Managing CAD Standards via Network

I'm new to the AutoCAD/Civil3D world and am looking for information on set up, deployment, and management of our standard:
- menus
- macros
- blocks
- layer definitions
- line styles
- etc.

We are are currentley using another CADD environment where we reference all of these standards off of network drives and don't install them to each pc. I would like to do the same for AutoCAD.

Any suggestions would be most appreciated.

Thanks,
Rod Wing - Wisconsin DOT

Hi

For starters the following threads should offer some help ( remember to take note of all links found within )...

Exporting & Importing Plotter Settings

Can Tool Palette "Groups" be shared?

PROJECTNAME Variable dilemma

Shared menus on network

Network plotter setup

How can I distribute a custom macro

Have a good one, Mike

Use the Deployment Wizard to create an "Image" of where to map everything on the network drive. Once created, test it on your machine, some tweking my be required...........

There is a PDF on the DVD that will guide you through it.

Terry

My question is: can you use the Deployment Wizard for computers that are already setup? I have about 85 workstations that I am trying to get centralized, and I am at a wall. I can't seem to figure out how to do it without sitting at each machine, logging in as each user, then making the changes by hand. There should be a way to do this via a login script, or LISP, or something?

Hey,

Isn’t that possible with a template?
Here we use a template (*.dwt) for connecting to the specified paths on a server. The paths are set in the Options > Files and loaded every time we open this template.
The template itself is on the server. So if you create a template, store this on the server.
Create a shortcut for AutoCAD and in the Properties > Target set
/t "<<Network drive>>:\<<path>>\Template\<<name>>.dwt" after the startup program. It will look something like this:
"C:\Program Files\Autodesk Architectural Desktop 2006\acad.exe" /t "K:\XellaCAD\Department\BUR\Template\beton_mm_Silka.dwt"
If you now set this shortcut to the 85 workstations and open it, they open CAD with the new template and settings.

GreetZzz,
mE!
8)