Navisworks Rebuilding Cache files for Revit Projects that have NOT changed

[brian.k.smith]

Summary: Is there a way to get Navisworks to recognize that the appended Revit file has not changed, so there is no need to re-create the cache file (*.NWC)?  Is there a setting that forces Navisworks to create a cache file every time that the NWF is opened?

Details: NWC files are smaller than the Revit project files, and speed up access to content in these files. When the Navisworks File Set (*.NWF) is later opened, the data is read from the corresponding cache file (if it is newer than the original file). If the cache file is older, (which means the original file has changed), Autodesk Navisworks creates a new cache file for it - at least that's how it's supposed to work. I am finding that Navisworks is rebuilding NWC files when the cache file is newer than the associated Revit project file.

Thanks in advance for your help!

-Brian

[georg.grebenyuk]

Hello, @brian.k.smith 

If you created nwf file from only NWC - you can:

Open your Navisworks Options - Model - NWC - turn off checkbox Write Cache. Than after every changing in model Navis will not update model

If you create nwf file from other autodesk files (Insert to Navis - Revit, dwg...)

1. Create new nwf from their NWC

2. Turn off checkbox Write Cache

3. Continue working 🙂 

I recorded screencast for demostrate it decision: https://autode.sk/305qZBp

First part - I add files (dwg) to Navis without NWC and after every chanding Navis insert files as new 

Second part - I add NWC files and no problem after resaving initial model model 

[USJM05000]

If more than one user accesses the NWF, then Navis will normally have to regenerate ALL federated models regardless of file date status.  My understanding the updates are triggered by varying display settings in computers.  My experience is that even with Navis options copied from one machine to the other, refresh of all federated models is likely once the model is opened from another machine.

Is your unwanted reloading occurring in a single user environment?

Regards,

Joe M in WV

[brian.k.smith]

@USJM05000 Thank you for your reply.  Ours is a single-user environment.  The NWF is checked out from Vault.

[brian.k.smith]

@georg.grebenyuk 

Thank you for your reply and for taking the time to record and share the screen-cast. 

The problem that I am having is limited to Revit files (*.RVT) which are appended into a Navisworks File Set (*.NWF).

An experiment was performed in order to measure the effects that changing different options had on model load times.  This procedure was used:

1. Reset all options to default settings
2. Change one option
3. Record time to load a specific model

This test was repeated several times, changing a specific option each time.

It was discovered that changing the settings under Options > File Readers > Revit *significantly* increased the time to load the model.  None of the other changes had this effect.