About Libraries

Libraries mirror the development process in your company. A library is the top level of your hierarchy.

For example, suppose that your company manufactures connectors that share architecture, components, and so on, however, each connector has a different application. You can create a part library called Connectors to categorize all these objects. Within this part library, you can create part families for different types of connectors, such as Analog and Digital. You can create as many sub-families as you need to categorize all your connectors.

This page discusses:

The container objects within libraries are called classes. Classes categorize the objects in a library hierarchy. Within document libraries, the classes are document families. Within part libraries, the classes are part families. Within general libraries, the classes are general classes.

Classified items are the actual objects being managed, for example, CAD drawing files, specification documentation, or other files.

Document Libraries

These libraries are intended to manage documents and have a fixed hierarchical structure. A default document library organizes documents (such as CAD drawings) into a fixed hierarchy. This library includes the following classes of objects:

Libraries and document families are container objects used to organize information. Only documents contain files. You can also put your files into unstructured Private or public folders for easy access. See for details on using folders.

Part Libraries

These libraries are intended to manage parts that are used in Engineering and Manufacturing BOM Management (for example, manufactured items or design code) and have a flexible hierarchical structure.

Parts are the products developed in the manufacturing process. A part library organizes these objects into classes called part families. The hierarchy within a part library is flexible and can be customized.

On premises only: Your business administrator defines both the levels of classes in the hierarchy and the policy that governs the objects managed in the hierarchy.

For example, an automobile manufacturer might use a part library to organize the parts for the new Zenith line of SUVs. Under the Zenith part library, you might have part families called Rear Wheel Assembly, Front Wheel Assembly and so on. Under the front and rear wheel assembly families, you might have further subclasses called Front Tire, Front Brake Assembly, and so on. You can create as many levels of a part library hierarchy as required to describe your manufacturing process.

See Working with Parts for details on working with part libraries.

General Libraries

These libraries can be customized to fit the needs of your organization and have a flexible hierarchical structure.

On premises only: A general library is defined by your business administrator to meet the needs of your organization. It includes custom classes and a custom policy for the objects managed in the library.

For example, suppose that your company designs microchips. You could create a custom library called Semiconductor IP that contains objects of the class IP Library. Within that library, you could create Analog and Digital class objects to manage objects in still lower levels of your design hierarchy.

See Working with General Classes for details on working with General Libraries.