Title:
Surface Disappears When Data Shortcut is Refreshed
Applies to:
Civil 3D
Issue:
After updating or refreshing a Data Shortcut for a surface, the surface disappears from the drawing or shows as unresolved.
Causes:
The data shortcut may have been broken due to file relocation, renaming, or workspace misalignment. If the source drawing was saved in a newer version or outside the current working folder, the reference fails to resolve.
Solution:
1 – Open Toolspace > Prospector and check for the red “X” on the surface
2 – Right-click the surface and select Repair Broken Reference
3 – Browse to the correct source file or resynchronize the working folder using Manage Data Shortcuts > Set Working Folder
4 – Use Manage Data Shortcuts > Synchronize to update changes
5 – If the issue persists, recreate the shortcut from the source drawing and reattach it