Autodesk Batch Save Utility Dialog Box

Use this dialog box to open and save multiple drawing and template files at once to a specified version of Autodesk Civil 3D. You can also run custom scripts as part of the batch operation.

Target Civil 3D Version
Specifies the version in which to save your drawings.
  • Only the versions of Civil 3D installed on your computer will appear in the list. Versions 2014-2023 are supported by the Autodesk Batch Save Utility.
  • The first time you save to versions 2014 and 2015, run the Autodesk Batch Save Utility as an administrator. Right-click Autodesk Batch Save Utility and click Run as Administrator or More Run as Administrator (depending on the operating system version).
  • When saving to versions 2014-2017, the Autodesk Batch Save Utility will check whether the target version of Civil 3D is upgraded to the latest service pack. If not, the Autodesk Batch Save Utility will prompt you to install the latest service pack before continuing.
  • The Autodesk Batch Save Utility does not save drawings to a previous version.

    For example, if you select 2016 as the Target Version and a drawing you select has already been saved in AutoCAD Civil 3D 2017, that drawing will be skipped by the batch save process.

    Important: In most cases, drawings that you save to a higher version cannot be opened in a previous version of the application. You can specify that a selected drawing will not be saved to a higher version by selecting the Incompatible with Target Civil 3D Version check box under Skip Drawings.

Custom Script

You can run a custom script as part of the batch save process.

The following sample script files are available in C:\ProgramData\Autodesk\C3D 2023\BatchSaveTool\Scripts:

  • qsave.scr: Runs the QSAVE command as part of the batch save process.
  • defaultClean.scr: Runs the defaultClean.lsp file, which runs the -PURGE, AUDIT, and QSAVE commands as part of the batch save process.

For information about developing scripts, see About Command Scripts.

For information about generating detail logs for a script, see the information below about the Show Command Window check box.

Select

Specifies the folder in which the script is located. After specifying the folder, select the script from the drop-down list.

If you want to run custom scripts, place them in a folder and specify that folder by using the Select button.

Edit
Opens the script in a text editor so you can edit it.

Target Folders

Specifies the folders which contain the files to open and save and which folders to exclude. The Autodesk Batch Save Utility opens and saves both DWG and DWT files in the included folders and their subfolders.

Include
  • Add: Opens a dialog box which you can use to select a folder to include.
  • Remove: Removes the currently selected folder from the list.
  • All Directories: Adds both local and network drives.
Exclude
  • Add: Opens a dialog box which you can use to select a folder to exclude.
  • Remove: Removes the currently selected folder from the list.

Skip Drawings

Specifies options to exclude drawings based on the following criteria.

  • Read Only: Excludes read-only files.
  • Previously Batch Saved: Excludes files that have already been opened and saved by the Autodesk Batch Save Utility as recorded by the log file.
  • Not Created With Civil 3D: Excludes files that were not created or edited with Autodesk Civil 3D.
  • Incompatible with Target Civil 3D Version: Excludes files that do not currently match the specified target version. Select this check box to prevent drawings from being saved to a higher version.
    Note: The Autodesk Batch Save Utility does not save drawings to a previous version.
  • Saved Before/Saved After: Excludes files that were last saved within a specified date range.

Process Settings

  • Show Command Window: Specifies whether to show the command window when the process runs.
    Note: If you want to generate additional detail logs for a script, clear the Show Command Window check box under Process Settings. When the Show Command Window check box is cleared, the command window is not displayed for each drawing that is processed, and detail logs are created in C:\Users\Public\Documents\Autodesk\BatchSaveLog\DetailLog.
  • Delete .Bak Files: Specifies whether to delete BAK files from the target folders.
    • Select this check box to delete the BAK files after the batch save process runs. When the Delete .Bak Files check box is selected, the BAK files are deleted regardless of whether they were created during or before the batch save process.
    • Clear this check box to keep the BAK files.
    Note: If you want to create backup files (BAK files) during the batch save process, set the ISAVEBAK system variable to 1 in Autodesk Civil 3D prior to running the Autodesk Batch Save Utility. If the target version of Autodesk Civil 3D on your computer is set up to create BAK files, the Autodesk Batch Save Utility will create or update the BAK files when the batch save process runs.
  • Timeout for a Drawing: Specifies a timeout value. If a file cannot be opened and saved within the specified amount of time, it is skipped.
  • Process Simultaneously: Specifies whether to process multiple files at once.
Start
Starts the batch save process. When the process is complete, click the Log button to open the log file and review the results.
Log
Opens the log file.
  • The log file lists whether the process has succeeded or failed, and whether drawings were skipped.
  • The log file is saved in a comma-delimited file format, savedwgresult.log.csv. The log file which contains the log information for all included target folders is saved to C:\Users\Public\Documents\Autodesk\BatchSaveLog.
  • A log file that contains information for the files in each folder is saved to each target folder. This file is hidden by default. To view these files, you can configure the folder options in Microsoft® Windows® Explorer or File Explorer to show hidden files.
    Note: If you do not want log files to be created in the target folders, change the "DistributeLog" value to "False" in the C3D_BatchSave.exe.Config file. This file is located in C:\ProgramData\Autodesk\C3D 2023\BatchSaveTool\ by default.
  • The log files are used by the Autodesk Batch Save Utility for processing files when you have selected the option to skip drawings that have been previously batch saved by the utility. If the log file in the installation folder has been deleted, or if the utility is run from a different folder, the hidden log file in the target folder is used by the utility.
  • Close the log file before running the Autodesk Batch Save Utility again.
Note: If you want to generate additional detail logs for a script, clear the Show Command Window check box under Process Settings. When the Show Command Window check box is cleared, the command window is not displayed for each drawing that is processed, and detail logs are created in C:\Users\Public\Documents\Autodesk\BatchSaveLog\DetailLog.