When a new part or sheet metal part workspace is opened the Configurations category will be displayed in the Design Explorer as the first group in the list. Config<1>  will be the first Configuration listed and every part will contain at least one configuration.


How to Create Configurations

1.  Right-click the Configurations group in the Design Explorer and select the New Configuration... option.  Alternatively, select the New Configuration tool in the Part Modeling tab.

 2. The New Configuration dialog box will be displayed.

3. Enter a name for the Configuration. This name will be displayed in the Design Explorer.

4. Select an existing Configuration to Copy From:. The Lock properties from the chosen Configuration will populate the Lock properties of the dialog box. They can be modified as desired however.

5. Set desired Lock properties. Select All will enable all properties. The following table describes each lock function.

6. Enable the Active option to make the new configuration the active one.

7. Click the OK button to create the new configuration which will be displayed in the Design Explorer. In addition, when a second configuration is created, the part name in the  Design Explorer and in the workspace title bar will change to "Part Name - Active Configuration Name".


NOTE: If only a single configuration exists the part name in the Design Explorer and in the workspace title bar will only read "Part Name."


Helpful Notes on Design Configurations in Parts

A 2D drawing also has the following functionality:

  • Moving or resizing a sketch figure manually will apply to all configurations. Moving or resizing a sketch figure using dimensions will not necessarily apply to all configurations. Dimension values are parameters that can be different in each configuration.

  • All configurations have the same set of dimensions. A dimension added to one configuration will be added to all configurations. Values of dimensions are parameters that can differ between configurations.

  • All configurations have a common set of available features. A feature deleted from one configuration will be deleted from all configurations. Features can be suppressed in individual configurations.

  • All configurations have a common feature order. Features reordered in one configuration will be reordered in all configurations.

  • Configurations are listed in the order that they were created in the Design Explorer. They can be reordered but be aware that relationships between features that are broken as a result of reordering can cause affected features to fail.

  • An active configuration cannot be deleted. If only one configuration exists, it is by default the active configuration and the Delete option will be disabled.