Type Manager Pro - User Guide

The Complete Type Management Tool for Autodesk Revit

Version 1.0.0 Developed by IB-BIM Itzik Bejarano

Table of Contents

Overview

Type Manager Pro is a professional Revit add-in with four powerful modules for managing element types in your BIM projects. All modules are accessible as tabs in a single window.

Module Description
Rename Types Batch rename with Find/Replace, Prefix, Suffix, and inline editing
Smart Filter Filter and select elements by category, family, parameters, and worksets
Purge Unused Delete unused types, view templates, and filters
Manage Type Parameters View and edit type parameter values in an Excel-like grid

Type Manager Pro main window Type Manager Pro main window with four module tabs

Supported Revit Versions

Revit 2023, 2024, 2025, 2026, and 2027.

How to Launch

After installation, find the IB-BIM Tools tab in the Revit ribbon and click Type Manager Pro.

IB-BIM Tools ribbon tab IB-BIM Tools tab in the Revit ribbon

Installation

  1. Download Type Manager Pro from the Autodesk App Store
  2. Run the installer β€” it automatically detects your installed Revit versions
  3. Restart Revit β€” the IB-BIM Tools tab will appear in the ribbon
  4. Log in with your Autodesk ID β€” the add-in verifies your subscription

πŸ’‘ Tip: Make sure you are signed in to your Autodesk account in Revit before launching Type Manager Pro.

Rename Types

Batch rename element types across any category. Use Find/Replace for bulk operations, add Prefix or Suffix, or click directly on any name in the Preview column to edit it manually. Each type is displayed with its Family name in gray for easy identification, and types are sorted by Family β†’ Type Name.

Rename Types tab Rename Types β€” left column shows Family name (gray) and Type name (black), right column shows live preview with color-coded changes

Operations

Operation Description Example
Prefix Adds text before the name β€œIB-β€œ + β€œConcrete 10” β†’ β€œIB-Concrete 10”
Suffix Adds text after the name β€œConcrete 10” + β€œ-NEW” β†’ β€œConcrete 10-NEW”
Find/Replace Replaces matching text Find β€œConcrete” Replace β€œΧ‘Χ˜Χ•ΧŸβ€ β†’ β€œΧ‘Χ˜Χ•ΧŸ 10”
Manual Edit Click Preview name to type custom name Click β€œConcrete 10” β†’ type anything

How to Rename

  1. Select a Category from the dropdown β€” type to search categories by name
  2. Check the types you want to rename (or click βœ“ All)
  3. Enter your rename operation (Prefix, Suffix, or Find/Replace)
  4. Review the Preview column β€” colors indicate the change status
  5. Click EXECUTE to apply changes

Preview Colors

Color Meaning
Black No change
Green Will change (Find/Replace, Prefix, Suffix applied)
Blue bold Manually edited by clicking the Preview name
Red Error (duplicate name within the same family, invalid characters)

EXECUTE Button Colors

Color Meaning
Gray No items selected
Green Valid items ready to rename
Red All selected items have errors

Family-Aware Features

Type Manager Pro displays the Family name in gray brackets next to each type, making it easy to distinguish types with identical names from different families (e.g., multiple door families with a β€œ36 x 84” type). The Search field filters by both Family name and Type name. Duplicate name validation is per-family β€” two types with the same name in different families are valid, just like in Revit.

Undo Changes

Action How
Cancel current edit Press Escape β€” reverts to original and unchecks the checkbox
Revert one name Right-click β†’ β€œβ†© Revert to: original name” β€” unchecks the checkbox
Revert multiple Check several types β†’ right-click β†’ β€œβ†© Revert N selected changed item(s)”
Undo after Execute Press Ctrl+Z in Revit (undoes all changes in one step)

Export / Import

  1. Select types with checkboxes β†’ click EXPORT β†’ Excel file with 5 columns
  2. Edit column E (New Name) in Excel β€” orange columns are read-only reference
  3. Click IMPORT β†’ select the Excel file β†’ review in Preview β†’ click EXECUTE

If the Excel file is open in another application, the tool will prompt you to close it and retry (up to 3 attempts). Specific error messages are shown for permission issues, missing folders, and locked files.

Note: If a Search filter is active, only selected items within the filtered list are exported.

Import Matching Priority

Priority Method When Used
1st ID Match Same project β€” most reliable
2nd Name Match Different project or IDs changed

πŸ’‘ Tip: Use Find Ignore Case for case-insensitive Find/Replace operations. You can export from one project and import into another. Type Manager Pro supports all categories including RVT Links β€” useful for standardizing link type names across projects.

Smart Filter

Smart Filter lets you find and select elements in your model using a powerful 4-level filter tree: Category β†’ Family β†’ Parameter β†’ Value. Select matching elements and highlight them in Revit with a single click.

Smart Filter tab Smart Filter β€” 4-level tree with lazy loading for fast performance

How to Use

  1. Expand categories in the tree to see families, then parameters, then values. Each level loads on demand for fast performance.
  2. Check values to build your filter. Use Or mode (any match) or And mode (all must match) to combine criteria.
  3. Search across all categories β€” matching items auto-expand in the tree.
  4. Click Show in Revit to select all matching elements and close the window.

