Monday, June 14, 2010

Update on DB Link - using 64bit ODBC drivers

Below is a step-by-step of using the ODBC option on Revit 2011 64bit & MS Office 2010 64bit. This is so much better than having to deal with the "SQL Server" option because of using MS Office 32bit with Revit 64bit . The only draw back I found is that since my office is using "Newforma", which is not 64bit compatible, we are held down to only using 32bit. So my current workaround is to set up a "Remote PC" using MS Office 2010 64bit to do the Export/Import process. I havn't got around to testing if we can Import from a PC that has a 32bit version of MS Office, but soon enough when my busy schedule subsides back to normal.

Step #1: Go to your Add-In Panel in Revit & click on External Tool & select the DB Link Tool






Step #2: Click on the ODBC Tab & select the "Select a new connection" & click Export






Step #3: In this Dial. Box select "New" (Creating the Data Source Name, its use could be like Per Project)








Step #4: Then select what I have highlighted "MS Access Driver" & click "Next"







Step #5: Click on "Browse"







Step #6: Then select its Location, give it a Name & Click "Save"







Step #7: Click on "Next" Then click on "Finish"
Step #8: Click on "Create" in the Database Column







Step #10: Creating the DB & giving it a Name; (the DSN could be to the Project as the DB is to a file; each file will have its own DB if you did understand that already) & click "OK"







Step #11: Click "OK", click "OK" again, click "OK" one more time & select the DSN that was started in Step #3 & finished on Step #7 & Click "OK"









Step #12: Click "OK" one last time & let the Exporting process run its course.

So when needing to Import the DB back in after Editing it from Access or a linked Excel file; from Step #2 you would select a recently used connection (representing that files DB) and select the "Edit & Import" button then an Editable Dial. Box showing the Database pops up then select "OK" & the Process will run after that & this would be the perfect place to verify changes or if by chance Access is not installed then can be Edited from there.


5 comments:

  1. This comment has been removed by the author.

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  2. I use the one from my workplace, and from home I Remote into it. You can download it from Autodesk or any other site that has its own download then after the 30 day trial purchase a license through a local reseller or continually practice on it in Demo Mode as I do on my home PC.

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  3. I am using DBLink 64bit for a project in my firm and it works very well. The scale of our projects is such that they will not open in 32 bit so 64bit is the only option. I tested it on my home system since our office is not using MS Office 2010. Based on my testing I was able to have it installed on my office computer.

    One important point is that Office 2010 64bit does not install by default on a 64bit OS. You must use the special installer on the setup disk. 64bit Office cannot co-exist with any 32bit office application. DBLink is an extremely powerful tool that will only get better.

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  4. Hello,

    when the export gets to around 30% revit crashes and gives this as an error, error code 2146232009

    :Revit MEP 2011, Office 2010, Windows 7 64 bit

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