When you save a model or one of its instances by clicking File > Save on the Creo Parametric menu bar, Creo Parametric automatically saves Family Table information for that model, including the generic part, features, and dimensions found in the Family Table. Creo Parametric saves the Family Table information separately from the model file by creating an external generic file named modelname.ptd. When you save the model, the modelname.ptd file contains the same Family Table information as is stored internally within the part database. Every time you click File > Save, Creo Parametric updates the .ptd file.

When you save the generic, the instances in the Family Table are not saved to the .ptd file and you can retrieve the instances only through the generic; that is, only by opening the generic model. However, you can set the save_instance_accelerator configuration option to save instances automatically every time you click File > Save. Instances are saved to an .xpr instance accelerator file for part instances and .xas instance accelerator file for assembly instances. You can set the save_instance_accelerator configuration option to the following values, this controls whether the instances are saved or not saved during the File > Save operation:

You can also save the contents of a Family Table separately from saving the model. To do so, use File > Export Table in the Family Table. You can save a Family Table as a text file or as a Pro/TABLE file. If you save a Family Table as a regular text file, you can edit the table information within an external text editor, such as Microsoft Word. If you save it as a Pro/TABLE file, the information is not editable. In either case, the file extension of the saved text file is .ptd.

Once you have exported Family Table information, you can retrieve it into another Family Table using File > Import Table in the Family Table.