Reference Planes with Same Name

[JasonLLINDNER]

I have recently received this family from one of our clients to both develop and use in their project which we are currently remodeling. I did ask them where they got it from but their BIM manager could not tell. Here is the thing, the family has some reference planes that are not really being used for anything but what did catch my attention was that these there was a double of each plane and each pair are using the same Reference plane name.

This is something I would really like to use in the families we build but if I try to give a reference plane a name that already exists Revit will not let me. Any ideas how they got pairs of reference planes to have the same name? and if yes is there a hidden downside to it that I will regret?

[Tom_Kunsman · Accepted solution]

Can you post the family? Without seeing that it is very difficult to determine what they might have done. 

There are always hidden downsides to nearly any hack in Revit. Use the program for what it was intended for and not how you did things in AutoCAD.

[ToanDN]

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@JasonLLINDNER wrote:

I have recently received this family from one of our clients to both develop and use in their project which we are currently remodeling. I did ask them where they got it from but their BIM manager could not tell. Here is the thing, the family has some reference planes that are not really being used for anything but what did catch my attention was that these there was a double of each plane and each pair are using the same Reference plane name.

This is something I would really like to use in the families we build but if I try to give a reference plane a name that already exists Revit will not let me. Any ideas how they got pairs of reference planes to have the same name? and if yes is there a hidden downside to it that I will regret?

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Like this?  If so, they may appear to have the same name, but they may not be the same. 

Do you find them useful for anything you do?  I think they only add confusion for users.

[barthbradley]

Are you sure they are the same Name and not same Subcategory?  

[RSomppi]

The obvious downside would be knowing which one to pick from a list. Definitely not something I would attempt in my families.

[RDAOU · Accepted solution]

@JasonLLINDNER 

Yes that is possible. All software have bugs which may be exploited. The duplicate reference planes is one, generic annotations with Shape Handles is another. If what you have is similar, return back to sender and do not use or distribute.

Downsides...These have very specific use where they function flawlessly but if you put them to another use they can mess up your model unimaginably. I shared once the Stretchable GA and I regret that, so I wont be sharing this one with you. 

How to verify if you have the modified version is simple. Select all planes and check the properties panel if the name is blank or states <Varies> then that is the virgin family using @ToanDN naming visual trick. On the other hand the version tampered with

• will show a unique name for all.
• if you rename to anything then back to a same name there will be no prompt or no warning.
•  When you set Work Plane you will see only 1 listing for all planes sharing the same name