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Plotting to PDF

Plot every layout of a drawing set to PDF in one run, without opening a single file yourself.

Steps

Section titled “Steps”
  1. Open the Layout/Plot Manager (Ctrl+4) and add your DWG files. The table shows one row per layout.
  2. Set the Plotter column to a PDF device, such as DWG To PDF.pc3 or one of the AutoCAD PDF presets. To change many rows at once, select the cells and use Find/Replace, or set one cell and copy-paste it into the rest.
  3. Set the Paper Size for the chosen plotter (e.g. ISO A1 (841.00 x 594.00 MM)), and adjust any other plot settings: scale, orientation, plot style table.
Layout manager with PDF plot settings Layout manager with PDF plot settings
  1. Click Save if you want the plot settings stored back into the drawings.
  2. Choose where the PDFs land with the dropdown next to the Plot button, and how the files are named in Settings → Layout manager: the options are described under Plot Output.
  3. Pick the plot environment from the eye-icon menu. Background is fastest for large batches and runs files across parallel workers; use CAD or CAD attach when a plotter needs the full AutoCAD environment. See Run Environments.
  4. Filter the table if you only want some layouts; plotting includes valid, visible rows only.
  5. Click Plot and watch the per-file progress. In the Background environment, a failing layout doesn’t stop the rest of that file’s layouts; failures are listed in a notification at the end.

Tips

Section titled “Tips”
  • Rows with a red tint are invalid (for example, a plotter that isn’t installed on this machine) and are skipped when plotting, so fix the Plotter and Paper Size cells first.
  • Need drawing preparation before plotting (e.g. a purge, or switching a system variable)? Add pre/post plot scripts via the Scripts toolbar button. See Layouts & Plotting.