Use Sheet Sets in a Team (Concept)

You can use sheet sets in a team that can involve network access, Internet collaboration, and email transmittal. The team can also include people who use software that does not include Sheet Set Manager.

Work in a Team That Uses Sheet Set Manager

When you use sheet sets in a team, each member should have network access to the sheet set data (DST) file and the drawing template (DWT) files associated with the sheet set. Each team member can open the sheet set to load the sheet set information from the DST file into the Sheet Set Manager.

Any changes that any team member makes opens the DST file briefly and updates the information stored in that file. When the DST file is opened, a lock icon is displayed next to the sheet set name in the top left corner of the Sheet Set Manager.

A green dot in the lock icon indicates that the Sheet Set Manager session on your computer has temporarily locked the DST file.

A red dot indicates that the Sheet Set Manager session on a team member's computer has temporarily locked the DST file.

A yellow dot in the lock icon means that the sheet is in a special state; for example, its file properties may be set to Read-Only.

Other members of the team can automatically see changes to the sheet set in the Sheet Set Manager tree view.

If each member of the team has access to the sheet set DWT files, new drawing files and their sheets are created using the same drawing template file; page setups for these drawings are also standardized.

NoteIf two or more users access the same sheet files through different logical drives on a network, each will in turn be prompted to resave the sheet set using their own logical drive. To avoid unnecessary saving, users should map the same logical drives, if possible.

Status data for sheets in the current sheet set is also available to other team members. This status data is displayed in the tree view and indicates one of the following conditions:

The sheet is available for editing.

The sheet is locked.

The sheet is missing or found in an unexpected folder location.

The active sheets of other team members are automatically polled for status changes; the tree view is updated in your session of the Sheet Set Manager. The polling cycle skips the poll interval in your session when a command is active. To force a sheet status update, click Refresh Sheet Status on the Sheet List tab.

You can click any sheet to display more information in the Details area of the Sheet Set Manager.

NoteA false lock icon may be displayed if there is a network problem or if the program terminates unexpectedly. If you suspect a problem, click the sheet to display more information.

Work in a Team That Does Not Use Sheet Set Manager

With some limitations, you can use sheet sets in a team with members who do not have network access, or do not have access to the Sheet Set Manager. These team members may be using AutoCAD LT or an older version of AutoCAD. In those circumstances, not all members of the team will have access to the DST file. However, relevant information from the DST file is stored (cached) in each drawing file, and sheet set information, such as custom properties, is preserved when the drawing file is shared by other team members.

After a member of the team changes information in the DST file, the information in several drawing files might need to be updated. With the sheet set open, update a sheet by opening and saving the sheet.

You can update all sheets in a sheet set automatically with the Resave All Sheets option in the sheet set shortcut menu. Drawing files saved in a previous DWG file format are saved without changing the format.

NoteIn a network environment, make sure that all drawing files used in the current sheet set that are opened by other users are closed before performing the Resave All Sheets operation.