Primary view representation lock.

[b_ruijter]

Is there any way I can unlock teh primary view representation? Or alter the object visablity in this view representation? 

[SBix26 · Accepted solution]

No.

What are you trying to accomplish?  Maybe users can figure out a workflow for you.

---

Sam B

Inventor Pro 2026 | Windows 11 Home 24H2

[hollypapp65]

Add new ViewReps to set different visibility.

I got 2 ViewReps in my template: Default and Design.

Default is the clean look without planes, axis, sketch.

Design is the one active all the time.

[johnsonshiue]

Hi! Primary View Rep is always lock. It represents the unaltered base model view. All objects are visible and there is no appearance override. This statement applies to assembly-level PVR. For part-level PVR, it is more like as is. PVR is also locked but changeable. All other View Reps apply overrides to the PVR.

Many thanks!

[b_ruijter]

I't verry anoying. In some instances inventor defaults to the PVR. Ecpecialy in large assemblies suddenly all sketchches and user planes are visable. 

Frankly I dont see any bennefits of it at all so I would realy like to get rid of it. Could you name me one bennefit??

[b_ruijter]

Yep, thats what we do by default. For years. It's still a work around. If I wanted a View rep with everything on I would make it but certenly not make it my primary. 

[b_ruijter]

Hi Johmson, 

I know, but why is that? You can alter everything in inventor, I would realy lke to have the freedom to alter my PVR. I have never ever in the 12 years that I use Inventor had any benefits of it. In the conterary. There are some actions when the view defaults to the PVR. Some open actions trigger this, 

And as you also stated, the beheavior in parts is totaly different, even though it's locked?

In short, I never ever had any bennefits of this beheavior. And if a company chooses to lock it be my guest by I realy would like to unlock it. 

Is there any other reason why this PVR must be locked other than the only thing I can think of as "the users are not so smart to understand what they are doing" ? 

[SBix26]

I assumed that you were writing about PVR in an assembly.  But it sounds as if you are writing about part file PVR, which is not quite so locked down (see @johnsonshiue 's explanation above).

In my experience, I almost never leave a part with sketches and work features visible, and this state is saved in the part's PVR.  I have occasionally noticed in the assembly context that Inventor defaults to components' PVRs, as you noted, but I don't see sketches and work features because I leave them turned off.

As far as the logic of a locked PVR, I'll defer to the Autodesk folks to explain.

---

Sam B

Inventor Pro 2026 | Windows 11 Home 24H2

[b_ruijter]

We have a 15-year legacy of Inventor parts, developed by dozens of engineers over the years. As a result, some inconsistencies and clutter have inevitably crept in. Personally, I always hide planes and sketches, simply because they tend to appear in higher-level assemblies. That’s really the only reason — and when you look at the bigger picture, it’s not a very compelling one. It highlights the importance of working neatly and tidily, but at the same time, it also shows the limitations we face when there’s no proper control at the assembly level without modifying the individual files.

If you also don't see any benefits with this view rep being locked you agree with me it should not be locked on a level that not a single user in the world can unlock this.

[hollypapp65]

Don't care it is locked.  100% against it to change to unlock.

I had used macro to turn off sketches, planes, axis, points.

There is never any control of part from assembly or drawing.  So don't change it.

Assembly is a user.  It just use the parts and whatever setup in the part.  ViewRep, PosRep, properties, ModelState.

User already don't know how to use Rep when it's one direction control.  Giving them bi-direction control won't help.

ViewRep can be "associate".  This I haven't 100% figure out yet.  Since IV 1 😉.

[b_ruijter]

Why would you be against more controll over your own files?

[hollypapp65]

What you proposed is more way to change a file.  Not more control.  More way to make mistakes.

I don't need to "control" "primary".  It's doing what it's supposed to do (nothing, for me LOL).  Don't need it to change.

Giving users 10 different way to same thing at every step will only slow them down.

"primary" is a rock on the way.  Don't need to dig it out.  Just walk around it.  We don't need to like it.  It doesn't need to change.

I got enough control with ViewRep to get what I need already.

I might want same name ViewRep to link automatically.

ie: "Default" in assembly will use "Default" in part.

PS: "Primary" in ModelState is more annoying but I don't want to remove it.

