File, size

[cb94030]

I am using ACAD LT 2017.

The file I am working on is 26 MB and it takes longer to save it. I purged it and did the overkill command to no avail.

I have a few hatches in this drawing and wonder if that is the reason for its size, but even when I freeze the hatches, it takes a long time to save it.

Does using Xref reduce the size of the file?

Any opinion would be appreciated.

Thank you.

Chris B.

[David_W_Koch]

Your file is saved in AutoCAD 2000 format, but when I opened it in AutoCAD Architecture 2017, I was told there were future objects in the file, suggesting that at some point it had been opened in the 2018 (or later) release.

I then opened the file in AutoCAD Architecture 2020, and was able to save as to the 2000 format in approximately 15 seconds and the 2018 format in a second or two.  You mention that it takes "longer" - are you seeing save times that are significantly longer than mine?

Is there a reason why you are saving back to the 2000 format?  You may be able to reduce the save time by saving to the native format for 2017, which is the 2013 file format.  It will not make much difference whether the layers on which you have hatches are frozen or thawed; they have to be saved to the file either way.  Freezing the hatch layers will improve drawing performance, particularly during zooms and pans, since there will be less geometry to recalculate.  Breaking the file up into separate files and then recombining them by externally referencing the other files in each one may improve the save time, as you would only be saving the contents of the open file (including the external reference data), not all of the objects in all of the files.  The overall size loaded into memory will still end up being roughly the same, so opening times and the performance probably would not change much, since it all still has to be loaded in.

[cb94030]

David, thank you for your prompt and helpful reply.

I set the saving to 2000 file format because some of my friends with whom I work have a 2011 version. But I just changed to save as 2013 file format hoping that it will improve the saving time. This hopefully includes saving during my time working with the file, which I try to do it every so often in case my computer fails.

I calculated the time for this file to save, is between 30 to 40 seconds, I think a little too much. Isn't it?. Any other of my CAD files takes between 3 to 5 seconds.

In your opinion, is a 26 MB CAD file too big?

[cb94030]

I forgot to mention that I froze all the hatch layers and copy everything else and pasted on a clean file, no hatches went there and the file went down to 13 MB. The saving time is now shorter (?)

[David_W_Koch]

Effectively removing the hatches from the file will have an impact on save time.  If the file was 26 MB after purging, and WBLOCKing everything but the hatches to a separate file brought the size down to 13 MB, you are saving half the data, so the save time could be up to half as long.

[cb94030]

Actually, I copied and pasted. Would it be better to WBLOCK it first and then inserted it to a clean file?

Chris B.

[cb94030]

I just gave it a try by WBLOCK it first and then inserted in a clean file and it is now 9.7 MB (?)

Why is that?

[David_W_Koch]

WBLOCK will generally result in the smallest file size possible.  Copy/paste may bring along unreferenced items (although if you thoroughly purged first, there really should not be any), plus, the file into which you are pasting may have additional items in it that the WBLOCK file will not have (office standard text styles, dimension styles, etc.).

[cb94030 · Accepted solution]

That clarifies my surprise when I saw the new file with the WBLOCK inserted showing different fonts and the annotative objects not showing, like  fonts and scales. I think it is just like taking a picture of the original drawing. I just couldn't use it.