A layer has a number of states and properties that define its display and behavior in the drawing.
A state is a condition of a layer that can have one of two values, like On/Off or Freeze/Thaw. The following layer states can be set in the Layer Properties Manager:
| Icon | Layer state value | Description |
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On | Objects on the layer are displayed, plotted, and regenerated and hide other objects when you use HIDE. |
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Off | Objects on the layer are not displayed and not plotted but do hide other objects when you use HIDE. The drawing is not regenerated when you turn the layer on. |
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Thawed | Objects on the layer are displayed and plotted and hide other objects when you use HIDE. |
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Frozen | Objects on the layer are not displayed and not plotted but do hide other objects when you use HIDE. The drawing is regenerated when you thaw the layer. |
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Unlocked | Objects on the layer can be modified. |
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Locked | Objects on the layer cannot be modified. You can still apply object snaps to objects on a locked layer and perform other operations that do not modify those objects. |
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Plot | The selected layer is plotted. |
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Non Plot | The selected layer is not plotted. If you turn off plotting for a layer, the objects on that layer are still displayed. Layers that are off or frozen are not plotted, regardless of the Plot/Non Plot setting. |
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New Viewport Thawed | Thaws the selected layer in new layout viewports. |
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New Viewport Freeze (New VP Freeze) | Freezes selected layers in new layout viewports. For example, freezing the DIMENSIONS layer in all new viewports restricts the display of dimensions on that layer in any newly created layout viewports but does not affect the DIMENSIONS layer in existing viewports. If you later create a viewport that requires dimensions, you can override the default setting by changing the Current Viewport Freeze/Thaw setting. |
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Current Viewport Thawed | Thaws the selected layer in the current layout viewport. |
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Current Viewport Freeze (VP Freeze) | Freezes selected layers in the current layout viewport. You can freeze or thaw layers in the current viewport without affecting layer visibility in other viewports. Current Viewport Freeze is an override to the Thaw setting in the overall drawing. You can freeze a layer in the current viewport if it is thawed in the drawing, but you cannot thaw a layer in the current viewport if it is frozen or off in the drawing. A layer is not visible when it is set to Off or Frozen in the drawing. |
Layer properties are settings that can have a list of different values for a display characteristic. The following properties can be set for a layer in the Layer Properties Manager:
- Color: Changes the color of objects on the layer. Clicking the color name displays the Select Color dialog box.
- Linetype: Changes the linetype of objects on the layer. Clicking the linetype name displays the Select Linetype dialog box.
- Lineweight: Changes the lineweight of objects on the layer. Clicking the lineweight name displays the Lineweight dialog box.
- Plot style: If you are working with color-dependent plot styles (PSTYLEPOLICY = 1), you cannot change the plot style associated with a layer. Clicking the plot style displays the Select Plot Style dialog box.
- Description: You can add a description to the layer. if your layers are created with a layer standard, the description is filled in automatically. In that case, it is recommended to not overwrite it.
Changing the Visibility of Object Subcomponents
You can place different components of an AEC object on different layers. This is accomplished via the object’s display properties. For example, the current layer key style might place a wall on the layer named A-Wall, while the wall’s material definitions might place its internal boundaries on the layer named A-Wall-Comp. Turning off the layer A-Wall would typically make the entire wall (including its internal boundaries) invisible, even though those components were assigned to a different layer. You can define that the subcomponents of an object remain visible, even though the primary object’s layer (A-Wall in this case) is turned off. For information on setting this option, see To Specify a Layer Standard and a Layer Key Style.
You must keep layer 0 (zero) on and thawed in order to work with AEC object OSNAPs. When layer 0 is off, AEC object OSNAP points are not visible or active.
To change the properties of a layer
- If necessary, open the Layer Properties Manager by clicking
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- To change one of the layer states On/Off, Freeze/Thaw, Lock/Unlock, Plot/Non Plot, Current Viewport Freeze/Thaw, or New Viewport Freeze/Thaw, click the layer state icon for the state to switch its value.
- To change one of the layer properties Color, Linetype, Lineweight, Plot Style, or Description, click the current setting for the property. Then, use the subsequent dialog box to select a different value. Note: You can also access these many of these settings directly from the Layer drop-down on Home tabLayers panel.