Rhino 3D Tip: Layer States: Save and Restore Layer Visibility and Properties

Layer States let you capture and instantly restore layer visibility and properties—perfect for switching among modeling, review, and documentation contexts without manual toggling.

What a Layer State can store:

• Visibility (on/off) and Lock status
• Layer colors, linetypes, and display colors
• Print attributes (print color, print width)
• Material assignments at the layer level
• Viewport/detail-specific overrides when applied inside an active detail

How to create and manage Layer States:

• Open the Layer panel and launch the Layer State Manager (or run the LayerStateManager command).
• Set your layers the way you want (visibility, locks, colors, print settings, etc.).
• In the Layer State Manager, click New, name the state, and save.
• To restore, select the state and click Restore. Your layers return to the exact saved configuration.

Using Layer States with Layout Details:

• Activate the target layout detail viewport before restoring a state to capture/apply detail-specific visibility overrides.
• Create different states for different sheets (e.g., “Plans,” “Sections,” “Renders”) and restore them per detail to keep one model feeding many curated drawings.
• Combine with Named Views for a robust, repeatable sheet setup workflow.

Share and reuse across projects:

• Use the Export/Import options in the Layer State Manager to share states with teammates.
• Add your favorite states to project templates so every new file starts with a proven visibility framework.

Smart naming and organization tips:

• Prefix with numbers for sequence and clarity (01_Modeling, 02_Review, 03_Docs).
• Use suffixes to indicate context (…_Render, …_Print, …_Coordination).
• Keep layer names consistent across projects—Layer States rely on matching names to restore cleanly.

Best-practice workflows:

• Modeling vs. documentation: maintain at least two core states—“Modeling Clean” (fewer layers, faster performance) and “Documentation Full” (all annotations and hatch layers visible).
• Client reviews: create states that isolate key systems (e.g., Structure Only, Interiors Only) for faster, focused discussions.
• Rendering: a state that turns off construction layers, shows materials, and enables only the layers you want in the final image.

Troubleshooting and pro notes:

• If a state doesn’t look right on a layout, ensure you restored it while the intended detail was active.
• When importing Layer States from another file, confirm that layer names match; mismatches won’t apply as expected.
• Pair Layer States with Snapshots when you also need to capture cameras, object display modes, or other scene-wide settings.

Time-saver tip: create a quick alias (e.g., LSM) to launch the Layer State Manager faster via Rhino’s Options > Aliases.

Need Rhino licenses, upgrades, or expert advice? Visit NOVEDGE. Explore Rhino ecosystem products and plug-ins at NOVEDGE to round out a streamlined documentation workflow powered by Layer States.

You can find all the Rhino products on the NOVEDGE web site at this page.