We are working on a specification for Revit content and a key decision is where to hold content data. In our current AutoCAD-based setup, equipment data is held in an outside database for each project and blocks link to thier data through use of an attribute that holds the equipment number. I have heard of systems such as Codebook for holding data outside of the Revit model, which seems to be used primarily for very large hospital projects. We create drawings for small restaurants using a prototype, but the contents do change from site to site and each project has it's own local database (actually an Excel file).
Is holding a family's data within that family's parameters the commonly accepted practice? If so, when changes are made to data fopr a family that would affect multiple jobs, are there any automated methods to perform data updates?