Setting up Revit worksharing: how does the central model work?

Worksharing divides a Revit project into a central model and personal local copies.

Worksharing is the method that allows several designers to work on the same Revit project at the same time. Instead of everyone drafting directly in the server file, a central model sits on a network location and each user works on their own local model on their own PC. Changes travel back and forth via the Synchronise with Central command.

The central model stores the master version and tracks who is editing which element. The local model is your personal working copy. Until you synchronise, nobody else sees your changes and you do not see those of your colleagues. That makes worksharing safe: the model cannot be overwritten by two people on the same element simultaneously.

The prerequisite is a shared network folder or an Autodesk cloud service that everyone can reach. For cloud worksharing you need BIM Collaborate Pro; for a local network a shared drive and a standard Revit licence are sufficient.

Turn on worksharing via the Collaborate button on the Collaborate tab.

Open the project file that will become the central model. Work locally on a fast drive, not directly on the server. Go to the Collaborate tab and, in the Manage Collaboration panel, click the Collaborate button.

In the Collaborate dialogue box choose where the model will live:

• Within Your Network: the central model will be placed on a shared network drive. Choose this for local server collaboration.
• In the Cloud (in BIM Collaborate Pro): the model goes to Autodesk Docs or BIM 360. This requires a BIM Collaborate Pro subscription.

Click OK. Revit enables worksharing and automatically creates two default worksets. The file that is now open is not yet a real central model until you save it under a proper name on the network location.

Collaborate (tab) > Manage Collaboration > Collaborate > Within Your Network > OK

Note: turning on worksharing is a one-way action. Once you click OK, the project is a workshared project forever. If you later want a non-shared file again, you open a copy with Detach from Central and choose to discard the worksets. Therefore make a backup before converting an existing solo project.

Choose between network worksharing and cloud worksharing based on where your team is located.

There are two ways to share the central model. Network worksharing places the central model on a shared drive within your own network. Cloud worksharing puts the model in Autodesk Docs or BIM 360 and requires a BIM Collaborate Pro subscription. For teams that work remotely or dial in from home, the cloud variant solves the problem of a network drive being slow or unreachable via VPN.

Technically both variants work identically: worksets, local models, element borrowing and Synchronize with Central behave the same. Only the location of the central model differs. If you start small on a local network, you can later switch to the cloud without rebuilding the model.

Worksets split the model into logical groups that you can make visible or editable separately.

A workset is a collection of elements, for example all external façades or the entire structural frame. When you enable worksharing, Revit creates two user worksets: Shared Levels and Grids (for levels and grids) and Workset1. You open and manage them via the Collaborate tab, Manage Collaboration panel, Worksets button.

Create worksets that match how the team divides the work. Common subdivisions:

• Per building part: Façade, Core, Floors, Roof.
• Per discipline or linked model: Architecture, Structure, Linked models.
• Per storey for high-rise buildings.

In the Worksets dialog you set per workset whether it is Editable (editable by you) and whether it is visible by default in new views. The active workset is selected in the status bar at the bottom: every new element falls into that active workset, so check it before you start drafting. Avoid making a workset fully editable, because that claims all its elements and colleagues cannot work on them.

Save the central model with Save As on the network location.

After worksharing is on, create the actual central model. Go to the application menu (the Revit logo top left) and choose Save As > Project. Browse to the shared network folder that everyone can access.

Use a name that makes it clear this is the central model, for example OfficeBuilding_CENTRAL.rvt. In the Save As dialog click Options and verify that Make this a Central Model after save is ticked. Then click Save.

Application menu > Save As > Project > (network folder) > Options: Make this a Central Model after save > Save

From now on this file is the central model. An important rule: never open and edit this file directly to draft. If someone works directly in the central model, conflicts arise and the dreaded message that you cannot save to the central model appears. How to resolve that is described in the guide about the Revit central model error and what the message means.

Each team member opens the central model with Create New Local ticked.

