Zone Automatic Recognition Geometry Method + Hotlink Walls

[jameshart]

I am trying to place a zone using one of the automatic recognition methods, but when I click inside a room where the walls are part of a hotlink module, ArchiCAD does nothing. (No zone is drawn, no error message, no error sound, nothing of interest in the status bar... nothing.) I am still able to draw the zone manually, but I’ve noticed that manually drawn zones show the same square footage for both Gross and Net areas (undesireable.) Also, we like how the automatically drawn zones will update their geometry if a wall is moved and then you go to Design > Update Zones.

Is it just not possible to use the automatic recognition method with zones in rooms with hotlinked walls, or did I miss something?

[jameshart]

(Oops, I had a second post re: schedules that I meant to post in the schedules forum, and I meant to post this one elsewhere! Sorry about that!)

[Laszlo Nagy]

This should work regardless of where the Walls are located: host file or hotlinked module.
You should check those Walls in the hotlinked module:
1. Are they correctly joining to each other?
2. Are they correctly joining to Walls within the host file?
3. Is their "Relation to Zones" setting set to the proper value?

[jameshart]

laszlonagy wrote:
This should work regardless of where the Walls are located: host file or hotlinked module.
You should check those Walls in the hotlinked module:
1. Are they correctly joining to each other?
2. Are they correctly joining to Walls within the host file?
3. Is their "Relation to Zones" setting set to the proper value?

Thanks for getting back to me Laszlo!

I also thought it should work and I was surprised when it didn't! I have checked:
1. Yes, the walls all clean up correctly.
2. Yes, they are correctly joining in the host file.
3. Yes, they are all set as zone boundaries.

Any other ideas? Thanks again for your help!

[Laszlo Nagy]

I am trying to find out if this is file specific:

If you start a brand new file using New & Reset, then place the Hotlinked Module in that file, can you place Zones in the host file then? Because if the answer is yes, then there is something in your current Project File that is causing this behavior.

[jameshart]

laszlonagy wrote:
I am trying to find out if this is file specific:

If you start a brand new file using New & Reset, then place the Hotlinked Module in that file, can you place Zones in the host file then? Because if the answer is yes, then there is something in your current Project File that is causing this behavior.

I gave this a shot, and I am still unable to place zones using the automatic recognition method.

Just to test, I tried breaking the hotlink and tried again to place the zone using the automatic method, but even then the automatic recognition method does not work. Furthermore, I just discovered that there are other non-hotlink walls in the host file that won't work with the automatic recognition methods either. Apparently there is something about these walls that ArchiCAD doesn't like? Please see the attached screenshot.

[Laszlo Nagy]

Could be their Renovation Status? It is set to New. What if you set all of them to Existing?

[jameshart]

laszlonagy wrote:
Could be their Renovation Status? It is set to New. What if you set all of them to Existing?

YES, that was it! I didn't even think about the renovation status for a zone, but it makes total logical sense!

Summary of my findings:

• • Existing wall + existing zone = OK
  • New wall + existing zone = NOT OK
  • Existing wall + new zone = OK
  • New wall + new zone = OK

Thanks Laszlo!