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Editing features

Editing covers everything after a feature exists: changing geometry, updating attributes, entering explosives, adding notes, defining relationships. This lesson focuses on which edits matter for analysis and which don't. For the click-by-click flow on the dashboard itself, see Features → How to view and edit a feature. Bulk edits across many features are covered in Module 11.

Learning objectives

By the end of this lesson you should be able to:

  • Locate each editable property on the feature dashboard
  • Recognize which edits invalidate prior analysis results
  • Anticipate the impact of a type-code change before making it

The dashboard tabs​

TabWhat you edit
DetailsName, type code, layer, geometry-derived metadata
ShapeGeometry, front, and label placement
SegmentsAnalysis faces: the default faces named after the criteria's sides, custom faces (alpha) and which faces are analyzed, and Regenerate Faces
AttributesConstruction, contents, operating posture — see Calculator: Attributes
ExplosivesNEW (and supporting weights) by hazard division — see Calculator: Explosives
RelationshipsPer-feature relationship codes; for at-scale management see Relationship groups
NotesFacility Description and Submittal Notes (both printed on submittal forms), and internal Notes (never printed)
CalculationsRead-only; per-pair analysis results once the project has been analyzed
Spatial AnalysisRead-only; which features fall within this feature's arcs (and which arcs this feature falls within)
ErrorsRead-only; reasons the engine could not analyze this feature, if any

The first seven are inputs; the last three are outputs. Edits to inputs invalidate the corresponding outputs until analysis is re-run.

Leaving the editor — Back, Done, or switching to another feature — with unsaved changes prompts Save, Don't Save, or Cancel, so an accidental click never silently discards work.

Type-code edits are disruptive​

Changing a feature's type code is the most disruptive edit short of deletion. The engine reloads the available attributes and explosives for the new type code, drops attribute and explosives values that no longer apply, and falls back to defaults for any newly required attributes — see Calculator: Type codes. Re-confirm attributes after a type-code change before re-running analysis.

A type code with different sides (for example ECM to BND) also rebuilds the default faces and resets their Analyze choice and Barricaded flag, because a side of the old type code is not the same side of the new one. Re-check the Segments tab too.

Editing a path facility or other layout member​

A path facility is edited through its path layout, not its Shape tab. On the facility's dashboard, Options > Edit Layout opens the layout (or click it in the Layouts sidebar):

  • Change the Width, or click Edit the centerline to move, add, or delete centerline points, then save — the polygon is rebuilt from the centerline
  • Reshaping the polygon on the Shape tab doesn't update the centerline, and the next save of the path layout replaces that shape
  • Renaming the facility renames the path layout too

Facilities placed by a grid, template, or BLAHA layout show the same Edit Layout item. Editing the layout moves its facilities together and deletes the cells you remove, and one undo restores the whole layout.

Faces and the Segments tab​

The Segments tab lists the facility's analysis faces. Default faces are named after the criteria's sides (front/right/rear/left for an ECM, door/other for a NATO AGMRCWR, Perimeter for most categories). Custom faces (an alpha feature) replace the default face for the side chosen in Analyze As, and an Analyze column shows which faces will be analyzed. See Segments and sides and Feature shapes → Custom analysis segments.

Older facilities whose default faces don't match their criteria's sides print "Sides not analyzed" on submittal forms. Regenerate Faces on the Segments tab rebuilds them (save, then re-run analysis); Analysis > Regenerate Faces does the whole project.

Edits that invalidate analysis​

Any input edit invalidates the calculation that used it. Re-run analysis after any of:

  • Geometry changes (move, reshape)
  • Type-code changes
  • Attribute changes
  • Explosive changes (NEW, hazard division add/remove)
  • Relationship changes
  • Front assignment changes
  • Face changes: custom faces, Analyze choices, barricade flags, and Regenerate Faces
  • Layer-flavor changes (QD-visible vs background)
info

The check for whether the project needs an analysis run compares each feature's last analysis-relevant edit with the last analysis. Edits that can't change results (listed below) don't count. The feature list's Analysis columns view shows a Last Analysis-Relevant Edit column next to Last Edited.

Edits that don't invalidate analysis​

A few edits are purely cosmetic or organizational and do not mark the analysis as needing a re-run:

  • Name, label, and style changes
  • Notes, Submittal Notes, and Facility Description
  • A category's notes or justification, an explosive's display name, and relationship notes
  • To-do items
  • Visibility toggles

Re-running after these is harmless but unnecessary.

Try it​

Open a feature on a project that has been analyzed. Toggle a single attribute (e.g., Heavy Wall) and confirm the toolbar's Analysis button switches to calculate. Re-run analysis and observe the change in the feature's Calculations tab. Now change only the feature's name and confirm the button stays at check.