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General Information - Xrefs and DMS
General Information - Xrefs and DMS
When working with CAD files, external reference files or Xrefs, are used as a common technique to embed information in CAD drawings. They are separate entities to the main drawing and can come in various formats. In RedEyeDMS the preview of the 'parent' is generated using data from Xrefs referenced in the CAD file settings when exported by the drafter.
Default Technique
The default technique for handling Xefs in DMS is to upload them as artefacts in the bucket, along with the parent file. Any artefact type can be used as an Xref so Drawings (DWG etc), Documents and Media (Jpeg, BMP logo etc) type artefacts that are xrefs will work.
Important: Object Linked Embedding (OLE) Excel tables is NOT supported for Xref
RedEyeDMS, when an uploaded CAD file refers to Xrefs, searches the data base to find exactly matching filenames of artefacts with which to build the full preview of the parent artefact.
As a result, it's recommended to follow the below sequence to optimise for preview generation.
- Upload any Xrefs into the bucket
- Upload Main CAD files
NOTE: The filename of the uploaded Xref must EXACTLY match the spelling and case (including extension)as recorded in the parent CAD file that calls upon it. If the correct Xref file is uploaded yet the filename syntax does not exactly match that recorded when parent CAD was exported, the preview will still fail to include the Xref data. The Xref needs to be deleted, renamed correctly and uploaded again. Check spelling and case in Reports list on the parent artefact
Xref missing
When CAD drawings are uploaded in RedEye, the system does an analysis of the CAD file and referenced files for the purpose of preview generation. Any of the Xrefs referenced in CAD files need to be in RedEye for the system to reference to generate previews. In the case of missing Xrefs, RedEye will flag it upon artefact creation in an upload job notification email (Upload V3), or at the upload page summary screen(Upload V1/2). The missing Xrefs are always listed under the "report" section in artefact page for users to refer to.
These system reported items are recorded in the Reported Artefact section in Manage Bucket page for administrators to track down and resolve.
The recommended best practice is to have the Xrefs uploaded into RedEye before the main drawings, if possible, to minimise possible re-upload and post upload refreshing of previews.
If you have previously uploaded Drawings that were missing some Xrefs, you are able to regenerate the preview from the Artefact Page after uploading your missing Xrefs drawings. Make sure the Xrefs have been uploaded to your bucket as unzipped files.
Download Xref (optional, recommended)
To be able to download Xrefs during the Draft Check Out stage, your bucket needs to have the configuration "Download xrefs enabled" set up. To have this configured, please contact your Customer Success Manager.
Once set up, when downloading a checked out artefact for drafting purposes, any referenced artefacts to the main artefact will be included in the downloaded zip payload, in the Xrefs sub-folder in the "additional files" folder.
Xref from Filepath (optional)
At the initial stages of configuration during the onboarding process for new clients, it is possible to use an alternate process based on Metadata mappings to manage Xrefs if their locations etc are known.
Contact your Customer Success Manager for more information.
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