Shared Parameters Not Exporting to ODBC

[Duffy]

Has anyone else found that all of the shared parameters that you add to your families don't show up in the exported data from the OBDC database.

I have tried brining the export through both Excel and Acces and the data is great and I will be able to do heaps with it through VBS but I really need the shared parameters that I added to all of my family objects to come through.

Regards

JM

[GuyR]

You need to add the shared parameter to the project parameters in your project.rvt. This is how Revit knows which parameters should be exported.
The PITA is you need to do this with every project file. If they are families you use regularly, add the shared parameters to your template files.

The help files will explain it further.

HTH,

Guy

[chris.ford]

I tried something similar and can get my instance shared parameters to export to ODBC but not type. Any ideas.

[chris.ford]

OK done it now, I wasnt looking in door types in access. Once problem though, when you export again after creating a new shared parameter. The new shared parameter gets lost.

[James.Lupton]

Chris

I think this is because the Access database file does not get re-creatied if it already exists.

To get the new shared parameter you may need to recreate the .mdb file from scratch

If you have any reports queries etc these need to be brought in from the previous .mdb file

[sfaust]

bringing up an old thread here, but I have a related issue. How can you get a shared parameter that is both instance and type? What I am trying to do is create a parameter for linear feet of casework. I created a shared parameter called linear feet, and added it to several families. For some, I set it equal to the width, some the length, etc. However some of them are instance (like countertop length) and some are type (like normal casework units). THis works fine in Revit, but I can only export either the Type ones or the instance ones to ODBC, not both since you can only add a shared parameter once...

[sfaust]

not possible I guess?

[ITABWODI]

Chris

I think this is because the Access database file does not get re-creatied if it already exists.

To get the new shared parameter you may need to recreate the .mdb file from scratch

If you have any reports queries etc these need to be brought in from the previous .mdb file

Not to put too fine a point on it, but you really only have to recreate the tables from scratch, not the whole database. This can save you a lot of trouble if you have made a lot of custom queries and/or reports in the database. Just delete the tables where you want the additional parameters to show up (yes, it's OK to delete the relationships along with the tables). Then export the revit project to the same .mdb file again. The tables will be recreated including any new parameters you have added.

[ITABWODI]

You need to add the shared parameter to the project parameters in your project.rvt. This is how Revit knows which parameters should be exported.
The PITA is you need to do this with every project file. If they are families you use regularly, add the shared parameters to your template files.

The help files will explain it further.

HTH,

Guy

Thanks - that did the trick. Of course, I'm only using instance parameters at the moment, so I don't know if I'd have trouble with type parameters. I wonder if chris ever got his to work?

[ITABWODI]

bringing up an old thread here, but I have a related issue. How can you get a shared parameter that is both instance and type? What I am trying to do is create a parameter for linear feet of casework. I created a shared parameter called linear feet, and added it to several families. For some, I set it equal to the width, some the length, etc. However some of them are instance (like countertop length) and some are type (like normal casework units). THis works fine in Revit, but I can only export either the Type ones or the instance ones to ODBC, not both since you can only add a shared parameter once...

Just brainstorming a little here: if the goal is export to ODBC, why not just use two different shared parameters in Revit (say, one for types and one for instances) and then let a database query recombine the fields once the data is exported?

[sfaust]

Yeah, that's actually what I ended up doing. I was just hoping that there was a better way to make it cleaner in Revit. Oh well.

Thanks,
Steve