Settings
Open Settings from the gear icon in the left sidebar or with Ctrl+6. It is worth a quick pass through this page before your first batch run, in particular the CAD version and the default run environment for each manager.
Settings are grouped into four tabs: General, Layout manager, Script manager, and Advanced.
General
Section titled “General”- Cad version: Which installed AutoCAD (or Civil 3D) version Indium uses for reading, saving, scripting, and plotting. Indium lists the versions it finds on your machine.
- Theme: Light or dark.
- Exit warning: Whether Indium asks for confirmation before closing.
- Show What’s New after updates: Whether the release-notes dialog opens after an update.
Run Environments
Section titled “Run Environments”The Script Manager and the Layout/Plot Manager can run their work in one of three environments. Set the default per manager here in Settings, or pick one from the eye-icon menu at the right end of the manager’s toolbar. Both change the same setting, so the choice sticks between sessions. The eye-icon menu is the manager’s settings menu: below the environment choice it carries the manager’s other settings as sub-menus (plotter fetching, plot result name, and worker count in the Layout/Plot manager, and worker count in the Script manager), so they are one click away while you work.
| Environment | What it does |
|---|---|
| CAD | Starts a new, visible AutoCAD instance for the run |
| CAD attach | Runs inside an AutoCAD instance that is already open on your machine |
| Background | Runs in headless AutoCAD console processes with no CAD window at all |
Background is the default scenario for most users and most work: it needs no visible CAD window and is by far the fastest option for large batches. Use CAD or CAD attach when you want to watch commands execute or when a plotter or script needs the full AutoCAD environment.
Indium launches a fresh AutoCAD (or Civil 3D) instance, processes the files one at a time in it, and closes it when the run finishes. Use this when you want to watch commands execute, or when a plotter or script needs the full AutoCAD environment.
CAD Attach
Section titled “CAD Attach”Instead of starting a new instance, Indium uses an AutoCAD that is already running and idle:
- If exactly one matching instance is running, Indium attaches to it directly.
- If several are running, a dialog asks which one to use.
- If none are running, Indium falls back to starting a new instance (same as CAD mode).
When plotting, the running instance must match the CAD version selected in Settings and the active profile. If it doesn’t, Indium shows an error instead of plotting in the wrong version.
Files are processed one at a time, just like CAD mode. This is the fastest visual option when you already have AutoCAD open, since there is no startup cost.
Background
Section titled “Background”Indium runs headless AutoCAD console processes (accoreconsole.exe) with no visible window. Files are distributed across multiple parallel workers, making this by far the fastest option for large batches. The number of workers can be tuned under Advanced, or as Worker count in the manager’s eye-icon menu.
Background mode is also the most interactive to monitor:
- Output streams live into the per-file terminal (Script Manager).
- If a script stops at a prompt, you can type an answer directly into that file’s terminal.
Environment Defaults
Section titled “Environment Defaults”- Settings → Script manager → Environment: default for script runs (initially Background).
- Settings → Layout manager → Environment: default for plotting (initially CAD).
Layout Manager
Section titled “Layout Manager”Besides the plot environment default:
- Plotter fetching: Where plotters and paper sizes are read from: Pc3, Pc3 (fast file parser), Pc3 + Local printers, or Pc3 + Local + Network printers. The plain Pc3 and printer options read through CAD. Pc3 (fast file parser) reads the same PC3 configuration files directly with Indium’s built-in parser, which is considerably faster.
- Plot result name: How output files are named: File name - Layout name, File name, or Layout name.
Both are also available from the eye-icon menu in the Layout/Plot manager’s toolbar.
Script Manager
Section titled “Script Manager”- Environment: The default run environment for script runs.
Advanced
Section titled “Advanced”Most users can leave this tab at its defaults.
- Update channel: Stable or Pre-release builds.
- File read/write process count: How many parallel background console processes Indium uses for loading and saving files. Takes effect the next time Indium starts.
- Plot/script process count: How many parallel background console processes Indium uses for plotting and script runs in the Background environment. Applies when the next run starts, no restart needed. Also available as Worker count in the eye-icon menu of both managers.
Both process counts default to a value recommended for your machine (based on its CPU core count), marked (recommended) in the list. Raising the count can speed up large batches, and lowering it reduces load on the machine while a batch runs.