> For the complete documentation index, see [llms.txt](https://help.auxalia.com/llms.txt). Markdown versions of documentation pages are available by appending `.md` to page URLs; this page is available as [Markdown](https://help.auxalia.com/plant-tools/plantexpresstools/how-to-use/symbolspalette/usage/create-folder-links.md).
# Create Folder Links
This chapter describes how you can create and use Folder Links in the SymbolsPalette.
A **Folder Link** is essentially a shortcut to a Windows folder.
The project used in this chapter can be downloaded with the following Link:
{% file src="/files/JuBxxIyDuNOPDiM6ARwC" %}
Sample Folder
In this chapter we have a folder in our project which has two sub folders.
In **Blocks** there are two drawing which are made out of AutoCAD Plant 3D Symbols and Line Segments and one drawing which contains just standard AutoCAD Lines.
The **PNG** folder contains some images.
Create Folder Links
Enable **Edit Mode** first (see [Edit Mode)](/plant-tools/plantexpresstools/how-to-use/symbolspalette/usage/edit-mode.md). There are two ways to add a **Folder Link** to the SymbolsPalette. One way is to drag & drop a folder from your Windows File Explorer into the left side of the SymbolsPalette.
The Windows folder name will be alphabetically positioned within the class tree.
The **Folder link** will be shown with the next level of sub folder (if any exist).
If you click on the blocks folder you will see the **Thumbnail** images of the drawings.
The PNG folder shows the preview of the images.
The second method to create a **Folder Link** is to click on the blank area and make a Right-Click and select **Add Folder Link...** from the context menu.
Now the **Add custom folder** dialog opens where you can use drag and drop also to bring the folder into the dialog.
Or you click on the
button.
Now another Windows dialog opens where you select the folder you want to link to.
This folder appears under the **Root directory**. With the
you can delete the folder path again if needed. All other options in this dialog will be described further down.
After closing the dialog with **OK** you will see the folder as before.
You can drag and drop also to add a folder under a P\&ID class. The blue arrow will indicate where the folder will be placed.
Now **Blocks** is located under **Engineering Items** class.
And the **PNG** folder again in the blank area.
And this is the final result.
If you want to use the context menu you select the P\&ID class under which the folder should be located and use **Add Folder Link...**.
You select the folder and click on **OK**.
The result looks like this:
At the end of the process disable the **Edit Mode** again (see [Edit Mode)](/plant-tools/plantexpresstools/how-to-use/symbolspalette/usage/edit-mode.md).
Invalid Folder Link
If you open the SymbolsPalette and you see a broken folder icon it means, that the path order folder name cannot be found anymore.
If you click on such a broken folder icon you will get the following message with the details about the path defined for this **Folder Link**. This dialog will appear only once.
When the path is reinstated/fixed while the SymbolsPalette is open, the icon switches back to the normal folder icon.
If you click on the **Refresh** button, the sub folders will be shown too.
Remove Folder Link
Enable **Edit Mode** first (see [Edit Mode)](/plant-tools/plantexpresstools/how-to-use/symbolspalette/usage/edit-mode.md). **Folder Links** can be removed by using **Remove Folder Link** from the context menu.
At the end of the process disable the **Edit Mode** again (see [Edit Mode)](/plant-tools/plantexpresstools/how-to-use/symbolspalette/usage/edit-mode.md).
Edit Folder Links
Enable **Edit Mode** first (see [Edit Mode)](/plant-tools/plantexpresstools/how-to-use/symbolspalette/usage/edit-mode.md). If you want to make changes to the settings of the **Folder Link** you make a right-click on the folder and select **Edit**. And if you are done you click **OK** to save your changes.
At the end of the process disable the **Edit Mode** again (see [Edit Mode)](/plant-tools/plantexpresstools/how-to-use/symbolspalette/usage/edit-mode.md).
Root directory and Display Name of Folder Links
Enable **Edit Mode** first (see [Edit Mode)](/plant-tools/plantexpresstools/how-to-use/symbolspalette/usage/edit-mode.md). By default, the Display Name is the name of the folder at then end of the selected path.
However, you can click on the grey check sign and it becomes green. Now you can edit the Display Name independent of the folder name.
By changing the Display Name, the new name will be alphabetically reordered, when you click on the **OK** button in the **Edit custom folder** dialog.
Now you see the new name at the new location.
In addition, changing the **Root directory** will not change the **Display Name** if the green check sign is shown.
If you click on the green check sign, it will become grey again and the **Display Name** will be restored to the selected folder name.
At the end of the process disable the **Edit Mode** again (see [Edit Mode)](/plant-tools/plantexpresstools/how-to-use/symbolspalette/usage/edit-mode.md).
Content Options for Folder Links
Enable **Edit Mode** first (see [Edit Mode)](/plant-tools/plantexpresstools/how-to-use/symbolspalette/usage/edit-mode.md). With the **Content Options** you can define which file types you want to see in the **Folder Link** and which **Insert** options should be preset when inserting a drawing. Content filter If you use **Add Folder Link** from the context menu, only **dwg** will be selected.
This is why you see all the dwgs in the **Blocks** folder.
But you don't see any images in the **PNG** folder.
If you select the other file types (actually for this example **png** would have sufficed)...
... the selected file types show up one after the other under **Content filter**.
If you select the **PNG** folder now you will also see the images.
Commands The two **Command** boxes are disabled. They just have informative character and let you know which AutoCAD command is used to either insert drawings or images. Use Arguments Before we look at the options in the dialog, let's have a look at the AutoCAD command. You see here the same options as you have in the **Edit custom folder** dialog.
