Enabling Worksets

The worksets function in Revit influences your model and the way you go about working more than anything you can do. Using worksets is a mode you literally have to enter into.

Essentially, worksets are a way to divide your model. After you activate worksharing, every element in your model has a workset associated with it. Levels and grids are on their own workset, and everything else in the model is automatically assigned Workset 1. This assignment is in the form of a parameter that you can see in the Properties dialog; you can change that parameter if necessary.

Why would you want to change it? Good question. Here’s an example: say you’re modifying an interior partition, and your coworker (who is working on a local model) tries to edit that same wall. Your coworker will be denied access to the wall. But nothing is stopping them from working on another wall in the same area, one that you intended to make the same modifications to. This could get messy fast. To avoid this situation, you can add all your interior partitions to a workset called Interior Partitions and lock everybody else out of any item you’ve placed on this workset.

Now that’s the way to work!

Obviously, this process isn’t without its rules, quirks, and parts that need further explanation. To get started, go to the book’s web page at www.sybex.com/go/revit2012ner. From there, you can browse to Chapter 22 and find the file called NER-33.rvt.

To enable worksets and start the worksharing process, follow these steps:

1. 1. Open the NER-33.rvt file.
   
2. 2. On the Collaborate tab, click the Worksets button on the Worksets panel, as shown in Figure 22.2. Note that the Worksharing button is also on the status bar at the bottom of the Revit window.
   
3. 3. You get a Worksharing dialog that welcomes you to the point of no return. Accept the defaults values Shared Levels And Grids and Workset 1, as shown in Figure 22.3, and click OK.

   

   

   
   
4. 4. The next dialog you arrive at is named Worksets, as shown in Figure 22.4. As you can see, your two worksets are present in a spreadsheet format. It says they’re both editable and that you own them. Congratulations. There is plenty to explain here:
   
   
   
   • Active Workset indicates the workset where any new item will be either drawn or inserted (sort of like the current layer in AutoCAD). There is also a Gray Inactive Workset Graphics check box. When selected, it shades items that aren’t on the current workset.
     
   • The Show area at the bottom of the Worksets dialog lets you add specific families, project standards, and views to the workset list (see Figure 22.4).

   

   
   
5. 5. Click OK to get back to the model.

Now that you’ve activated the worksets and saved the model, it’s time to create the central model. This will always be the next step in the process.

Creating a Central Model

Creating the central model is generally a one-time deal. You create it immediately after you enable your worksets. The individual who creates the central model needs to be your best Revit user. If not, and this procedure is done incorrectly, you will have struggles for the entire life of the project.

Okay, best Revit user, follow this procedure to learn how to create the central model:

1. 1. Click the Application button, and choose Save As Project, as shown in Figure 22.5.

   

   
   
2. 2. In the Save As dialog, click the Options button in the lower-right corner.
   
3. 3. In the File Save Options dialog, change Maximum Backups to 1 (see Figure 22.6).
   
4. 4. Click OK.
   
5. 5. Call the file NER-CENTRAL.rvt.
   
6. 6. Click Save.

   

   
   
7. 7. On the Collaborate tab, click Synchronize With Central Synchronize Now, as shown in Figure 22.7. Doing so saves any changes made.

   

   
   
8. 8. On the Worksets panel in the Collaborate tab, click the Worksets button.