Bentley V8i (SELECTseries 3) -

Autodesk® RealDWG™ 2014

BENTLEY SYSTEMS, INCORPORATED

www.bentley.com
Introduction to Working with DWG Data
In a project environment, engineering information from different applications often must be
shared. It is not uncommon for parts of projects to be created in MicroStation DGN files and other
parts in AutoCAD® DWG/DXF format files.
Note: This document describes MicroStation functionality. However, Bentley V8i (SELECTseries 3) -
Autodesk® RealDWG™ 2014 works with other V8i (SELECTseries 3) products. See the ReadMe for
a complete list.

The DGN and DWG File Formats

The V8 DGN file format is MicroStation’s native file format. MicroStation also opens and saves files
in the AutoCAD DWG format.
As of MicroStation V8i (SELECTseries 1), the DWG files created by MicroStation are saved using
Autodesk-authored code called RealDWG. Because of this the files are accepted as “trusted” by
AutoCAD. Therefore, you can open in AutoCAD a DWG file created or modified in MicroStation and
you will not see an alert message saying that the DWG file is “Foreign” because it was saved in a
non-Autodesk program.
When a DGN file containing DGN-specific entities not understood by AutoCAD is saved in
MicroStation as a DWG file, these entities are automatically converted to DWG-compatible entities
so that they can be displayed properly in AutoCAD.
MicroStation V8i (SELECTseries 3) also supports materials and lights created in AutoCAD R2007
and later. The old materials and lights, also known as AVE objects, created in versions prior to
AutoCAD R2007 are not supported. These AVE objects become regular shared cells and have no
effect on rendering.
MicroStation supports all DWG entity types and objects from AutoCAD 2006 and earlier. The
following AutoCAD entities and objects introduced in AutoCAD versions 2007 through 2014 are
supported as read-only:
 annotative objects
 multi-leaders
 layer viewport overrides
 column mtext
 visual styles
 underlays
 geometric constraints
Note: The DXF file format is an ASCII text representation of the DWG format. DXF is an interchange
format historically used to exchange data between AutoCAD and other applications. You work with
DXF data in MicroStation in the same manner as DWG data. DWG is preferable because its compact
binary representation results in smaller files. For the remainder of this document, the term DWG
refers to both DWG and DXF files.

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Transparency in DWG Files
When a DWG entity has a transparency that is the same or greater than its layer’s transparency, the
effective transparency is calculated and displayed the same as it is in AutoCAD. However, when the
entity’s transparency is less than its layer’s transparency, the effective transparency will be the
same as ByLayer. As a result, when this type of element is edited in MicroStation and saved as a
DWG file, the entity will have ByLayer transparency.
For example, assume a DWG entity has transparency set to 70% and the layer transparency set to
60%. While calculating transparency in MicroStation, the DWG entity transparency is considered as
the effective transparency, and the effective transparency formula is rearranged to get the element
transparency. The element transparency in this case comes to 25%. Now with element
transparency equal to 25%, the effective transparency is calculated using the same formula. It
comes to 70%, which is same as the DWG entity transparency. But if a DWG entity has transparency
set to 40% and the layer transparency is set to 60%, the effective transparency will be zero and the
element transparency will be the same as layer transparency that is 60%.

RealDWG and Object Enablers

An object enabler is a program that is required to interpret custom objects in a DWG file. If the
object enabler is missing, some information in the DWG file might not display correctly. Prior to V8i
(SELECTseries 1), MicroStation supported object enablers that were rewritten with the Open
Design Alliance OpenDWG library; however, there were many object enablers that did not support
OpenDWG. As of V8i (SELECTseries 1), MicroStation can directly run object enablers that also run
on AutoCAD, so the graphical objects created by these enablers are displayed desirably.
When you open a DWG file containing a custom object, and if the enabler is missing, an Alert
window appears. The window lists all the missing enablers, some of which may have detailed
information such as the provider of the enabler and the website from which you may find and
download the needed enablers. Note that an enabler is not required to open a DWG file. When an
enabler is missing, the file still opens and its custom objects become proxy objects.
Object enablers that are written to conform to the guidelines published by Autodesk can also be
used in programs that incorporate the RealDWG libraries. This is advantageous because when you
have the object enabler for an entity, you no longer have to ask the person who provided the DWG
file to save it with “proxies” enabled. MicroStation can instead use the object enabler to obtain the
graphics representation of the custom entity.
Custom objects created by Autodesk’s AEC products such as AutoCAD Architecture, MEP, Structural
Detailing, Civil 3D and others are displayed in MicroStation with the object enablers delivered with
RealDWG. However, if you try to open files that contain AEC objects created in an older version, you
get an Alert window that provides the options to upgrade AEC objects, open the file as read-only, or
cancel the file open process. You can also control this behavior by setting the configuration variable
MS_OPENDWGAEC. Following are the valid values for this configuration variable:
 1 - the file is opened for editing and the AEC objects are upgraded to the current version.
 2 - the file is opened as read-only.
 If not set at all or set to any other value, the Alert window opens.
If you select to upgrade the AEC objects, a message appears in the Message Center saying that the
DWG file was last saved in an earlier version of an AEC product; saving this DWG file will update the
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AEC objects to a newer version, which is incompatible with the version of the software that was
originally used to create them. If you edit the file and save it, the AEC objects will be upgraded to
the most recent version of AEC object enablers.

