Manage style libraries

Style Library Manager is a stand-alone tool used for the administration of style libraries. This tool works directly with the style library XML files on disk, and is not used in the management of styles inside Autodesk Inventor documents. It is accessed from the Microsoft® Windows® Start menu, and is found in the Tools submenu for Autodesk Inventor.

Use Style Library Manager to:

• Create new style libraries
• Manage styles in style libraries
• Manage styles between multiple style libraries

Create style libraries

Autodesk Inventor installs with a default style library designed to leverage of all new capabilities of styles.

You can create your own style libraries in two different ways: Copy an existing style library or create an empty style library. The target directory for the new library cannot include other style library.

After you create a style library, use Style Library Manager or Style and Standard Editor to add or remove particular styles.

Rename and delete styles inside of a library

Use Style Library Manager to rename styles inside of a library. Renaming a style in the library does not rename the same style in any other library or document. Once a style is renamed, all document copies of the style loose their name match and are considered locally cached style.

The only way to delete a style from a library is through the Style Library Manager.

Note: Rename and Delete commands are accessed from the context menu when selecting one or more styles.

Tip: There is no Undo in the Style Library Manager. Renaming, copying, or deleting of styles cannot be undone. We recommend you create a backup copy of your library before you make changes.

Copy styles between libraries

Styles are copied between libraries using the Style Library Manager. To copy a style from one library to another, load the source library into Style Library Manager and click the Copy Selected Styles command between the Style Library 1 and Style Library 2 panes. See the Style Library Manager Help for more details.

Manage Style Library Contents

A style library is a group of named XML files in a directory. There is one XML file per style type (for example: color.xml, text.xml). Since the names of the XML files must be the same for each style library, only one library can exist in a directory.

To be considered a valid style library, all predefined XML files must be present in the directory.

The best way to share a subset of styles from a library (for example, a single standard or all materials form a specific library) is to use the Import/Export styles function in the Style and Standard Editor, or create an empty style library and copy the desired styles using the Style Library Manager.

Note: An exported style file (*.styxml) cannot be used as part of a style library.

Incomplete Style Libraries

Though a style library is made up of several separate XML files, Autodesk Inventor and the Style Library Manager treat the library as a single entity. If some of the predefined XML files required for a style library are missing from a directory, Autodesk Inventor displays an error message indicating files are missing and cannot be loaded.

Restoring the Autodesk Inventor Default Style Library

A utility for restoring the default Design Data directory files is located on the Autodesk Inventor Install CD in the Support directory. This utility replaces the original default style library that ships with Autodesk Inventor, as well as the Thread.xls and Clearance.xls spreadsheets.

Prevent Style Library Changes

In a multi-user environment, CAD administrators may want to prevent users from changing a style library. Set the library to Read-only. Two methods are available to make a style library read-only:

• Set the project Use Style Library option to Read Only.
• Use a Microsoft Windows file property setting. In Microsoft Windows Explorer, select all the XML files that make up the library or the library directory folder itself, right-click, select Properties, and set to Read Only.

In Autodesk Inventor, both methods are treated identically when accessing style libraries. If a single XML file is read-only, the entire library is treated as read-only.

An administrator can have two versions of a project file. One is for users (Use Style Library = Read Only), which prevents changes, and one is for administrators (Use Style Library = Yes), to actively edit the library without dealing with the individual Windows file properties of each XML file. For many workgroup setups, this may be sufficient for management of style libraries.

Note: The project file option has the disadvantage that any interaction done outside Autodesk Inventor treats the style library as read/write. This includes the Style Library Manager, which works with library files outside the context of an Autodesk Inventor project. The Style Library Manager only references project files as a shortcut to the XML files.

Style Libraries and the Vault

Style libraries are not directly supported by Autodesk® Vault Basic. Style libraries are manually vaulted and managed using the Vault Explorer.

Note:

• Get, Check in, and Check Out must be done through the Vault Explorer.
• Vaulted Style Library XML files are set to read-only through the file properties, just as any standard Autodesk Inventor file or any other 3rd party file that is vaulted manually.
• If editing the style library is required, all XML files must be checked out.

Manage multiple style libraries

To simplify management of multiple style libraries, consider the following:

• Keep all working style libraries as read-only to prevent accidental changes.
• Use a parent/child style library scheme:
  • The parent is a library unused by any active project.
  • All project style libraries are considered children.
  • The administrator makes all changes in the parent version.
  • Push changes to a child by copying the styles from the parent version using the Style Library Manager.
• Try to reuse styles if possible.
• Most users utilize the same material, color, and lighting styles, even if they require a different set of drawing-related styles.
• For management of drawing related styles, give the primary standard and its object defaults unique names for each project. Reuse dimensions, text, and layers as much as possible.

Pack and Go

The Autodesk Inventor Pack and Go utility optionally includes a style library. By default, a project’s style library is included in the target directory created by Pack and Go. This is true even if the default library is used, because the recipient’s default library may differ from the one used by your project(s).

The packed style library is included in the Pack and Go project in a subdirectory called Design Data. The Pack and Go project file has the Use Style Library setting the same as the original project, but its style library folder option is set explicitly to the Pack and Go location of the packed up style library.