If you need more information about the INSERT command, please check the [AutoCAD documentation](https://help.autodesk.com/view/PLNT3D/2023/ENU/index.html?guid=GUID-BB831F94-6385-4490-8DE9-7C565CD1B639). By default, no options are checked. If you would later insert a drawing, then you would be able to use all the options of the **INSERT** command while inserting.
Insertion Point If enable the **Insertion Point** option, you can define the **Basepoint** when inserting. In this case, that drawing will be inserted at **0,0,0** and then you can change the **Insertion Point** before continuing with the insertion.
If you enable any of the options, the **Use Arguments** checkbox will be enabled automatically. As soon as all options are disabled, the **Use Arguments** checkbox will also be disabled.
Scale Enabling **Scale** allows you to predefine the scale factor for X,Y, and Z. If this option is enabled, you will not be able to change the scaling during the insertion command.
If you enable any of the X,Y, or Z scaling checkboxes, the checkbox for **Scale** will be disabled automatically. Now you can use individual scaling factors.
If you enable the checkbox for **Scaling** again, then the X,Y, and Z checkboxes will be disabled automatically.
Rotation Enabling **Rotation** allows you to predefine the rotation angle. If this option is enabled, you will not be able to change the rotation during the insertion command.
Explode Enabling **Explode** allows you to predefine whether a drawing should be exploded or not during the insertion command. If the checkbox behind **Explode** is not enabled, then the drawing will not be exploded when inserting.
At the end of the process disable the **Edit Mode** again (see [Edit Mode)](/plant-tools/plantexpresstools/how-to-use/symbolspalette/usage/edit-mode.md).
Options for Folder Links
Enable **Edit Mode** first (see [Edit Mode)](/plant-tools/plantexpresstools/how-to-use/symbolspalette/usage/edit-mode.md). With the **Hide known extensions** you can enable or disable the file extensions in the **SymbolsPalette**.
If enabled, the file extensions are not shown.
The same for the image files.
With **Show preview image (if possible)** you can define whether you want to see the preview images or the file type images of Windows.
Here the example for DWGs.
And here for the PNG file.
At the end of the process disable the **Edit Mode** again (see [Edit Mode)](/plant-tools/plantexpresstools/how-to-use/symbolspalette/usage/edit-mode.md).
Inserting Drawings from Folder Links
Now we will see how drawings are inserted and how the **Arguments** work while inserting. In the first example we don't have any arguments enabled.
First we can select the insertion point.
Next the X scale factor.
Next the Y factor.
And finally the rotation angle.
If you want to use the **Basepoint, Explode, or Repeat** options, you would need to type in these options in the command line. The final result is the AutoCAD block still not exploded.
Now we use these settings.
If we insert one of the P\&ID blocks, we can again define the insertion point.
But that's it. If we select one of the P\&ID Symbols we see, that the block was exploded upon insertion into the P\&ID objects (Symbols and Pipe Line Segments).
Inserting Images from Folder Links
For images there are no options which can be set. If you select an image from the **SymbolsPalette** you can again define the insertion point.
And then the scaling.
Finally the rotation.
And then it looks like this.
Opening any file from Folder Links
Enable **Edit Mode** first (see [Edit Mode)](/plant-tools/plantexpresstools/how-to-use/symbolspalette/usage/edit-mode.md). Officially only dwgs and images are supported as can be seen from the file extensions in the **Edit custom folder** dialog.
However, it is possible to open any file from the **SymbolsPalette** with some manual manipulation. This is how it will look like at the end.
If you check the **\ACPlantTools\PlantExpressTools\SymbolsPalette** in your project you will find the SymbolsPaletteCustomClasses.xml.
If you open the file in a text editor you will see, that it is pretty empty.
Now you drag and drop the **Block and Images** folder into the **SymbolsPalette** and disable the **Edit Mode**. After that close the **SymbolsPalette**.
If you open it now, you will see, that there is much more content. The first important line is the line with the tag. Here you have all file extensions which are supported by the **SymbolsPalette**. Then you have a section for **dwg** (lines 9 - 17) and a section for the **images** (lines 18-20).
If using a Collaboration project you have to check out the SymbolsPaletteCustomClasses.xml yourself. Otherwise the file is read-only and the changes you are about to make won't be checked in to BIM360/ACC.
First we add the required file extensions which should be supported by the **SymbolsPalette**. Next we add another section for the other file extensions which should be opened if you click on them later in the **SymbolsPalette**. Maybe just copy lines 19-21 and then adapt the extensions and the command.
To make it a bit easier you can copy the command line from the next line to avoid any type-Os. (defun c:tmp ()(command "shell" (strcat """ (getstring T "enter file name: ") """))) tmp
If you open the **SymbolsPalette** now, you may need to click on the **Refresh** button in order for the changed file to be loaded. After that you will see the xlsx and pdf from the sample project provided at the beginning of this chapter.
If you click on the Excel files a Shell/DOS Box opens and stays open while the Excel file is open.
And then the Excel file gets opened. After closing the Excel file, the Shell/DOS Box closes too.
The same works for the PDF file.
Since this isn't a supported feature of the **SymbolsPalette** there is a caveat. If the **ContentFilter** line looks like this...
...and now you open and close the **Edit custom folder** dialog and close the **SymbolsPalette** (only then the SymbolsPaletteCustomClasses.xml is written), the additional extensions are gone. So you have to add them again.
At the end of the process disable the **Edit Mode** again (see [Edit Mode)](/plant-tools/plantexpresstools/how-to-use/symbolspalette/usage/edit-mode.md).