Other Advantages of Using RealDWG

There are a number of advantages that result from using RealDWG technology:
 Improved DWG fidelity.
 When opened in AutoCAD, DWG files saved in MicroStation V8i (SELECTseries 1) and later
editions will no longer show the alert box that says “This DWG file was saved by an
application that was not developed or licensed by Autodesk…”
 AutoCAD's standard SHX fonts are now readily available so you do not have to request them
from the provider of the DWG.

Installing Object Enablers

The object enabler for Autodesk's Architectural Desktop is incorporated into the RealDWG delivery,
and you do not have to install it. Other object enablers can be downloaded from their respective
vendors and installed. Even if you have previously installed the object enabler to work with
AutoCAD, you must go through the object enabler's installation process after you have installed
MicroStation, so that it can be found and used by MicroStation.
Object enablers from Autodesk can be either for 32-bit operating system or for 64-bit operating
system. For AutoCAD, you need to install a 32-bit object enabler on a 32-bit operating system and a
64-bit object enabler on a 64-bit operating system. However, MicroStation supports only 32-bit
object enablers. So, irrespective of your operating system, when you are downloading object
enablers from Autodesk or other sources, download the Autodesk® RealDWG™ 2013 or 2014 32-bit
version. When you are prompted for a host application, select MicroStation V8i (SELECTseries 3) -
Autodesk® RealDWG™ 2014. Some 32-bit object enablers may not be configured to be installed on
64-bit operating systems. If the installer of a 32-bit object enabler does not have the option of
installing on a 64-bit operating system, you need to check for a work around with the provider of
the object enabler.
If you use object enablers of release 2009, 2012, or 2013, you will have to switch from RealDWG
2014 to RealDWG 2009, RealDWG 2012, or RealDWG 2013 respectively.

Bentley V8i (SELECTseries 3) - Autodesk®

RealDWG™ 2014
Bentley V8i (SELECTseries 3) - Autodesk® RealDWG™ 2014 allows you to open and save DWG
2013/2014 files in MicroStation V8i (SELECTseries 3).
Note: This update works only with V8i (SELECT Series 3). It will not allow you to open or save DWG
2013/2014 files in earlier editions of the product. Future editions will allow you to open and save
DWG 2013/2014 files and newer releases, when they become available.
Once you install this update, MicroStation is automatically ready to use DWG 2013/2014 files.

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Note: If your product is not automatically ready to use DWG 2013/2014 files after you install the
update, you must add the MS_REALDWG_VERSION configuration variable and set it to 2014 to
enable it. The same configuration variable is used to switch between RealDWG 2014, RealDWG
2012, and RealDWG 2009.

Switching Between RealDWG 2014, RealDWG 2013,

RealDWG 2012, and RealDWG 2009
MicroStation V8i (SELECTseries 3) delivers RealDWG 2009 and RealDWG 2014. When you install
Bentley V8i (SELECTseries 3) - Autodesk® RealDWG™ 2014, you get the additional capability of
opening and saving DWG 2013/2014 files. With this update, by default, RealDWG 2014 is active.
Note: RealDWG 2010 and RealDWG 2011 are not supported in MicroStation V8i (SELECTseries 3).
If you have RealDWG 2010 installed on your machine, it will not work with MicroStation V8i
(SELECTseries 3).
After installing the update, you may decide that you need to continue to use RealDWG 2009,
RealDWG 2012, or RealDWG 2013. For example, you may have multiple V8i (SELECT Series 3)
products installed and you need to use RealDWG 2012 with one of the products; or you may
discover that a 2014 version of an object enabler that you need is not available, therefore you need
to use RealDWG 2009.
You can add the MS_REALDWG_VERSION configuration variable and use it to revert to RealDWG
2009, RealDWG 2012, or RealDWG 2013 without having to remove the update from your system.
This configuration variable can be used to switch back to RealDWG 2014 as well.

To Revert to Using RealDWG 2009, RealDWG 2012, or

RealDWG 2013
1. Select Workspace > Configuration.
2. Click New.
3. In the Variable field, type MS_REALDWG_VERSION.
4. In the New Value field, type 2009 to revert to RealDWG 2009, type 2012 to revert to
RealDWG 2012, or type 2013 to revert to RealDWG 2013.
5. Click OK twice.
6. In the Alert dialog, click Yes to save the changes to your configuration file.
7. Exit the product and restart it to make the configuration variable take effect.

To Revert to Using RealDWG 2014

1. Select Workspace > Configuration.
2. Select the MS_REALDWG_VERSION configuration variable.
3. Click Edit.
4. In the New Value field, type 2014.

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 5. Click OK twice.
6. In the Alert dialog, click Yes to save the changes to your configuration file.
7. Exit the product and restart it to make the configuration variable take effect.

Object Enablers Included with RealDWG 2014

Bentley V8i (SELECTseries 3) - Autodesk® RealDWG™ 2014 includes the following object enablers:
 AutoCAD Architecture and AutoCAD MEP Object Enabler
 AutoPLANT V8i (SELECTseries 3) Object Enabler
 ProStructures V8i for AutoCAD Object Enabler
Following object enabler is not included in the delivery but has been tested on RealDWG 2014:
 AutoCAD Civil 2014 Object Enabler*
* While this object enabler works correctly on 64 bit operating system, it may not work properly on
some old computers that have 32 bit operating system.
If you require any other object enabler, see the section Installing Object Enablers.

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