lockNode

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Synopsis

lockNode [-ignoreComponents] [-lock boolean] [-lockName boolean] [-lockUnpublished boolean]

lockNode is undoable, queryable, and NOT editable.

Locks or unlocks one or more dependency nodes. A locked node is restricted in the following ways:

• It may not be deleted.
• It may not be renamed.
• Its parenting may not be changed.
• Attributes may not be added to or removed from it.
• Locked attributes may not be unlocked.
• Unlocked attributes may not be locked.

Note that an unlocked attribute of a locked node may still have its value set, or connections to it made or broken. For more information on attribute locking, see the setAttr command.

If no node names are specified then the current selection list is used.

There are a few special behaviors when locking containers. Containers are automatically expanded to their constituent objects. When a container is locked, members of the container may not be unlocked and the container membership may not be modified. Containers may also be set to lock unpublished attributes. When in this state, unpublished member attributes may not have existing connections broken, new connections cannot be made, and values on unconnected attributes may not be modified. Parenting is allowed to change on members of locked containers that have been published as parent or child anchors.

Return value

In query mode, return type is based on queried flag.

Keywords

Related

Flags

Long name (short name)	Argument types	Properties
-ignoreComponents(-ic)
Normally, the presence of a component in the list of objects to be locked will cause the command to fail with an error. But if this flag is supplied then components will be silently ignored.
-lock(-l)	boolean
Specifies the new lock state for the node. The default is true.
-lockName(-ln)	boolean
Specifies the new lock state for the node's name.
-lockUnpublished(-lu)	boolean
Used in conjunction with the lock flag. On a container, lock or unlock all unpublished attributes on the members of the container. For non-containers, lock or unlock unpublished attributes on the specified node.

Flag can appear in Create mode of command	Flag can appear in Edit mode of command
Flag can appear in Query mode of command	Flag can be used more than once in a command.

MEL examples

// create a sphere, lock it, then try to delete it.
sphere -n sphere1;
lockNode sphere1;
delete sphere1;
// Error: Cannot delete locked nodes.

// Unlock the sphere, then it can be deleted.
lockNode -lock off sphere1;
delete sphere1;