Danny Korem shared this time-saving tip for maintaining files in good order.

When dealing with AutoCAD files that arrive from other design team members, we use the Attach DWG option within the external reference manager to share the data or base a drawing on it. If we’re going to attach a lot of files (or one with many attachments within it), sometimes AutoCAD’s reaction is very slow; it may not respond at all. There are two possible causes:

1) An excessive number of annotation scales. In fact, annotation scales tend to nest within each other, so we might get a file with dozens or even hundreds of annotation scales.

2) Some files will report about unreconciled new layers, which must then be reconciled.

Those two reasons are the main cause of degrading performance. The problem is that the Purge feature won’t get rid of excessive annotation scales and the layers must be treated manually. I found an app called Radical Purge, from the Autodesk Exchange, that can be very helpful in getting rid of any unused scales.

Any file hosting xrefs should be explored for unreconciled new layers. Those are discoverable from the tray, from a notification balloon, and from within the layer properties manager. They are grouped into a filter that you should select. Then select all layers and right-click to opt for Reconcile Layers. We are all responsible for maintenance of the data we create, so keep your files clean of excessive scales and do everything you can to publish files only after all new layers are reconciled. Only then can you expect clean data from others.   

Notes from Cadalyst tip reviewer R.K. McSwain: We did not test the specific utility that Danny mentions, but this tip is a very good one even if it does nothing other than remind you to maintain your drawing files. Over the past few years there have been a variety of things, such as the scale list entries and layer filters, that can pollute your drawing files. Keep an eye out for tools such as the one mentioned here because tools like this would not exist without a need for them. Test on copies of your drawings for safety. By employing these best practices, you should find yourself wasting less time waiting on slow, polluted drawing files — which gives you more time to create.