Using It! - Add Frequent Tools or Places to the Quick Access Toolbar

Like most Ribbon UI applications the Quick Access Toolbar (QAT) can be customized, before stating to explore this consider where any customizations will be stored. The default is in personal.dgnlib and will only be available to the person who adds the customisations. This file is located in C:\Users\<username>\AppData\Local\Bentley\<applicationName>\10.0.0\prefs on each machine.

Customisation is better placed for sharing and retention in DGNLIB in one of the ...\dgnlib\GUI folders in your configuration defined by MS_GUIDGNLIBLIST. (Use the Configuration variables dialog or Key-in expand echo $(MS_GUIDGNLIBLIST) to see the active list of these locations.)

Create new DGNLIB in the appropriate folder ...\Organization\Dgnlib\Gui to share the customizations with all users, open it and then click on the drop-down menu at the right of the QAT:

Buttons can be copied from those available on the left to the toolbar on the right, select the button (1), click Add (2) and once all changes have been made then Apply (3) and Close(4):

Split or drop-down buttons can also be created then populated with a set of useful tools or places, here are two examples.

The first is aimed at most users, it includes buttons that open Windows File Explorer in the appropriate folders for the active WorkSet, use key-in commands and a configuration variable to open the correct locations. Another useful button opens the User Preferences dialog:

The second is aimed at administrators and adds further useful locations, tools and some buttons that open the specified files in Notepad++, an open source and very capable text editor.

Buttons like these can be created in the Customize Ribbon dialog quite easily, you just need to know the appropriate key-in, in this case:

$ %explorer $(_USTN_WORKSETDGNS)

where '$ %<applicationExeName>' runs explorer.exe and '$(<ConfigurationVariable>)' resolves to the current value of the variable.

Click on the browse icon (...) at the right to add an icon, all application icons are available or ICO and other icon formats can be imported

Both of these examples can be downloaded here:

SMB_Admin_GUI (Updated January 2023)

SMB User GUI (updated file 06 May 21)

Notes:

There is some help on the key-in syntax in application help at Home > Programmed Customizations > Utilities > Special Key-ins > Key-ins for Miscellaneous Tasks.

Use of these key-ins is also discussed elsewhere on Communities

See CONNECT Edition - Configuration Tips: Use of Windows Environment variables for one way to deploy these DGNLIBs.