Worksets - save to Central

[Anonymous]

Are the following assumptions correct:

You only create a local file once. That local copy stays on your machine
after you close out for the day. The next day when opening the local copy
it synchronizes with the central file, it does not actually copy the file
onto your local drive again.

When saving to Central, once again, it synchronizes the files and does not
copy the entire local file into the Central file.

Can anyone give me some examples of how long the synchronizing process
takes? This would effect the network traffic and determine what time
increment we use as a default to save to the central file. I've seen a
suggestion of saving to your local every 30 minutes and every 1-2 hours to
the central file. Does that seem like a good guideline?

[sbrown]

The local file DOES NOT automatically synchronize with the Central. you have to manually chose to Reload latest worksets. Or when you do a hard save to central, it will reload the latest. So our policy is that local files are trash at the end of the day and we create a new local file by copying the central everymorning. this assures all users are up to date. Note you can and it is the "revit way" to keep the local file, your users must just know they have to reload, which depending on how much work has been done after they last saved can take some time.

As for how long the process takes that depends on the size of the project and how much has changed since the previous save. In the early stages of the project STC can take only a couple seconds(faster than a non worksets job) but later in the project it can take up to 10 minutes per user, so you need to budget and schedule saves if you have that type of job.

[Anonymous]

My question concerning "save to central" was asking whether it copies the
whole local file to the central or does it compare the two copies and only
save what changes you have made?
With your method of creating a new local file everyday, do you feel that's
really faster than reloading the latest from the server? Approximately how
large are your .rvt files?
wrote in message news:5403342@discussion.autodesk.com...
The local file DOES NOT automatically synchronize with the Central. you have
to manually chose to Reload latest worksets. Or when you do a hard save to
central, it will reload the latest. So our policy is that local files are
trash at the end of the day and we create a new local file by copying the
central everymorning. this assures all users are up to date. Note you can
and it is the "revit way" to keep the local file, your users must just know
they have to reload, which depending on how much work has been done after
they last saved can take some time.

As for how long the process takes that depends on the size of the project
and how much has changed since the previous save. In the early stages of the
project STC can take only a couple seconds(faster than a non worksets job)
but later in the project it can take up to 10 minutes per user, so you need
to budget and schedule saves if you have that type of job.

[Anonymous]

"You only create a local file once."
Yes, if it never becomes out of date sync with the central nor corrupt.

"That local copy stays on your machine after you close out for the day."
Yes.

"The next day when opening the local copy it synchronizes with the central
file,"
only when you 'save to central'

"it does not actually copy the file onto your local drive again."
Correct.

"When saving to Central, once again, it synchronizes the files and does not
copy the entire local file into the Central file."
Correct.

"Can anyone give me some examples of how long the synchronizing process
takes?"
normally 5-10 seconds on the project I am currently working on but this
could be up to around 20-30 seconds if many changes have occurred from
different users since my last 'save to central'. (on our gigabit network
the central file sits on a linux server - this is an ideal configuration as
it works great!)

"This would effect the network traffic and determine what time increment we
use as a default to save to the central file. I've seen a
suggestion of saving to your local every 30 minutes and every 1-2 hours to
the central file. Does that seem like a good guideline?"
I like the 30min. reminder. users may skip a few if they are in the middle
of a modeling task then save on the next one (=2hr) - if set to 2hr and skip
one its half a day.

--
Brian Earsley
www.arete3.com
708.342.1250 x.225

New to DWF? Check it out!
http://www.arete3.com/services/communication.html
select "ARCHITECTURE" - "File Formats"

"Nancy" wrote in message
news:5403297@discussion.autodesk.com...
Are the following assumptions correct:

You only create a local file once. That local copy stays on your machine
after you close out for the day. The next day when opening the local copy
it synchronizes with the central file, it does not actually copy the file
onto your local drive again.

When saving to Central, once again, it synchronizes the files and does not
copy the entire local file into the Central file.

Can anyone give me some examples of how long the synchronizing process
takes? This would effect the network traffic and determine what time
increment we use as a default to save to the central file. I've seen a
suggestion of saving to your local every 30 minutes and every 1-2 hours to
the central file. Does that seem like a good guideline?

[Anonymous]

The "save to central" process is a "delta" save. Basically comparing the
files and saving the changes. It is better to do a save to central more
often than less often. For one reason you have less of a chance of losing
work and because the longer you wait to save to central the longer the save
is going to take. I would recommend saving to central once an hour as a
good rule of thumb.


--
Jeff Hanson
Autodesk - Technical Publications
Building Solutions Division
Manchester, NH
_______________________________________

"Nancy" wrote in message
news:5403371@discussion.autodesk.com...
My question concerning "save to central" was asking whether it copies the
whole local file to the central or does it compare the two copies and only
save what changes you have made?
With your method of creating a new local file everyday, do you feel that's
really faster than reloading the latest from the server? Approximately how
large are your .rvt files?
wrote in message news:5403342@discussion.autodesk.com...
The local file DOES NOT automatically synchronize with the Central. you have
to manually chose to Reload latest worksets. Or when you do a hard save to
central, it will reload the latest. So our policy is that local files are
trash at the end of the day and we create a new local file by copying the
central everymorning. this assures all users are up to date. Note you can
and it is the "revit way" to keep the local file, your users must just know
they have to reload, which depending on how much work has been done after
they last saved can take some time.