Team members do not draft in the central model but in their own local copy. To create that, in the Open dialog select the central model and make sure the Create New Local option is ticked (bottom right of the Open dialog). Click Open. Revit places a copy in your local user folder and opens it.

Before creating a local model, set your user name. Go to the application menu, Options > General, Username field. This name identifies who is editing which element. If you are signed in with your Autodesk account, Revit automatically adopts that account name. Make sure every team member has a unique name: two people with the same user name cause synchronisation errors.

You borrow an element automatically as soon as you select and edit it.

Revit manages ownership at the element level. As soon as you edit a wall, door or other element in your local model, you borrow that element (element borrowing). As long as you have it borrowed, nobody else can modify it. At the next synchronisation you release it again.

This approach, element borrowing, is almost always better than making a whole workset editable. If a colleague wants to edit an element that you have borrowed, they see a message that the element is in use and can send a request via Place Request. You see that request and can release the element by synchronising or via the Editing Requests button.

The Worksharing Display modes in the View Control Bar visually show who owns what: choose Checkout Status or Owners to see per colour which elements belong to whom. That helps you see why a component is locked. There are four modes: Checkout Status (yours, others', free), Owners (owner's name), Model Updates (what has changed since your last synchronisation) and Worksets (colour per workset).

A borrowed element is different from an editable workset. With a borrowed element you own only that single component; with an editable workset you claim all elements in it at once. That is why element borrowing works more smoothly in a team: several people can draw in the same workset at the same time as long as they do not touch exactly the same element.

Synchronize with Central sends your changes and retrieves those of others.

With Synchronize with Central (SWC) you push your edits to the central model and pull your colleagues' changes into your local model. You find the button on the Collaborate tab, Synchronize panel. There are two variants:

• Synchronize Now: synchronises immediately with the default settings, without an intermediate dialog.
• Synchronize and Modify Settings: opens a dialog where you add a comment and choose which worksets and borrowed elements you relinquish.

Also use Reload Latest (same panel) to fetch others' changes without sending yours. Do that just before you start a sensitive edit, so you work on the latest state.

Sensible rhythms from practice:

1. Save your local model every 5 to 10 minutes with Ctrl+S.
2. Synchronise with central every 30 to 60 minutes or after completing a task.
3. Always synchronise before printing or exporting, before major model changes, and at the end of the day.

Perform a Save Local after a synchronisation so that your local copy contains the new central state. Close Revit properly with a final synchronisation so you relinquish all borrowed elements and colleagues can access them the next day.

If you want to return your borrowed elements without sending your changes, use the Relinquish All Mine option. This releases all worksets and elements you own but have not edited. Useful if you have accidentally claimed a large part of the model by making a workset editable. Edited elements can only be released by synchronising.

Clear agreements on names, worksets and synchronisation prevent conflicts.

Worksharing stands or falls with team discipline. A few agreements that prevent problems:

• Never draft in the central model. Everyone works in a local copy via Create New Local.
• Unique user name per person. Duplicate names cause ownership and synchronisation errors.
• Fixed workset structure. Agree on how worksets are named and what goes where, so that the active workset is always correct.
• Release borrowed elements. Do not stay in possession of half a project; synchronise or relinquish.
• Detach for external copies. If you want to send someone a standalone copy, open with Detach from Central so that you do not move the actual central model.

For larger teams Autodesk offers the free add-in Worksharing Monitor, which live-displays who is signed in, who is synchronising and how much memory the model uses. This makes it easier to see why a colleague is holding an element. Anyone who, after worksharing, wants to go further with broader Autodesk workflows will find a similarly structured approach for infrastructure models in the guide about creating a corridor in Civil 3D.

The official steps are in the Autodesk documentation on Enable Worksharing.

Most worksharing problems arise from moved files or duplicate user names.

Some situations that often go wrong and their cause:

If you are working with temporary or purchased Revit licences in a larger team, take the licence type into account. The overview about perpetual versus subscription and which software licence is more advantageous explains what that means for a team working on a shared central model.