Revit 2025 - Section Box Extents Affecting Toposolid Terrain Image Location - FORMA TOPOGRAPHY

[cdLaskoski]

Hello,

First time I have posted here. The answer to my question I so far cannot find online. I have looked.

I cannot share the Revit file, but sharing it will likely prove unnecessary. Someone out there knows what is going on with this file. To replicate what I am experiencing, use Autodesk Forma to import topography into a Revit 2025 file.

Prelim info: The file includes a single toposolid based upon the real topography of a rural site. The toposolid is about 3,600 ft square in plan - so not massive - not 10 or 20 miles massive, in other words. The terrain .jpg image perfectly aligns with the toposolid topography in my file. My 3D views are not corrupted.

The Problem: When manually adjusting the section box crops in a 3D view in specifically 2 of the 4 cardinal directions in plan (imagine dragging the southern section box crop northward - or the west crop eastward - across the toposolid), the terrain .jpg image (which is a layer within the toposolid makeup) shifts in the same direction and by the same amount - the distance that the section box crop has been moved across the toposolid model, in other words. Dragging the section box crops back and forth when not touching the model produces no issue. If the section box crops do not intersect with the model, nothing is affected. Only when the section box cuts into the model do we see a change occur. And when you drag the north or east section box crops across the model in the opposite directions (south and west respectively), nothing also happens. In that instance, the terrain .jpg remains in its proper place.

In the attached screenshots, please pay attention to the blue project base point at center. As I slide the southern crop to the north from left to right, we see that both the toposolid and the project base point have not moved. However we do see the terrain image having moved across the topography to the north. The same happens when dragging the western crop toward the east.

There seems to be a relationship between two of the section box crops and the terrain image. To me it appears that the terrain image includes its own origin point at the southwest corner of said image which is or can be affected by 2 of the 4 section box crop locations. I have never come across this issue before and I am grateful to anyone who has insight into how I can use the section box without the toposolid terrain image being affected. Thank you!

@ToanDN - You are my absolute favorite.

[barthbradley]

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What do you mean the the terrain .jpg image "is a layer within the toposolid makeup"? 

[cdLaskoski]

Hi barthbradley,

Thanks for replying. Please see attached image. I mean to say that the terrain .jpg image is the "finish" layer of the toposolid. It is a material.

[barthbradley]

Hmm. Interesting. I've never seen this approach before. Need to gnaw on this one a bit. 

[ToanDN]

The Terrain image is considered detail itemso it will not move along when you shift the section crop.  To avoid this, do not move the section crop, but stretch it using the grips.

[cdLaskoski]

Hello ToanDN,

For the section "crop" or "extents" as I have described it  - I have only ever used the grips to reposition the crop extent. I have never in my life moved an entire section box.

On the north and east sides (in plan view for reference) any repositioning of the section box extents/crop via grips does not affect the terrain image. Only the south and west. This is why I postulate the possibility that some kind of terrain image "origin" is moved by virtue of my having repositioned the west or south extents. The origin would, therefore, be in the bottom left (southwest) corner in plan view.

[barthbradley]

I'm thinking graphics card.  

https://www.autodesk.com/support/technical/article/caas/sfdcarticles/sfdcarticles/Revit-Graphic-Card...).

[cdLaskoski]

Hello again barthbradley,

It is for sure not the graphics card. This is brand new alienware and the pc cooks.

I've checked this file on 2 other computers in our studio and the exact same thing happens.

I forgot to mention in my initial post - the toposolid was derived using forma.

Perhaps someone with forma experience has an idea as to what is going on?

[barthbradley]

Post the RVT here. 

...and Image.  

[FabienL]

Same issue here, and I have found the resolution: in "edit type" , "structure" edit, move the finish layer (linked to terrain image) to the highest level above "Core Boundary".  The image doesn't stretch anymore when using section box after that. 

[cdLaskoski]

Thanks for writing FabienL. Not sure how you were able to resolve the problem by placing the terrain image within a layer that is "above" the core of the topo make-up (structure), but I can 100% assure you that my having done so (attempted previously) had no effect on the problem and continues to have no effect. What else might you have done?

For me, to date, this problem still exists. This is NOT a graphics card issue. This is NOT a RAM issue. I am not posting the file here nor am I including any images here because I simply cannot do that. I am kindly not allowed to, to put it another way. The problem is not affecting my productivity because I just faded the image out or used a color instead of the rendered appearance. Just wanted Autodesk (everyone) to know that moving the section box does something akin to repositioning the ORGIN of the image attached to the FORMA topography as imported into the model file.

Again to recap, if I drag the western edge/wire frame of the 3D section box toward the east (or the southern edge toward the north) and across the topography, the image moves across the landscape like if you were pulling the image like a blanket across a mattress. Nothing happens when you bring the northern or eastern section box edges to the south or west respectively. Therefore I have so far concluded that there is some kind of origin at the southwest corner of the topo to which the image is "pinned" and it gets moved by the section box "framing" or whatever you call it.