Special Filters

The Worksets special filter (shown in orange) lets you filter elements by workset β€” useful for workshared projects.

Smart Filter with Worksets

Workset filter shown in orange at the top of the tree

Workset Audit workflow β€” use the Worksets filter to find elements assigned to the wrong workset:

Workset Audit workflow

Audit worksets, isolate suspicious elements, and review them by category

πŸ’‘ Tip: Use Smart Filter to find elements, then switch to Manage Type Parameters to edit their type values β€” the two modules complement each other.

Purge Unused

Purge Unused targets items that Revit’s built-in Purge Unused command does not handle: unused element types that still have zero placed instances, view templates not applied to any view, and filters not used in any view or template. These items accumulate over time and clutter your project but are invisible to Revit’s native purge.

Common Features

All three operations share the same interface:

Unused Types

Element types with zero instances placed in the model. For example, wall types that were loaded but never used, or door families with unused size variations. Each type shows its instance count to confirm it is truly unused.

Purge Unused Types Purge Unused Types β€” select unused types for deletion

Unused Templates

View templates that are not applied to any view in the project. Over time, projects accumulate templates from copied views or imported standards that are no longer needed. This operation finds and removes them.

Purge Unused View Templates Purge Unused Templates β€” templates not assigned to any view

Unused Filters

View filters that are not used in any view or view template. Filter rules created during design exploration often remain in the project long after they are needed. This operation identifies and removes them.

Purge Unused Filters Purge Unused Filters β€” filters not referenced by any view or template

How to Purge

  1. Select an operation (Unused Types / Unused Filters / Unused Templates)
  2. Review the list β€” each item shows its usage status
  3. Check items to delete (or click Select All Unused)
  4. Click DELETE β€” a confirmation dialog appears
  5. Confirm to permanently remove the items

⚠️ Warning: Purge operations cannot be undone through Revit’s Undo. Always save your project before purging. A confirmation dialog will appear before deletion.

Manage Type Parameters

View and edit type parameter values across all types in a category β€” directly in an Excel-like grid. No need to create a Schedule first. Change a Fire Rating across 50 wall types in seconds, export to Excel for review, and import changes back.

Manage Type Parameters tab Manage Type Parameters β€” editable values with green headers, read-only with orange headers. Changed values appear in blue bold with a tooltip showing the original value.

How to Use

  1. Select a Category from the dropdown β€” type to search categories by name. The grid loads all types with their parameter values.
  2. Single-click any green-header cell to edit the value directly β€” a dark frame appears and you can start typing immediately. Press Enter to confirm and move to the cell below (like Excel), or click another cell to continue editing elsewhere.
  3. Changed values appear in blue bold. Hover to see the original value. A red badge in the footer shows the number of changes.
  4. Click Apply Changes to write all changes to the Revit model.

Column Colors

Color Meaning
Dark blue header Fixed columns (Family, Type Name) β€” always visible, not editable
Green header Editable parameters β€” single-click to edit
Orange header Read-only parameters β€” formula-driven or system values

Column Picker

Click the purple Columns β–Ύ button to choose which parameters to display. The picker shows all available parameters with colored dots (green = editable, orange = read-only). Use the controls to manage visibility:

Hidden columns are also excluded from Excel export.

Column picker Column picker β€” green dots = editable, orange dots = read-only. Hide Read-Only checkbox removes all non-editable columns at once.

Copy, Paste & Delete

Type Manager Pro supports Excel-like keyboard operations on selected cells:

Action Shortcut Behavior
Copy Ctrl+C Copies selected cells as tab-separated text (paste into Excel or Notepad)
Paste single Ctrl+V One value in clipboard + multiple cells selected β†’ pastes to ALL selected cells
Paste block Ctrl+V Block from Excel β†’ values fill down and right from the anchor cell
Delete Delete Clears all selected editable cells to empty

πŸ’‘ Tip: Copy a value from one cell, select 20 cells in the same column, and Ctrl+V β€” all 20 cells get the same value. Great for setting Fire Rating, Cost, or Material across many types at once. After any change (manual edit, paste, or delete), changed cells appear in blue bold with a tooltip showing the original value. You can right-click any changed cell to revert it, or use the Reset button to undo all changes before applying.

Undo Changes

Action How
Revert one cell Right-click the changed cell β†’ β€œβ†© Revert to: original value”
Revert entire row Right-click on Family or Type Name β†’ β€œβ†© Revert all N changed parameter(s)”
Revert selected cells Select multiple changed cells β†’ right-click β†’ β€œβ†© Revert N selected cell(s)”
Revert selected rows Select cells across rows β†’ right-click β†’ β€œβ†© Revert all changes in N selected row(s)”
Reset all Click the Reset button in the footer

Export / Import Excel

  1. Click Export β†’ choose a location. An Excel file is created with all visible columns.
  2. Edit values in Excel β€” modify only the green (editable) columns. Instructions are included in the file.
  3. Click Import β†’ select the Excel file. Changes load into the grid (not directly to Revit).
  4. Review imported changes (shown in blue bold), then click Apply Changes to write to the Revit model.

