About Instance Accelerator Files
You can reduce the time that Creo Parametric takes to retrieve an instance of a part or assembly from disk by saving the instance in a special file called an instance accelerator file. Each instance is saved in its own unique accelerator file, named instancename.xpr for part instances and instancename.xas for assembly instances.
In addition to performance improvement the instance accelerator files allow you to achieve higher design stability. For example, when you retrieve an assembly instance with an excluded component driven by Family Table, the instance is displayed correctly using the accelerator file. Similarly, when an instance references another model, then using the accelerator file you can retrieve the instance into a session without the referenced model.
The system behavior in saving instances of parts and assemblies is controlled by the Save Instance Accelerator variable. You can set up or modify this variable in two ways as follows:
• By setting the save_instance_accelerator configuration option. You can select one of the following values:
◦ None—Creo Parametric does not save an instance by saving the generic model and its Family Table.
◦ Always—Creo Parametric saves an accelerator file when you explicitly save the instance. You can save an instance by opening the instance in a new Creo Parametric window using Open in the Family Table dialog box, and then saving it as a separate model file using File > Save or File > Save a Copy. You can also save the instance through a higher level object, that is, when you save the entire model file using File > Save.
◦ Explicit—Creo Parametric saves an accelerator file only when you explicitly save the instance (see the preceding paragraph for a description of saving an instance).
◦ Saved Objects—This is the default. This option is similar to Always except that Creo Parametric updates the accelerator files whenever you modify or verify an instance and the instance verification status is not set to Failed.
• By clicking File > Options > Environment. Select Create instance accelerator files upon instance storage checkbox. The Create files list contains the same options as the save_instance_accelerator configuration option:
◦ None
◦ Always
◦ Explicit
◦ Saved Objects (default)
One of these options is highlighted to reflect the current setting that was loaded from a configuration file or selected previously using this dialog box.
• By clicking File > Manage File > Instance Accelerator. Using the Instance Accelerator dialog box that opens, you can also:
◦ Create an instance accelerator file.
◦ Save instances of parts and assemblies.
◦ Update the generic and all instance accelerator files.
◦ Delete invalid instance accelerator files.