The desktop viewer stalls or is not there
An export of a whole building or a whole campus can take a long time to open in desktop software. The reviewer who only needs to see one floor usually has no license, no install and no time for either.
BIM · Large models
How to open a large IFC file online
A full-building IFC export can be a few hundred megabytes, and the person who has to look at it often has no BIM software on the laptop in front of them. This page is about the size question: what Fidrel accepts, what happens while a big model is built, what depends on your computer and how to split a file that is too large.
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Why big IFC files cause trouble
The cap shows up after the upload
Browser viewers each set their own size cap, and you tend to learn what it is only when a long upload ends in an error. By then the meeting is close and the file is still unread.
Nobody says what the computer will do
A model that loads on a workstation can run a smaller laptop out of memory. A warning that arrives after twenty minutes of waiting helps nobody, so it is worth knowing what is coming before you start.
What the 512 MB limit means
The limit applies to the file you upload. Fidrel reads IFC 2x3, IFC 4 and IFC 4.3, and it accepts the plain .ifc file or a zipped .ifczip. The original file is kept unchanged with the project’s documents, so the model you open is built from exactly what the architect or the engineer exported, and you can download the IFC again later. A file over the limit never reaches the 3D step: the page tells you the size it found and the size it allows.
BIM & 3D
What your computer decides
Fidrel gives no build time for a model, because the build happens in your own browser and depends on the computer in front of you. The product’s own guidance is that files up to a few hundred megabytes are built on an ordinary computer. Beyond that, expect a longer wait and a bigger chance of running short of memory, and plan to split by building or level. While one person is building a model, anyone else on the project sees a message that it is already being built, so two people do not start the same job.
From a large export to an open model
Step 1
Check the size before you upload
Look at the file in your export folder. Fidrel takes IFC (.ifc) or zipped IFC (.ifczip) up to 512 MB. A larger file is refused with a message that suggests splitting the model, for example by building or level.
Step 2
Upload from the BIM models page
Open BIM models, choose Upload model and drag the file in. Fidrel reads the file header first and shows the IFC version, the software it was exported from and the size, before you press Upload and build 3D.
Step 3
Keep the window open while it builds
For a large file Fidrel warns that the model is built in your browser and can take a few minutes and a lot of memory. The steps read Uploading, Checking the file, Building 3D model and Publishing, and the status reads Ready at the end.
Step 4
Open it alone or with the others
Press Open in 3D for one model, or Federated model to open every ready model at once. Up to twelve models share one scene, so a large architectural model can sit beside the structure and the building services.
Step 5
If the browser runs out of memory
The message says the model was too large for the browser’s memory. Try again from a computer with more memory, or export the model in smaller parts, one file per building or level, and upload each part as a model of its own.
Splitting a model that is too big
Split the way people look at the building, not only by file size: one file per building, or one per level on a tall one. Upload each part as a model, give it a discipline and open the parts together in the federated view. Every part has to use the same coordinate system and origin, or the pieces will sit in the wrong place when they are combined. When the next issue of a part arrives, upload it as a new version of the same model so the history and the linked issues stay.
What this page does not promise
Fidrel does not state how long a build takes or how it compares with other viewers. Only IFC files are read, so a native Revit, Archicad, Tekla or Navisworks file has to be exported to IFC first. A model larger than 512 MB cannot be uploaded, and Fidrel does not split it for you. Fidrel is not an offline viewer: the file is uploaded to your project before the 3D model is built.
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BIM · Large models
Frequently asked questions
Anything else on your mind? We are happy to help.
Talk to usUp to 512 MB, as a plain IFC file or a zipped one. If the file is bigger, the upload dialog shows its size and the limit and suggests splitting the model by building or level.
Yes. The original file is uploaded and kept unchanged with the project documents, and the 3D model is then built in your browser. Who can open it follows the access you have given on the project.
The model was too large for the memory the browser had. Try again from a computer with more memory, or split the model into smaller files and upload each one as its own model.
Up to twelve models fit in one scene, each up to 512 MB. How smoothly that runs depends on the computer, so open the models you need for the question rather than all of them.
No. Export it to IFC first and upload the IFC file. Navisworks cannot export IFC, so export from the original design software instead.