As for how long the process takes that depends on the size of the project
and how much has changed since the previous save. In the early stages of the
project STC can take only a couple seconds(faster than a non worksets job)
but later in the project it can take up to 10 minutes per user, so you need
to budget and schedule saves if you have that type of job.

[Anonymous]

"normally 5-10 seconds on the project I am currently working on but this
could be up to around 20-30 seconds if many changes have occurred from
different users since my last 'save to central'."
project is a 70MB rvt central file compressed

--
Brian Earsley
www.arete3.com
708.342.1250 x.225

New to DWF? Check it out!
http://www.arete3.com/services/communication.html
select "ARCHITECTURE" - "File Formats"

"Brian" wrote in message
news:5403360@discussion.autodesk.com...
"You only create a local file once."
Yes, if it never becomes out of date sync with the central nor corrupt.

"That local copy stays on your machine after you close out for the day."
Yes.

"The next day when opening the local copy it synchronizes with the central
file,"
only when you 'save to central'

"it does not actually copy the file onto your local drive again."
Correct.

"When saving to Central, once again, it synchronizes the files and does not
copy the entire local file into the Central file."
Correct.

"Can anyone give me some examples of how long the synchronizing process
takes?"
normally 5-10 seconds on the project I am currently working on but this
could be up to around 20-30 seconds if many changes have occurred from
different users since my last 'save to central'. (on our gigabit network
the central file sits on a linux server - this is an ideal configuration as
it works great!)

"This would effect the network traffic and determine what time increment we
use as a default to save to the central file. I've seen a
suggestion of saving to your local every 30 minutes and every 1-2 hours to
the central file. Does that seem like a good guideline?"
I like the 30min. reminder. users may skip a few if they are in the middle
of a modeling task then save on the next one (=2hr) - if set to 2hr and skip
one its half a day.

--
Brian Earsley
www.arete3.com
708.342.1250 x.225

New to DWF? Check it out!
http://www.arete3.com/services/communication.html
select "ARCHITECTURE" - "File Formats"

"Nancy" wrote in message
news:5403297@discussion.autodesk.com...
Are the following assumptions correct:

You only create a local file once. That local copy stays on your machine
after you close out for the day. The next day when opening the local copy
it synchronizes with the central file, it does not actually copy the file
onto your local drive again.

When saving to Central, once again, it synchronizes the files and does not
copy the entire local file into the Central file.

Can anyone give me some examples of how long the synchronizing process
takes? This would effect the network traffic and determine what time
increment we use as a default to save to the central file. I've seen a
suggestion of saving to your local every 30 minutes and every 1-2 hours to
the central file. Does that seem like a good guideline?

[Anonymous]

"up to 10 minutes per user"

sdbrown,
what size rvt file, at what network speed, and to what server?
I hope this is not in our future...

--
Brian Earsley
www.arete3.com
708.342.1250 x.225

New to DWF? Check it out!
http://www.arete3.com/services/communication.html
select "ARCHITECTURE" - "File Formats"

wrote in message news:5403342@discussion.autodesk.com...
The local file DOES NOT automatically synchronize with the Central. you have
to manually chose to Reload latest worksets. Or when you do a hard save to
central, it will reload the latest. So our policy is that local files are
trash at the end of the day and we create a new local file by copying the
central everymorning. this assures all users are up to date. Note you can
and it is the "revit way" to keep the local file, your users must just know
they have to reload, which depending on how much work has been done after
they last saved can take some time.

As for how long the process takes that depends on the size of the project
and how much has changed since the previous save. In the early stages of the
project STC can take only a couple seconds(faster than a non worksets job)
but later in the project it can take up to 10 minutes per user, so you need
to budget and schedule saves if you have that type of job.

[sbrown]

10 minutes happens when you have more than 5 users working at one time and all have opened the whole model, instead of using selective open. The project size is about 200mb and has lots of groups, aprox 450,000sf. condo hotel, with full interiors(thats a huge performance hit if not done lightly). I'm learning on this one, so the next one like it would be set up much diff. to reduce the performance hits.

[Anonymous]

sdbrown,

could you please post your network speed, and to what file server (OS and
processor(s)) the rvt central file sits on for us to have an accurate
performance assessment of your condition. Also is the 200MB rvt file you
are referring to the compressed size or not?

thanks!
--
Brian Earsley
www.arete3.com
708.342.1250 x.225

New to DWF? Check it out!
http://www.arete3.com/services/communication.html
select "ARCHITECTURE" - "File Formats"

wrote in message news:5404175@discussion.autodesk.com...
10 minutes happens when you have more than 5 users working at one time and
all have opened the whole model, instead of using selective open. The
project size is about 200mb and has lots of groups, aprox 450,000sf. condo
hotel, with full interiors(thats a huge performance hit if not done
lightly). I'm learning on this one, so the next one like it would be set up
much diff. to reduce the performance hits.