Short answer is no. You need to use the API to delete the associated SharedParameterElement. I have added some content I wrote a while ago that may better explain what is going on. Hope you find it useful.
Shared Parameters – What are they?
Like all parameters, shared parameters enable you to store a value associated to some item. They could store against items that are instances or a types. They can store various sorts of information such as text, number, material, yes no, etc.
Shared Parameters – Names and GUIDs
The thing that differentiates shared parameters from non-shared parameters is that shared parameters use a GUID to differentiate one from the other; the name is pretty much irrelevant. You could have 50 shared parameters all named “Company” assigned to a single Family provided they all have different GUIDs. Obviously this is not a good thing and will very quickly lead to great confusion!
Multiple GUIDs with the same name
The sorts of issues that occur when you have multiple GUIDs all with the same name is that your schedules are likely to present a blank entry when you know you set Company to ACME. Tags will display a blank entry. One family shows correctly, another shows something else.
The point to make is it can take hours to find the issue!
Shared Parameter Definition files
You can define your shared parameters in a “Shared Parameter Definitions” file. I will assume that you know about these. In the file you can define the Names, Data Types, Group, Description, and if it is Visible and also user modifiable.
How does a shared parameter get into my file?
The obvious way is to add a “Shared Project Parameter” and associate it to various categories. Another way is to load a family that contains a shared parameter. I assume the same applies if you bring in a tag family that has a label using a shared parameter.
Changing your mind about the name / visibility / etc. of a Shared Parameter
Easy you think, edit the definition file to change the name, add the shared parameter again – and, the name is still the same? What!
Ok, I must need to delete the parameter first. Still there as the old name!
Purge, delete families and purge? None of them work.
Getting rid of a shared parameter from your project
Basically you can’t! Once a shared parameter is in your project, you can delete the project parameter, delete the family containing the parameter, purge the project, scream, and the parameter definition remains in your project exactly as it was brought in the first time.
The only way to have a new definition is by adding a parameter with a different GUID.
So what’s going on?
Revit stores Shared Parameter definitions in a “SharedParameterElement” table. This provides a single source that defines the parameter properties based on the GUID; a different GUID means a different parameter. There is a logic here that makes certain that you can bring families in from anywhere and have them work even if they all contain similarly named shared parameters.
Since 2016 the table of “SharedParameterElements” has been accessible and to totally remove a shared parameter from Revit you need to delete the element as defined in that table. If you know the ID you can actually use the “Select by ID” and then just hit delete. There is just one issue with this. If you delete a parameter that is being used in a family, a tag, or as a project parameter, those fields will no longer display, or schedule, or tag. Not a good outcome.
ARUtils Parameter Manager
Apart from other functionality, two Shared Parameter issues that the Parameter Manager addresses are:
- Shared parameters with the SAME NAME but DIFFERENT GUIDs
- Identifying shared parameters that be deleted
This is achieved by comparing Shared Project Parameters and Family Shared Parameters against the list of “SharedParameterElements”. If a parameter only occurs in the “SharedParameterElements” then it most likely can be safely deleted.
