Replace with another block
Purpose
Attaches the selected instances to another block definition. Insertion point, rotation, scale, layer and Z level remain; only the content changes. Context: Replacing.
Access
- Right-click on selected instances → 🔁 Replace with another block… (4 in the picture at Edit block).
- Command search : type replace.
- Block manager: 🔁 Replace with … replaces all instances of the selected block — see below.
Procedure
- Select instances (also of different blocks).
- Start the command. The dialog Replace with … lists all definitions as a tree with a search field; if only one source block is selected, it is greyed out.
- Click the target block. Status line: n instances replaced → “Target”. If the old definition becomes unused, … now unused (clean up in the block manager) follows.
Replacing in the Block manager
Replace with … in the Block manager acts on all instances of the selected block. If the block also occurs inside other blocks, the program asks … also occurs in «… — replace there as well?» — with OK the sub-blocks are exchanged too. Without instances and without occurrences: No instances placed (block is only contained in other blocks).
Rules
- Without a second definition: No other block available as target.
- If all selected instances already reference the target: Nothing to replace (instances already reference the target block).
- The insertion point of the target definition sits where the old insertion point was; different base points shift the graphics accordingly.
- Item balloons on the instances afterwards show the number of the target block.
Keys
| Key | Effect |
|---|---|
| Esc | close the dialog, replace nothing |
Related commands
- Split off as variant — a new definition from the selected instances
- Block manager — replace all instances of a block