Hey All,
I still vividly remember a specific project, we were in a tight crunch and just a day from the submission date, 25+ sheets of detailed design drawings, trying to make the final edits and add the last specs and notes at the end of the day before final checks and plotting…
Then it happened, No warning. No freeze. Just gone. AutoCAD Crashed…
Sure we had backups and had saved somewhat recently, but we had still just lost at least an hour of work…
At that moment, I questioned everything…
Why didn’t I have autosave set to a shorter interval? (I had increased it since the network had been causing lags and slow save times each autosave.
Where was the .bak file?
When did I last manually save?
What did I just lose and how can I make these updates that took over an hour before my reviewer leaves for the day!?
We’ve all been there, whether it’s your first crash or your fiftieth.
The good news? These days, recovering from an AutoCAD crash is much easier (if you know what to do).
Which brings us to this week’s featured tip, video, and tools…
Quick Tip: Never Lose Hours of Work Again
Command: DRAWINGRECOVERY
When AutoCAD crashes and reopens, you’ll often see the Drawing Recovery Manager pop up.
But if it doesn’t, just type DRAWINGRECOVERY to open it manually.
Here, you can find autosaved versions (.sv$), backups (.bak), or even previous sessions that you didn’t know AutoCAD saved.
Bonus:
- Search your autosave folder here:
C:\Users\YourName\AppData\Local\Temp\
Featured Video: STOP Losing Work! AutoCAD Crash Recovery Guide
You asked for it, and this one’s a must-watch.
In this video, I walk through step-by-step:
- How to recover a crashed drawing (.sv$, .bak, and DWG)
- How to find autosave folders manually
- How to fix corrupted drawings (with
AUDIT,RECOVER,PURGE,OVERKILL) - How to prevent future crashes with the right autosave and graphics settings
It’s the crash checklist I wish I had years ago.
Watch it here →
👉 STOP Losing Work! AutoCAD Crash Recovery Guide
Save this free cheatsheet to save time and work:
Tool of the Week: Plex-Earth
If you work with civil, site, or infrastructure design you probably already know about long time supporter of the channel, Plex-Earth. It might just become your new best friend.
✅ Import high-res satellite imagery directly into AutoCAD
✅ Generate terrain surfaces from Google Earth, Bing Maps, and more
✅ Add GIS data layers and 3D maps without leaving CAD
Whether you’re planning a site or pitching a concept, Plex-Earth helps bring the real world into your drawings fast.
🔗 Try Plex-Earth → http://cadintentions.com/plexearth
If you’re enjoying these tips and want to go deeper, check out my AutoCAD Fundamentals & Workflows course. It’s packed with the real-world systems I use every day: templates, plotting, layout workflows, title blocks, and more.
That’s it for this week!
Let me know some of your Drawing recovery tips/tricks in the comments or by hitting reply!
Cheers and happy drafting,
Brandon
P.S. If you’ve got a colleague who always fighting with CAD crashes or forgetting to save their work regularly, forward this email or send them a link!
They’ll thank you later.
Latest posts by Brandon (see all)
- AutoCAD Crashed? Here’s Exactly What To Do Next - October, 2026
- Master XREFs in AutoCAD (Without Breaking Anything) - October, 2026
- The Right Way to Reuse Drawings in AutoCAD (No More Clutter!) - October, 2026