To Work With Attaching and Detaching Referenced Drawings

Tasks covered in this topic

• Attaching references
• Detaching references
• Adjust xref fading
• View references by type

Display the External References Palette

Do one of the following:

• Click View tab Palettes panel External References Palette. Find
• Click Insert tab Reference Panel Find.
• At the Command prompt, enter EXTERNALREFERENCES.

Attach an Xref

1. Display the External References palette.
2. On the External References palette, on the toolbar along the top, click the Attach Reference drop-down menu and choose Attach DWG.
3. In the Select Reference File dialog box, select one or more files you want to attach and then click Open.
4. In the Attach External Reference dialog box, under Reference Type, select Attachment.
5. Specify the insertion point, scale, and rotation angle. Click Specify On-Screen to use the pointing device.

   Attachment includes all nested xrefs.

6. Click OK.
   Note: You can attach a new instance of an existing xref. On the External References palette, make sure all references are displayed by switching the Missing toggle off, and then right-clicking one of the attached drawing references and choose Attach.

Attach or Overlay an Xref Using DesignCenter

1. Click View tab Palettes panel DesignCenter. Find
2. In the content area or in the Search dialog box, locate the DWG reference you want to attach or overlay.
3. Right-click. Drag the DWG reference into the open drawing.
4. Release the right-pointing device button. Click Attach as Xref.
5. In the External Reference dialog box, under Reference Type, select Attachment or Overlay.
6. Enter values for Insertion Point, Scale, and Rotation, or select Specify On-Screen to use the pointing device.
7. Click OK.

   You can also attach an xref by dragging or by clicking Attach as Xref on the shortcut menu.

Attach an Xref Using Autodesk Vault

You must be logged into the vault to perform vault tasks in the External References palette.

1. Display the External References palette.
2. On the External References palette, on the toolbar along the top, click the Attach Reference drop-down menu and choose Attach DWG.
3. In the Select Reference File dialog box, select the file you want to attach, and then click Open.
4. In the External Reference dialog box under Reference Type, select Attachment.
5. Specify the insertion point, scale, and rotation angle. Click Specify On-Screen to use the pointing device. Attachment includes all nested drawing references.
6. Click OK.
   Note: You can attach a new instance of an existing xref. On the External References palette, make sure all references are displayed by switching the Missing toggle off, and then right-clicking one of the attached drawing references and choose Attach.

Manage Autodesk Vault Check In, Refresh, and Logins

You must be logged into the vault to perform vault tasks in the External References palette.

• To Check In, Check Out, Undo Checkout, or Refresh File, right-click a file in the External References palette.
  Note: In the List View, multiple files can be selected by holding down the Ctrl key to select individual files or by holding down the Shift key to select a group of files.
• To Attach from Vault, Log into Vault, or Log out of Vault, right-click the background of the External References palette.

View Attached Reference Files by Type

1. Display the External References palette.
2. On the External References palette, make sure all references are displayed by switching the Missing toggle off.
3. In the File References pane, click the List View button.
4. Click the Icon column.

   The attached referenced files are sorted by type in the list view.

Detach an Xref

1. Display the External References palette.
2. On the External Reference palette, make sure all references are displayed by switching the Missing toggle off.
3. In the File References pane, right-click the drawing reference and choose Detach from the shortcut menu.

Detach Multiple Missing Xrefs

1. Display the External References palette.
2. On the External References palette, click the Missing toggle on.

   All missing references are displayed in the File References pane.

3. In the File References pane, select the missing references you want to detach.
4. With the missing references selected, click Detach.

Adjust Xref Fading (Transparency)

1. Click Insert tab Reference panel Xref Fading. Find
2. Drag the slider to adjust the fade display of the drawing reference.

   The drawing references are faded as you drag the slider.