Question about using Subtract command with xref object

Hello everyone, I am new to this forum, and this is my first post.

I have a question here. I want to perform a SUBTRACT command between 2 xref objects. However, the software won't let me perform the operation, stating that both objects are not solid.

How do I gonna fix it?

By the way, I am using Autocad 2008.

Thanks in advance.

You need to have both objects in the drawing. You can't perform actions on xref'd objects.

You could Bind them and then Explode them. Bind will bring them into the drawing as Blocks. Explode will then allow you to Edit them. Then you should be able to Subtract.

But then they won't be xrefs anymore. Are you trying to keep them as xrefs?

Well, sorry, but there is no way to subtract one object from another if each object is contained in a separate xref. If you want to subtract one object from another, they have to be in the same drawing.

If you want to keep each object in their original files, I would suggest opening each xref and perform the subtraction on each object within each file. Then you would see the results in the main drawing.

Open xref "A", containing object "A"

Attach xref "B" containing object "B"

Bind xref "B"

Explode block

Subtract object "B" from object "A"

Save

Open xref "B", containing object "B"

Attach xref "A" containing object "A"

Bind xref "A"

Explode block

Subtract object "A" from object "B"

Save

Go back to your main drawing and Reload both Xrefs to see the results

Note: Be sure to create backup copies of your xref's before modifying them.

That's where I was heading. I thought maybe he was wanting to keep them as separate xrefs, which is obviously not possible.

Thanks for the reply guys! Yeah, I was intended to keep both file as xref so when I alter the original file, the related file will also changed accordingly. Is there any alternative besides xref which produce the same results?

P.S. Wow, it works! Thanks again guys!