December 16, 2015

Revit: CAD Export Layer Mapping - Restore Subcategory Default

When editing a DWG/DXF Export Setup, you may have noticed that some subcategories have the layer name of the main category, enclosed in curly braces ("{" and "}") and italicized, and, if you change the layer name of the main category, these all automatically update to match that change in the main category. For example, using the Revit 2014 out-of-the-box US Imperial default.rte template, the Doors category looks like this:

Notice that the Elevation Swing and Plan Swing subcategories have { A-DOOR } in the Layer column, whereas the Panel subcategory just has A-DOOR. If the layer for the Doors main category is changed, the Elevation Swing and Plan Swing subcategories also change, but the Panel subcategory does not.

If you want a subcategory to be linked to the main category name, but it is not already so linked, you can do one of the following:
  • If there is already another subcategory so linked, you can copy the text in that subcategory, and then paste that value into the subcategory you wish to link. Be certain to copy the entire string, including the leading space characters.
  • If there is not already a linked subcategory, or you just prefer typing to cutting and pasting, type two space characters, an opening curly brace ("{"), one space character, the layer name as it currently appears in the main category, one space character and a closing curly brace ("}"). Once you press the ENTER key or click into another field, the text will italicize, letting you know you entered it correctly.
  • You can also just type two space characters, an opening curly brace ("{"), two space characters and a closing curly brace ("}") in the subcategory's Layer field, and then make a change to the main category's layer name, if that is easier for you. After you change the main categories layer name, you can change it back if you did not want to make a change to it.
As always, click on an image to see a larger version of it.

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