File Exchange

Brings drawings and point lists into the project and writes the project out as an AutoCAD DXF file. All three commands are in the Exchange group of the File tab.

Import DXF

Reads a DXF drawing into the current project. The import is one undoable step, and it adds to the project: nothing already in it is removed.

Where to find it

File tab → Exchange group → Import drop-down → Import DXF (button label DXF).

How to

Click Import DXF.
In the Import DXF file dialog pick a *.dxf file.
Wait while the progress window shows the stages: Reading the file…, Parsing the drawing (large files take a while)…, Building objects…, Adding objects to the project…. You can cancel; then nothing is added and the project stays as it was.
Read the result window. It names the file and tells how many objects and new layers came across, the count by object type, and the time taken.

What the result window tells you

Line	Meaning
Imported N object(s), M new layer(s).	What was added.
Nothing was imported.	The file had no objects the import can read.
Switched on layers: … (N object(s) landed on them).	The project already had these layers switched off or frozen; the import turned them on so its objects are seen. Undo takes the objects and the layers' state back together.
Skipped N:	Objects the import does not read, one line per DXF type with its count.

The window shows a warning icon when nothing was imported or when something was skipped.

If something goes wrong

Message	What to do
Import failed: …	The file could not be read. The text after the colon says why; check that the file is a valid DXF and is not open in another program.
Nothing was imported.	Check the skipped list, if any, and the layers of the source drawing.

What next

Switch on layers listed as hidden in the Layers panel. To send the work back out, use Export DXF.

Import CSV points

Reads a text file of coordinates and adds one point object per row.

Where to find it

File tab → Exchange group → Import drop-down → Import CSV points (button label CSV).

Before you start

The first row of the file must be a header with column names. The separator may be ;, a tab, , or |; the program finds it by itself. The dialog offers *.csv, *.tsv and *.txt.

The columns are found by their header names (case does not matter):

Value	Accepted header names
X (required)	x, easting, east, long, longitude
Y (required)	y, northing, north, lat, latitude
Z (optional)	z, elevation, elev, rl, level

Without a Z column, or where Z is not a number, the point gets Z = 0.

How to

Click Import CSV points.
In the Import CSV points dialog pick the file.
A message reports the result: Imported N points. or Imported N points (M rows skipped). Rows whose X or Y is not a number are skipped.

The points go to the layer CSV points; it is created if the project has no layer of that name. The whole import is one undoable step.

If something goes wrong

Message	What to do
'…' has no X/Y columns. Header: …	Rename the header cells to one of the names in the table above. The message lists the header it found.
No usable rows in '…'.	Every row had a non-numeric X or Y. Check the separator and the decimal mark.
Could not read '…': …	The file is locked or unreadable.

Export DXF

Writes the project's objects to an AutoCAD DXF file. A window lets you choose which objects go out, for which AutoCAD version, and how surfaces and solids are written.

Where to find it

File tab → Exchange group → Export DXF (button label Export DXF).

How to

Click Export DXF. The Export DXF window opens with the project name in the folder of your last export (your Documents folder the first time).
Set the file, the objects and the format (see the tables below). The line at the bottom shows the estimated file size, or a warning that stops you from exporting.
Click Export. A progress window runs; cancelling it leaves any existing file as it was.
The result window lists the file, the number of objects and DXF items, the layers, counts by object type, the file size and the time. Click Show in folder to select the file in Explorer, or Close.

An existing file with the same name is replaced.

Parameters

1. File

Field	Meaning
File box and Browse…	Where the drawing is written; an existing file is replaced.

2. Objects

Field	Meaning
Export	All objects (N), Selected objects (N) or Objects on visible layers (N) (layers that are on and not frozen). A choice with no objects is unavailable.

3. Format

Field	Meaning
DXF version	AutoCAD 2000, 2004, 2007, 2010, 2013 or 2018. AutoCAD 2000 (the default) opens in any CAD program; a newer version only in newer ones.
Surfaces and solids	Polyface meshes, every triangle (default): one object per mesh and a smaller file. Polyface meshes, simplified: the same, with fewer triangles. 3D faces, one per triangle: read by every CAD program, but a big file for a big surface. Leave them out: surfaces and solids are not written.
Simplification step	Enabled only with Polyface meshes, simplified. In metres. Vertices closer than this merge into one, so the surface keeps its shape to within the step. Surfaces of up to 10 000 triangles are written as they are. Must be positive.

The window remembers the objects, version, surface choice, step and folder between runs.

If something goes wrong

Message	What to do
Choose the file to write.	The file box is empty.
The folder does not exist.	Pick an existing folder.
The file name is not valid.	Remove characters Windows does not allow in names.
There is nothing to export.	The chosen set of objects is empty; choose another in Export.
Enter a positive simplification step.	Type a number above 0 in Simplification step.
Too big for AutoCAD to open: simplify the surfaces (a bigger step) or leave them out.	Raise the step, choose Polyface meshes, simplified, or choose Leave them out.
Export failed: … / Could not export to '…': …	The file could not be written; check the folder and that the file is not open elsewhere.

The result window can also say Surfaces and solids left out: N and Nothing to write for N object(s).

What next

To read a DXF back, use Import DXF.