If the file is locked by another application, the tool will prompt you to close it and retry (up to 3 attempts).

The Excel file includes:

Import Safety Features

Feature Description
Source file check Warns if the Excel was exported from a different project
ID matching Primary match by Type ID, fallback to Family + Type Name
Grid-only import Changes go into the grid first β€” review before applying to Revit
File lock retry If Excel is open, prompts to close and retry (3 attempts)

The Search field works in two modes:

πŸ“ Note: Only Type parameters are shown. Instance parameters (like element dimensions) vary per placed element and are not included.

Keyboard Shortcuts

Shortcut Module Action
Escape Rename Cancel edit, revert to original, uncheck checkbox
Enter Rename Confirm edit and move focus away
Enter Parameters Confirm edit and move to cell below (like Excel)
Ctrl+C Parameters Copy selected cells to clipboard
Ctrl+V Parameters Paste clipboard into selected cells
Delete Parameters Clear selected editable cells
Ctrl+Z Rename (after Execute) Undo all renames in Revit
Ctrl+Z Parameters (after Apply) Undo all parameter changes in Revit
Right-click Rename / Parameters Revert to original value

Supported Categories

Type Manager Pro supports all categories that have types in your project, including:

Standard Categories

Walls, Doors, Windows, Floors, Ceilings, Roofs, Stairs, Railings, Ramps, Curtain Panels, Curtain Wall Mullions, Generic Models

Structural

Structural Framing, Structural Columns, Structural Foundations

MEP

Pipes, Ducts, Cable Trays, Conduits, Pipe Fittings, Duct Fittings, Duct Accessories, Electrical Equipment, Mechanical Equipment, Plumbing Fixtures, Sprinklers, Air Terminals

View Types

Section Types, Floor Plan Types, Ceiling Plan Types, Elevation Types, 3D View Types, Drafting View Types, Detail View Types, Area Plan Types

Other

Grids, Levels, RVT Links, and 180+ additional categories automatically detected from your project.

Note: The Rename module renames Types (not instances). The Manage Type Parameters module edits Type parameter values (not Instance parameters).

Invalid Characters

The following characters cannot be used in Revit type names:

Character Description
\ Backslash
\| Pipe
: Colon
{ } Curly brackets
[ ] Square brackets
; Semicolon
< > Angle brackets
? Question mark
` Backtick

Allowed: " (inches), _ - . ' # @ & + = ~ and all Unicode characters (Hebrew, Arabic, etc.)

FAQ

Q: Can I rename types in a workshared model? A: Yes. The tool automatically checks out elements before renaming. Types owned by other users are skipped with a notification.

Q: Does Undo work after Execute in Rename? A: Yes. All renames in a single Execute are wrapped in one Revit Transaction. Ctrl+Z undoes everything at once.

Q: Does Undo work after Apply Changes in Manage Parameters? A: Yes. All parameter changes are applied in a single Transaction and can be undone with Ctrl+Z.

Q: Can I import an Excel file from a different project? A: Yes. If IDs don’t match, the system falls back to matching by Category + Family + Name.

Q: Why are some parameter columns orange (not editable)? A: Orange columns are read-only in Revit β€” they may be formula-driven, system parameters, or built-in values that Revit does not allow to be modified.

Q: Can I paste values from Excel into the parameter grid? A: Yes. Copy cells in Excel β†’ select the target cell(s) in Type Manager Pro β†’ Ctrl+V. Single value pastes to all selected cells. Block paste fills down and right.

Q: Can I delete values from multiple cells at once? A: Yes. Select multiple cells and press the Delete key. Only editable (green-header) cells will be cleared.

Q: Why do some types in Rename show the same name? A: Types from different families can have identical names (e.g., multiple door families with β€œ36 x 84”). The Family name in gray brackets helps identify which is which. The Search field also searches by Family name.

Q: Why can’t I see Instance parameters in Manage Type Parameters? A: The module shows only Type parameters. Instance parameters vary per element and require a different editing approach (use Schedules or Smart Filter + element properties).

Q: What happens if I try to export and the file is already open? A: The tool detects the locked file and shows a dialog asking you to close it. You get 3 retry attempts before the export is cancelled.

Q: What Revit versions are supported? A: Revit 2023, 2024, 2025, 2026, and 2027.

Q: Can I use Smart Filter to find elements by parameter value? A: Yes. Expand Category β†’ Family β†’ Parameter β†’ check specific values. Use Or/And mode to combine criteria across categories.

Q: Where are log files stored? A: Log files are stored in %LOCALAPPDATA%\IB-BIM\TypeManagerPro\Logs\. These can be shared with support if you encounter issues.

Support

If you enjoy Type Manager Pro, please leave a review on the Autodesk App Store β€” it helps other BIM professionals discover the tool!

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