Open references solve several untouchable issues which lock parts or assemblies in a read-only state.
Open references are references which cannot be resolved because their target object is currently unavailable. Examples of missing objects are partial loads from the database or simplification.
When the owner has open references, Creo Elements/Direct Modeling displays an () icon next to the owner (part or assembly). Without open reference handling, owners would be marked as untouchable.
Open references usually have a life span between a partial load and the next reload operation; however, Creo Elements/Direct Modeling will try to maintain open references as long as possible. In this case, the reference will be kept until the missing object appears (via reload), which then allows the reference to resolve itself. This is in contrast to current behavior where the missing object causes the reference to be deleted after loading and marks the affected part as "untouchable". Creo Elements/Direct Modeling will maintain open references for as long as possible. However, certain modeling operations can result in destruction of the open reference.
Benefits of open reference handling
• Parts/assemblies will no longer become "untouchable" when losing references upon load except in particular cases.
• Labels pop up again automatically when all referenced entities are reloaded.
• Data of open references is kept and restored on reload so the original reference data is not lost when storing an open reference.
• Automatic reconnection when referenced entities appear.
) icon next to the owner (part or assembly). Without open reference handling, owners would be marked as untouchable.