and then involve several additional clicks on each page.

This is still an easy fix but requires making a simple script file. Open Notepad and create the following. Note the two extra enter presses. The first is to get out of the layer selection part of the command. The second is to end the command.
I would normally post a link to an uploaded copy of any script… but I think you can handle this one.

Now to run the script project wide. Make sure the project is the active project and then load the Project-Wide Utilities from the Project tab.

Consistent Reporting in AutoCAD Electrical Using (.set) Settings Files

It can be a real pain setting up reports because the reported fields and formatting resets to default with each new report. I have seen users save a report as a template, and then insert the sheet into the project, as a way of controlling the reports format. However the following can be saved as a .set file and referenced on future reports.

• The various include/exclude report options depending on report type
• Display and grouping options
• Predefined filters in the Location/Installation fields
• Special break and header information
• Predefine the output type
• What fields are displayed and their order
• The “Put on Drawing” options like column width, text color, layer to be used ,ect.

Like most other external files in AutoCAD Electrical, these are simply text files and as such could be edited using a simple text editor. However their format can be quite confusing. The Electrical dialogs for creating/editing these files is defiantly the way to go when creating or modifying saved report formats.

Saving Report Formats

Create these .set files using the Report Format Setup dialog. Its button is on the Reports tab. The dialog is quite busy. Here is a quick breakdown of its features.

1. Start here. Choose the type of report and all options on the right update.
2. Review and select any report options. This area is mostly include/exclude and grouping type options.
3. This section allows filtering by Installation and Location codes.
   1. For more information on the power of these codes see this post. INST & LOC Codes Honor Wildcards When Searching
4. Options for type of report export, what fields are reported and in what order. To give an idea what what options are hidden behind the four buttons I have included screen shots of each.
   • Save Report to File
     
   • Put on Drawing
     
     also note the Column Width “Define” option…
                          
   • Change Report Format
     Of course the fields available are determined by the type of report chosen. Also note the field name and justification can be modified here for each selected field.
     
   • Sort Fields
     
5. Each report type can be broken into separate tables based on various fields such as location code, manufacture name, block filename, ect.
6. This is where the options selected are finally saved into a settings file. Pressing Save Format File will prompt for a filename if not yet named. Open Format File will load all selected options after opening an existing .set file. And finally Save As Format File will prompt for a new name and not overwrite the loaded .set file. The loaded .set files name is displayed in the top right corner of the Report Format File Setup dialog.
   
   When opening settings files, only .set files for the currently selected report type are displayed. However when saving, all .set files are displayed to keep from overwriting any other setting files.

.SET File Default Location

The default location for the settings (.set) files is buried in a hidden folder under each users name.
C:\Users\swile\AppData\Roaming\Autodesk\AutoCAD Electrical 2014\R19.1\enu\Support\User\…

However this location can changed in the wd.env file on line (*WD_SET_FILES,x:/some path/,folder for report ".set" files) Remove the asterisk (*) from the front of the line and then replace the path with your own shared network path.

Referencing the Saved Report Settings

Now that a .set file has been created lets use it. Both the Schematic and Panel Reports dialogs have a Format button that allows selection of any .set file for the currently selected report type. If you are not seeing the .set file desired, double check that the correct report type is selected.

These settings files are also used with the Automatic Report Selection tool. I’ll try to cover that in a future post.