Tool Palettes panel

To open the Tool Palettes panel:

  • Run the TOOLPALETTES command.
  • Right-click a ribbon panel or toolbar and choose Tool Palettes from the Panels list.

The Tool Palettes panel offers a central, highly customizable location to easily access blocks, hatches and various command tools.

It includes default tabs with sample tools. To add custom tabs and tools, use the options in the context menu, which you can open in one of the following ways:

  • Click the three dots menu in the upper right corner of the panel.
  • Right-click a palette name or an empty space of the icon area of the panel.

Palettes Tabs

Displays tabs of available palettes.

Note:
  • The tab items have a fixed height, so the name may not always be fully shown. Double-click a palette name to rename it, or right-click a palette to open the context menu offering additional options.
  • The Palettes Tabs bar opens by default on the left side of the panel, but it changes its position depending on the docking of the Tool Palettes panel.
Scroll arrows (, )
Scrolls through the palette tabs. The arrows are grayed out when all tabs are visible.
Add button ()
Opens the Add tool palette dialog box to name a new palette.
Note: You can also create a new tool palette by right-clicking a palette name and selecting New Palette from the context menu or by using the three dots menu and selecting New Palette.
Tool list ()
Shows a list of the available tool palettes. Use it to quickly select any of the palettes.

Tools

Displays available tools in the current palette. Default tools are grouped by separators and labeled with text titles.

Add selected to tool palette ()
Adds the selected hatch or block from the drawing to the current palette.
If the selection is not a hatch or block, the command used to create the entity is added instead.
Note: Only a single entity can be added at a time.

The selection can also be added to the current palette by right-clicking it and choosing Add to Current Tool Palette from the context menu or by using Ctrl+C and Ctrl+V to copy it from the drawing and paste it into the Tool Palettes panel.

View style
Icon with text
Displays tools in a grid view with both icons and text.
Icon only
Displays tools in a grid view with icons only.
List view
Displays the tools in a list view in the current palette.
Tool context menu
Right-click a tool to open a context menu displaying additional customization options.
Cut
Copies and removes the selected tools from the palette.
Copy
Copies the selected tools to the clipboard.
Delete
Removes the selected tools from the palette.
Rename
Renames a tool.
Specify Image…
Opens the Select Image File dialog box to set an image as a thumbnail for the selected tool.
Note:
  • To restore the original tool image, right-click the tool and select Remove Image... from the context menu.
  • Supported file formats are BMP, GIF, JPEG, JPG, PNG, TIF.
Manage Flyout options...
Opens the Flyout Options dialog box to customize tool flyouts. For more information, see the Flyout Options dialog box article.
Properties…
Opens the Tool Properties dialog box to view and edit properties of the selected tools. For more information, see the Tool Properties dialog box article.

Tool Palettes context menu

Opens the tool palettes context menu.

View Options…
Opens the View options dialog box to modify the display of the tool icons. For more information, see the View options dialog box article.
Paste
Pastes the copied element into the current palette.
Add text
Adds a text element into the current palette.
Add Separator
Adds a separator into the current palette.
Update Palette
Updates the palette.
New Palette
Opens the Add tool palette dialog box to create a new palette.
Delete Palette
Deletes the current palette. The Confirm Palette Deletion dialog box opens to confirm the removal.
Rename Palette
Opens the Rename tool palette dialog box to rename the current palette.
Customize Palettes…
Opens the Customize (Tool Palettes) dialog box to customize the palettes. You can import and export palettes or create, import and export palettes groups. For more information, see the Customize (Tool Palettes) dialog box article.
Add Tool...
Opens the Customize dialog box to add a new tool. For more information, see the Customize dialog box article.