Where Are AutoCAD Temp Files Stored?

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AutoCAD is a powerful software used for creating precise and detailed drawings in various industries. During your work with AutoCAD, you may encounter situations where the program unexpectedly crashes or freezes, resulting in the loss of your progress.

However, AutoCAD has a built-in feature that helps to minimize data loss by creating temporary files. These temporary files act as backup copies and can be used to recover your work in case of an unexpected shutdown.

Understanding AutoCAD Temporary Files

AutoCAD creates temporary files with the extension “.tmp” to store data while you are working on a drawing. These files are usually stored in a specific location on your computer’s hard drive.

By default, AutoCAD saves these temporary files in the user’s temporary folder. The location of this folder varies depending on the operating system you are using:

Windows

On Windows operating systems, the user’s temporary folder is typically located at:

C:\Users\Username\AppData\Local\Temp

You can replace “Username” with your actual username on the computer.

Mac

On Mac operating systems, AutoCAD stores temporary files in the following location:

/Users/Username/Library/Application Support/Autodesk/AutoCAD 20XX/Rxx.X/ACAD-XXXX_XXXX_Temp

In this path, “20XX” represents the version number of AutoCAD installed on your system, while “Rxx.X” represents the release version number.

Locating AutoCAD Temporary Files

  • To access the user’s temporary folder on Windows:
    1. Press Windows Key + R.
    2. In the Run dialog box, type %temp% and press Enter.
  • To access the AutoCAD temporary folder on Mac:
    1. Open a Finder window.
    2. Click on the “Go” menu in the top menu bar.
    3. Press and hold the Option key. This will reveal the “Library” option in the dropdown menu.
    4. Select “Library” from the dropdown menu.
    5. Navigate to “Application Support” > “Autodesk” > “AutoCAD 20XX” > “Rxx.X”.
    6. You will find the temporary files in a folder named “ACAD-XXXX_XXXX_Temp“.

Safely Deleting AutoCAD Temporary Files

AutoCAD automatically manages these temporary files, and they are typically deleted when you exit the program normally. However, if AutoCAD crashes or freezes, these files may not be cleared automatically.

If you encounter any issues with AutoCAD or notice that your temporary folder is taking up too much space, you can manually delete these temporary files. Here’s how:

  1. Open your user’s temporary folder (as mentioned earlier for your respective operating system).
  2. Select all the “.tmp” files in the folder.
      3. Note: Be cautious not to delete any other important files or folders in this location.
  3. Delete the selected files by pressing the Delete key or right-clicking and selecting “Delete“.

Conclusion

AutoCAD temporary files are essential for saving your work and preventing data loss in case of unexpected program shutdowns. Knowing where these files are stored allows you to access them for recovery purposes or to manually delete them when needed. By keeping your temporary folder clean, you can ensure efficient performance and free up disk space on your computer.

Remember to use caution when deleting any files, and always make sure to have a backup of your important drawings.