[b_ruijter]

If you in your company would like to lock the pvr, be my guest. 

If autodesk forces me to keep this locked, for absolutely no apperent reason other that "some people can make mistakes that other people don't like" (that is your argument). I find that very hard to have any understandingfor.  What does anybody ever "check" in the PVR??

You even say pvr does absolutely nothing for you. I say in some cases inventor defaults to pvr so I would realy like either te get rid of it completely or have de lock removed. 

Link viewReps is a very good idea, it has come up here several times as well.

[jtylerbc]

Why are you working in Primary in the first place?  The purpose of Primary is to have a representation that doesn't (and can't) hide anything from you.  It shouldn't be the one you are working in most of the time - you should be working in Default.

What exactly are the "some cases" where Inventor defaults to Primary?  I have used Inventor for close to 20 years, and in my experience, it does not do that unless you have changed options in the Open dialog box to tell it to do so.  It normally opens to the "Last Used" representation, which means it's only doing so because you were working in Primary in the first place.

[hollypapp65]

---

@b_ruijter wrote:

If you in your company would like to lock the pvr, be my guest. 

If autodesk forces me to keep this locked, for absolutely no apperent reason other that "some people can make mistakes that other people don't like" (that is your argument). I find that very hard to have any understandingfor.  What does anybody ever "check" in the PVR??

You even say pvr does absolutely nothing for you. I say in some cases inventor defaults to pvr so I would realy like either te get rid of it completely or have de lock removed. 

Link viewReps is a very good idea, it has come up here several times as well.

---

I don't "use" PVR, so lock or unlock doesn't matter much.  Until it got unlock and cause problem.

With PVR lock, users still got views they don't want.  So unlock PVR will solve that problem?  While some users are using new ViewRep to solve the problem now.

PVR is a wall in front of me.  I can keep trying to take it down.  Or wait for someone (AutoDesk) to take it down.

Or look "check" left and right and get around it.

There was many other "walls" in Inventor and other CAD also.

I was at where you are.  I wrote macro to turn stuff off from assembly.

I've found a way which I'm sharing here.  Hoping it'll help other.

Maybe you can find another way and show us.

Good luck.

[b_ruijter]

If it makes it more clear, I would rather get rid of the PVR all together. As you state, you never use it. I don't know anybody that uses it. It's a dinosore that is still there becouse people have learned to work around it. (make macro's enz).

It's like having a pit in the middle of your living room and trying to convince it's not a problem because everybody in the house knows it's there and they walk around it. Why should we board it up?

I can't seem to reproduce the workflow in witch ass defaults to pvr. I think it used to do so in demote, replace actions, or reverting to latest. I'll post it here next time I run in to it.

[b_ruijter]

I'm not working in pvr becouse it's horrible. We, and every other company that uses Inventor makes custom vr to work in. It's like having a low hanging beem in your office that "it is no problem, everybody knows it's there and  they duck before they cross so what's the problem?

I can't seem to reproduce the cases in witch it defauts to pvr. It does not happen a lot. I thought it did with some replace, demote or some vault actions, revert to latest enz. I'll keep an eye out.

In the mean time, what is the benefit of the pvr? Certenly if parts don't "go along" in the same way. In my opionio it's redundant.  

[mforresterPZG78]

Hi, Is there a way to change the view that is exported as a .stp file? Our Customer does not need to see some of the details that are hidden in "Client" Model. But when we export it shows the Primary version, which has models and details that the client should not be seeing. 

If i suppress the models - they no longer appear in the BOM - this is not desired. 

[hollypapp65]

---

@mforresterPZG78 wrote:

Hi, Is there a way to change the view that is exported as a .stp file?

---

No, View Rep only make it invisible, no suppressed.

You can use ModelState.

[jtylerbc]

---

@mforresterPZG78 wrote:

If i suppress the models - they no longer appear in the BOM - this is not desired. 

---

One option would be to suppress the undesirable components, export the STEP file, and save without closing. 

Or if you potentially need to export this multiple times, set up a Model State (as @hollypapp65 suggested).  Suppress the unwanted parts in that Model State but not in the Primary, so it won't mess with the BOM that actually gets used on your drawings.