topic Re: Copy layer to another drawing in AutoCAD Architecture Forum

Copy layer to another drawing

Anonymous — Mon, 26 Feb 2018 21:46:25 GMT

How can I copy everything on a single layer over to another drawing? I have an xref'd base floor plan and an electrical plan with lights drawn in to create my electrical lighting plan. I can select each light fixture and copy and paste to get the light layout into the reflected ceiling plan...but can I just select the light fixture layer and paste it as a whole into the RCP drawing?

Re: Copy layer to another drawing

lakshmankumar.satya — Tue, 27 Feb 2018 04:48:14 GMT

Hi,

Design center will help you on this.Type Dc in command line in this you can copy the layers from one drawing to another drawing.

Re: Copy layer to another drawing

WarrenGeissler — Tue, 27 Feb 2018 06:19:40 GMT

The best method is to use ISOLATE layer - select everything and copy/paste.

@lakshmankumar.satya - Designcenter only copies the layer DEFINITION - NOT the entities.

Re: Copy layer to another drawing

pendean — Tue, 27 Feb 2018 14:16:21 GMT

WBLOCK command: explore it here https://knowledge.autodesk.com/support/autocad/learn-explore/caas/sfdcarticles/sfdcarticles/Export-Objects-to-Drawing-File-with-WBLOCK-Command.html

Re: Copy layer to another drawing

gotphish001 — Tue, 27 Feb 2018 15:39:19 GMT

You can also use quick select to select everything on that layer and copy and paste with base point it or wblock it.

Re: Copy layer to another drawing

Anonymous — Thu, 30 Jan 2020 06:02:47 GMT

command DC is way more better

Re: Copy layer to another drawing

namhoang1235 — Sat, 31 Oct 2020 06:33:52 GMT

thank you

Re: Copy layer to another drawing

info.viktaps — Sun, 09 Jan 2022 00:31:40 GMT

there is 20 'DC', which one please?

Re: Copy layer to another drawing

atticus151 — Mon, 18 Apr 2022 13:18:35 GMT

Yeah, LAYISO is great if you have stuff on the layers you want already. What if I want 20+ of the default C3D template layers, but not all of them, and I am starting with an otherwise blank C3D drawing? Not to mention, LAYISO and copy/paste stuff is going to bring anything that "stuff" brings with it. The original poster asked how to move layers, not objects. So, no this is not the best answer, even if all the Autodesk people think it is great.

Re: Copy layer to another drawing

pendean — Mon, 18 Apr 2022 14:44:15 GMT

@atticus151 wrote:

>>>...The original poster asked how to move layers...<<<
They actually asked to COPY to another layer.

You could just do this very basic function that's been around for a very very long time now https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=s13YaWkJ9tY
OR... LAYMRG command has also been around for quite some time now if you no longer need the original layer to exist anymore: is that all you needed?

Or as the OP asked, COPYTOLAYER command as explained in HELP.

BTW the dedicated C3D forum is over here if you have very specific C3D related items that do not exist in AutoCAD-ARCHITECTURE (topic of this forum) https://forums.autodesk.com/t5/civil-3d/ct-p/4003

Re: Copy layer to another drawing

atticus151 — Mon, 18 Apr 2022 18:39:14 GMT

Sorry, move layers to another drawing. I appreciate your comment, but like you said, that has been around forever.

Re: Copy layer to another drawing

pendean — Mon, 18 Apr 2022 18:49:48 GMT

@atticus151 In AutoCAD, you can isolate those layers and their content (important, empty layers do not copy over with this method), select them all, then COPY/PASTE into the destination and hope duplicate named blocks/content/layers are not present with different settings.

For layer names only, ADCENTER command does that.

OR... just start with a custom template that always has all of your desired content in it all the time, then just CLASSICINSERT your out-of-compliance DWG file into there then SAVEAS.

OR... see if others want to add to my list of methods that are built-in.

For anything beyond what I listed you will need to customize with one of the many programmable languages in AutoCAD or buy a 3rd party solution (or pay to have one built) that will do exactly what you want. Start exploring here https://www.google.com/search?q=autocad+tip%3A+move+layers+and+content+between+dwg+files

NOTE: C3D (your software) may have other features and option, but this is not the forum for that. See my previous reply for the C3D forum link.

