Tags and model organisation
Tags control visibility. Used correctly — on groups and components, never on raw geometry — they make large models manageable and drive your scenes.
In this lesson you will
- Understand what tags do (and don't)
- Follow the ‘raw geometry untagged’ rule
- Organise tags with folders
- Combine tags with scenes
Tags are for visibility
Tags (called layers in older versions) control what's visible. Unlike CAD layers, they don't separate geometry — a face on one tag and its edges on another are still connected. That's why groups and components come first; tags come second.
The golden rule
Keep all raw edges and faces Untagged. Apply tags to groups and components only. If you tag raw geometry, hiding a tag can leave faces with invisible edges and create confusing errors.
A sensible tag list
For a building: Existing, Proposed - Walls, Proposed - Roof, Furniture, Landscape, Site context, Annotation, People & cars. Use tag folders to group them. Keep the list short — tags you never switch are clutter.
Tags and scenes
Scenes remember which tags are visible. A Floor plan scene hides the roof tag; a Presentation scene shows people and landscape; an Existing scene hides proposed work. That's how one model yields many clean views.
Quick reference
| Command / tool | How to start it | What it does |
|---|---|---|
| Tags panel | Default Tray | Create, rename, toggle tags |
| Entity Info | Default Tray | Assign a tag to a selection |
| Tag Tool | Tags panel | Paint tags onto objects |
Common mistakes
Faces show but edges disappear.
Raw geometry was tagged; set it back to Untagged and tag the group instead.
Dozens of unused tags from imported models.
Purge unused tags (Model Info › Statistics › Purge Unused).
Using tags as a substitute for groups.
Tags only hide and show; group first so geometry is separated, then tag the group.
Creating a tag for every object.
Tags are for categories you switch together — a handful is usually enough.
Exercise
Tag your model
- Create tags for walls, roof, furniture and site.
- Assign them to your groups and components (not raw geometry).
- Create a folder Proposed containing walls and roof.
- Turn tags on and off to check nothing unexpected happens.
You should end up with: A model you can show and hide by category.
Checklist
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Lesson quiz
Tags separate geometry so it doesn't stick together.
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