True North Tool Not Activated

[mdorado]

Hi Everyone,

I am working in a Mechanical model and I am not able to rotate the whole model to its true north because the tool is not activated. I don't know if it is because I am using a Mechanical Template, but which ever floor plan I open (either if it is mechanical, coordination or structure), none of them can be swithched to its true north. In some plans I am able to change its orientation to True North, but the actual tool that does the work isn't active.

Please,any help will be much appreciated.

Thanks

[Mahmoud.Ziedan]

Dear,

You should go to view properties and then find down a property named Orientation, you have to select True North instead of Project North. Then everything will run perfectly.

Check attached.

[mdorado]

Thanx BIM-Mahmoud for your response, but I have already done what you say and the Rotate True North tool still isn't active. Please see the image I've attached.

Have you any ideas as to why this isn't working?

[L.Maas]

Go to a floor plan, instead of a ceiling plan and try again.

[Mahmoud.Ziedan]

Dear,
You cannot rotate your model in ceiling plan.switch to floor plan.If this doesnt solve your problem,please reply

[mdorado]

No, the problem is not yet solved. In floor, structural or mechanical plan, the Orientation option in the properties dialog is not active, so I can't switch it to True North. Please check the attached image.

Thanx again

[SteveKStafford · Accepted solution]

Any chance your view is assigned to a View Template? Check the Properties of the View > View Template. Is there a View Template name there instead of <None>. If so then a View Template is in charge, you have to either remove the bossy nature of the View Template from the view or change the setting in the View Template instead.

On second look, even if the template is in charge it isn't locked down like other parameters are, which is counterintuitive.

[Mahmoud.Ziedan · Accepted solution]

Dear,

As shown in the image you send, the view properties are locked. Kindly check the View templates in the View properties, it should be none.Check attached.

[SteveKStafford]

As you say you're working in an MEP model I'd be inclined to assume you are using Revit not Revit LT. However Revit LT does not support Shared Coordinates so it might account for why those settings are disabled. I don't have LT installed so I don't for certain that it doesn't allow Rotating True North, but that's an aspect of Shared Coordinates.

[mdorado]

I am just using Revit and not Revit LT.

However, I was able to solve the problem. It was, as you guys said, due to the fact that there was a template setting assigned to the floor plan views. So I turned that to "none" and it worked! I was able to rotate my model to its True North.

Thanx everyone for your help!

[10526038]

I am currently having the same problem. I imported a volume from forma and are trying to rotate the whole building and set up project/true north. The building was in true north when i imported it so i rotated it to project north and is now trying to set up true north. I checked that there is not a view template overriding it. I cant seem to access the tool no matter what settings i change. I also reset the coordinates that was imported to reset true north.
Hope someone is able to help me!

[iainsavage]

Post some images of what you are seeing on screen, in the view properties, any error messages etc.

Better yet upload your model if possible.

[10526038]

I figured it out myself. It seems i couldnt use the tool while in a site view, so i switched to a plan view, and the orientation had to be in project north, contrary to what my book and this forum said. I guess they changed it for the 2025 version. 

[iainsavage]

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@10526038 wrote:

I figured it out myself. It seems i couldnt use the tool while in a site view, so i switched to a plan view, and the orientation had to be in project north, contrary to what my book and this forum said. I guess they changed it for the 2025 version. 

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A site view is a floor plan:

Unless its maybe been created as a 3D view looking from above.

No mention in 2025 "What's new" of any change to behaviour:

https://help.autodesk.com/view/RVT/2025/ENU/?guid=GUID-C81929D7-02CB-4BF7-A637-9B98EC9EB38B

Help topic doesn't seem to have changed from previous versions?:

https://help.autodesk.com/view/RVT/2023/ENU/?guid=GUID-CD5FEE13-B63E-4668-AC03-7D0E8A4C9698

https://help.autodesk.com/view/RVT/2025/ENU/?guid=GUID-CD5FEE13-B63E-4668-AC03-7D0E8A4C9698

I also just tried it in a site plan view set to True North with a view template active and it worked fine, in 2025.

If you do it in a view set to Project North you get an error:

Its good that you got it to work for you but I don't think your perceived reason is correct, I think there must be something else going on with your model.

.