HTH

Re: Copy layer to another drawing

kswaim5A76C — Wed, 28 Dec 2022 19:02:31 GMT

Could not get this to work.

Re: Copy layer to another drawing

David_W_Koch — Wed, 28 Dec 2022 21:39:57 GMT

@kswaim5A76C

Precisely what "this" is not working for you?

Typing DC at the command line and pressing the ENTER key should open the DesignCenter palette if it is not already open. If it is open, that command will have no effect. Note also that DC is a command alias; if you are not using the out-of-the-box ACAD.pgp file and your ACAD.pgp file does not map DC to ADCENTER, you will have to type ADCENTER at the command line and press the ENTER key.
If you have DesignCenter open but cannot transfer layers to another file, you must have the target drawing open and current. In DesignCenter, if the source drawing is open, you can set the Open Drawings tab current, find the current drawing in the left pane, select the "+" next to it to expand it and choose the Layers item under it. If the source drawing is not open, then set the Folders tab current. In the left pane, navigate to the folder in which your source file is save, expand that folder, expand the drawing file and select the Layers item under it. Select the Layer or Layers you wish to copy to the the target drawing, then drag it/them beyond the DesignCenter palette and drop it/them into the drawing canvas of the target drawing.

Note that this will only transfer the Layer definitions. It will not copy any items on the layer in the source file to the target file.

Re: Copy layer to another drawing

Richard_MainprizeZPAAN — Tue, 16 Sep 2025 08:12:39 GMT

That's the answer i was looking for, so quick and simple, thanks.

Re: Copy layer to another drawing

harry.thompson.icc — Wed, 17 Jun 2026 05:06:04 GMT

Awesome

Thanks

Re: Copy layer to another drawing

tecnicoANWM9 — Mon, 22 Jun 2026 15:15:12 GMT

Thanks for the contribution David_W_Koch

Re: Copy layer to another drawing

atticus151 — Mon, 22 Jun 2026 15:40:29 GMT

Gotta love "hope" when you're working with computer programs. Thanks for the answer.

Re: Copy layer to another drawing

atticus151 — Mon, 22 Jun 2026 15:43:15 GMT

Y'all keep trying to say I am in the wrong forum. Copy/paste and layer commands are not unique to C3D, which is what we are discussing here.

Re: Copy layer to another drawing

R_Tweed — Tue, 23 Jun 2026 19:06:36 GMT

Before everyone dog piles on me. The first sentence in original post says.

How can I copy everything on a single layer over to another drawing?

My first question would be..Are you sure everything you want is in fact on the same layer?

If you want to copy everything on a layer to another dwg, You should be aware that when you copy/paste, other things come along for the ride.

If you don't care if dimstyles, textstyles, unnamed nested blocks and maybe some other trash that I've missed comes over then copy/paste is ideal as long as everything you want is on the same layer.

The following is a list of things that could help when copying or moving large selections to another dwg.

1. Use either qselect and isolateobjects to isolate objects you want and make sure they are in fact on the same layer.

2. wblock objects to another file and if you are using c3d, choose whether to include map data or not. Using the wblock approach provides the option. Also be careful as to what you are copying, labels, Alignments, walls, Mass Elements etc. If your working in a mixed environment it's possible to also copy C3d stuff that you had no idea existed.

3. Open your new file and review blocks, dims, layers, and textstyles. Remove anything that you don't need and merge or delete extra layers.

4. Make sure that any propertyset definitions are assigned that match the proposed dwg. Some people will have multiple propertyset definitions that are similar. (poly,polylines,plines)

5. Make sure all Dynamic block definitions are updated or match the dwg they will be inserted. Design center is good for this kind of check.

6. Maybe check rename for any un-named block definitions. This happens when people use copy/paste as block to a ridiculous level.

7. Check un-purgeable item list.

8. Review style manager and display manager and purge.

9. At this point, you should have a clean dwg that you can then insert using the exploded option.

Seems like a lot of work? Maybe, maybe not.

copy paste something into into a blank empty dwg and see what happens and the more you copy and paste the more bloat occurs.

Everything above is mentioned to some degree by @pendean @gotphish001 . @WarrenGeissler .