AutoCAD Batch Processing: 29 Jobs You Can Run on Every Drawing

Updated October 2026  |  74mph Solutions

Open. Change one thing. Save. Close. Next drawing. It is normal to have 200 drawings in a set, and most CAD jobs are the same small change made 200 times.

If a command works at the AutoCAD command line, a script can run it. Hurricane runs that script on every drawing in the folder, one after the other, while you do something else. Below are 29 jobs CAD teams run this way, grouped by what you are trying to fix. Each one links to a step-by-step guide.

Find It With Tornado, Fix It With Hurricane

Before you change 200 drawings, it helps to know which ones need it. Tornado DWG Scanner reads every drawing in a folder and puts what it finds in one spreadsheet, one row per drawing: missing fonts, missing xrefs, unpurged items, title block values, any text you search for, and more. Where a job below has a Tornado check that helps, it is noted under the job.

Title blocks and text

• Update title block attributes. Project name, client, revision, drawn by, in every drawing. How to update title blocks in multiple drawings.
  Check the result with Tornado's Title block attribute check: every drawing's value in one spreadsheet.
• Start a new project from an old one. Copy every drawing to the new folder and update the title blocks in the same run. New project from an old one.
• Search and replace text. Change a word or a number wherever it appears. Search and Replace Text Wizard.
• Replace attribute text from the command line. The -ATTEDIT way, for scripts. -ATTEDIT search and replace.
• Change the text style or font. Move every drawing from one style to another. Change text style across drawings.
  Tornado's Missing fonts and Text style table checks show which drawings need it.
• Find where a text string appears. A note, a tag or a spec reference, across the whole set. Easiest with Tornado: its Full text dump check lists every text string with its layer. Set Contains to a word or wildcard and the matches from every drawing come back in one spreadsheet. No script to write. Prefer a Hurricane run? Use Hurricane's Search and LOG Text Wizard.
• Extract attribute values to a file. Pull title block data out with EATTEXT. Extract attribute contents.
  Or let Tornado's All attributes of a block check put every tag and value from every drawing in one spreadsheet.

Blocks, layers and cleanup

• Purge. Strip unused blocks, layers and styles from every drawing. How to batch purge.
  Tornado's Unpurged items check shows which drawings need it, and how much.
• Delete a block that will not purge. Erase the inserts first, then purge. How to delete a block.
  Tornado's Block insert counts check shows which drawings still use it.
• Redefine a block. Fix a block once and update it in hundreds of drawings. Redefine a block.
• Insert a block in every drawing. A stamp, a logo, a note, at the same point. Insert a block in every drawing.
• Set layer states. Freeze, thaw, lock or turn off layers, and clear junk layer filters. Layer operations in batch.
  Tornado's Layer states check counts the frozen, off and locked layers in each drawing.
• Set system variables to a known value. OSMODE and friends, the same in every drawing. Make drawing settings consistent.
  Tornado's Report a sysvar check shows the current value in every drawing first.
• Erase everything outside the limits. Clean up stray objects far from the sheet. Erase outside the limits.
• Flatten 3D drawings to 2D. Put everything at Z = 0 so snaps and hatches behave. Flatten 3D to 2D.
  Tornado's 3D content check finds the drawings with solids, surfaces or meshes in them.
• Check and fix drawing standards. Layers, styles and settings, across every drawing. Check and fix CAD standards.
  Tornado finds what breaks your standard (non-standard layers, missing fonts, hardcoded colors and more). Hurricane fixes it.
• Report drawing limits to a spreadsheet. One row per drawing. Report Limits to File Wizard.
  Tornado's Drawing limits and Drawing extents checks do the same, next to any other check you pick.

Files and folders

• Rename DWG files. Add a prefix, swap a project number, renumber the set. How to batch rename DWG files.
• Save to a new folder or a new name. Leave the originals untouched. SAVEAS options.
• Find old-version drawings and upgrade them. Scan a drive for drawings saved in an old AutoCAD version, then save them all in the current one. Vintage DWG Search.
  Tornado's DWG version check lists the version of every drawing in the folder.

Xrefs

• Detach, unload or repath xrefs. Fix broken paths after a project moves, or clear unloaded xrefs before binding. Detach, unload and repath xrefs.
  Tornado's Missing xrefs and Xref path types checks show which drawings have broken or absolute paths.

Plotting and PDF

• Batch plot. Every drawing in the set, to a plotter or PDF, even in AutoCAD LT. How to batch plot AutoCAD drawings.
• Export every drawing to PDF. One PDF per drawing, named after the drawing. AutoCAD batch PDF export.
• Plot every layout tab. All the tabs in all the drawings. Plot all layout tabs to PDF.
• Import a page setup. Copy a named page setup into every drawing before you plot. Import PageSetup Wizard.

Anything else

• Run a LISP routine on every drawing. Your own routine or one from the web. How to load and run a LISP file.
• Record a job once and repeat it. Do it by hand on one drawing while Command Capture records it, then run it on the rest. Command Capture.
• Write your own script. A plain text .scr file of command-line answers. AutoCAD Scripts (.scr) Guide and which commands work in scripts.
• Run it overnight. Set a start time and come back to a finished set. AutoCAD Night Run.

Where It Runs

Most of these jobs are plain AutoCAD commands, so they also run in AutoCAD LT. The jobs that use AutoLISP (the title block, search and replace text and limits wizards, and running your own LISP) need full AutoCAD or AutoCAD LT 2024 and later. Hurricane also works with BricsCAD, IntelliCAD and DraftSight, and with AutoCAD Electrical projects. Tornado needs full AutoCAD 2018 or later.

AutoCAD LT batch processing  |  BricsCAD  |  AutoCAD Electrical

FAQ

What is batch processing in AutoCAD?

Running the same job on many drawings without opening each one yourself. A script holds the commands, and a batch tool opens each drawing, runs the script, saves and moves to the next.

Does AutoCAD have batch processing built in?

Partly. PUBLISH batch plots in full AutoCAD, and SCRIPT runs a script on the drawing that is open. Running a script on a whole folder of drawings is what Hurricane adds.

Can I batch process in AutoCAD LT?

Yes. LT runs scripts, and most jobs on this page are plain commands. Jobs that use AutoLISP need AutoCAD LT 2024 and later.

How do I find which drawings need a fix before I batch it?

Scan the folder with Tornado DWG Scanner. It reads every drawing and puts the results in one spreadsheet, one row per drawing, so you run the Hurricane job only where it is needed.

Do I need to install anything inside AutoCAD?

No. Hurricane is a stand-alone Windows program that writes the batch script and runs it in AutoCAD. It is not a plug-in or add-in.

Related: AutoCAD Scripts (.scr) Guide  |  Batch Scripting Cheat Sheet  |  All Hurricane Features  |  Tornado DWG Scanner