AutoCAD 2021 - Blocks Causing Lag

[mgerchar]

I created several blocks in AutoCAD, a couple of them being dynamic blocks with multiple visibility states, and the program starts lagging substantially whenever I import any of them.  I am using AutoCAD 2021, and a collegue tested the blocks on their computer but experienced the same thing.

I suspect it might have something to do with the source of the base geometry as I utilized imported Visio files when creating the blocks.  Each block includes hatches and several MText objects, but several blocks I've used in the past had hatches and worked fine, and I tried exploding the MText objects in the dynamic blocks to make them regular Text objects, but the lagging persists.

Two examples - one dynamic and one normal block - are attached.  Does anyone know how these files can be modified to eliminate lagging when importing them as blocks?

[pendean]

@mgerchar Not seeing any slowdown with dozens of both of your blocks in any test file that I created.

But your blocks appear to be missing XREF content, perhaps the problem is there? They can bulk up the size of the DWG file if you don't PURGE regularly, and your laptop may just be struggling with that?

[mgerchar]

@pendean Thank you for noticing the XREFs, I went back and removed all unused references from these blocks.  Unfortunately, this had no affect on the lagging on my end.  It lags when I initially insert any of the blocks, then again whenever I move my mouse within the geometry of the block itself or try to do any commands using the block.  Strange you didn't have any issues.  Could it be an issue with my machine?

[mgerchar]

For more information about the computer that is having issues with the blocks, it is a Dell Latitude 5500 running Windows 10 with 16GB of RAM and the specs below:

Processor: Intel(R) Core(TM) i5-8365U CPU @ 1.60GHz 1.90 GHz
Installed RAM: 16.0 GB (15.8 GB usable)
Storage: 954 GB SSD PM981a NVMe Samsung 1024GB
Graphics Card: Intel(R) UHD Graphics 620 (128 MB)
System Type: 64-bit operating system, x64-based processor

Another party suggested I follow the "How to configure Autodesk software to use high-performance graphics" article on the Autodesk website, but when I change AutoCAD 2021 to High Performance, it was the same Intel(R) UHD Graphics 620 graphics card for both Power Saving and High Performance options, so that didn't seem to have any effect.

[mgerchar · Accepted solution]

So I may have discovered the reason these blocks were causing AutoCAD to lag so much for me.  I thought back to when I was modifying the geometry taken from the Visio stencils, and although I changed the layers of all the text and lines, I never altered the font of the text because it looked so similar to the writing on the I/O modules themselves.  It turns out that this font (Calibri Light) is a Windows TTF font, which can apparently cause significant lag in AutoCAD.

To fix this, my initial method was to:

1. Select an Mtext object, then SELECTSIMILAR to select all Mtext objects.
2. Run EXPLODE on all Mtext objects to convert them to regular Text objects.  (Unfortunately, this moves the justification of all of them to the standard bottom left, so I had to change the justification of several Text objects to Center and then re-align them.)
3. Select a Text object, then SELECTSIMILAR again to select all Text objects.
4. Change the Style of all Text objects to Standard.

Since I would have to apply this fix to several blocks, I looked for a quicker solution and found that someone created a lisp routine called StripMtext that allows you to remove various types of formatting from Mtext objects.  I found the script for this routine online (link: https://ww3.cad.de/foren/ubb/uploads/cadffm/StripMtextv5-0f.lsp) and was able to copy it into Notepad and save it as a .lsp file.  After running APPLOAD to load the routine into AutoCAD, I was able to shorten my method to the following:

1. Select an Mtext object, then SELECTSIMILAR to select all Mtext objects.
2. Run STRIPMTEXT command, only check Font for type of formatting to remove, and click OK.

In order to make the routine a permanent command in all drawings, after running APPLOAD, I had to click "Contents..." under Startup Suite, add the .lsp file, close out of the Startup Suite and Load/Unload Applications windows, and restart AutoCAD.

Applying this solution to the first couple of blocks I've tested seems to have resolved the issue since the blocks now import smoothly and do not cause any lag whatsoever after being added to the drawing.  Hopefully this helps anyone who experiences similar problems with blocks creating lag caused by text fonts.

[navya_gelli]

Hi @mgerchar ,

It's great to hear you have found a solution. Please feel free to mark the reply that solved the issue as 'Accepted Solution' so other members who may have the same question can learn from your experience.

All the best,

Navya | Community Manager