General Options

You can control the look and behavior of the PowerDesigner interface through the general options, the values for which are saved in the registry of your local machine.

To set general options, select Tools > General Options. The following options are available under the General category:

Option	Description
Autosave	Save recovery backup file every `x` minutes - Instructs PowerDesigner to save changes to all open models to a recovery backup file at the specified interval. Enabling this option provides you with a recovery option if PowerDesigner or your computer crash before you have had a chance to save your changes. The save will take place after the interval has passed, but only when PowerDesigner is idle for more than ten seconds. Note that saving large or multiple models may take several seconds, and that PowerDesigner will not be responsive while it is performing the save. In the event that your modeling session exits abnormally, when next you open PowerDesigner you will be invited to restore your unsaved models. You can choose: Yes - to open the recovered models in the Browser allowing you to review and save or delete them as necessary. No - to reject the recovered models and return your Browser to its last saved state. Note: This option is not supported for the PowerDesigner plugin for Eclipse.
Delete	Confirm object deletion - Controls the display of a confirmation dialog box when you delete an object. If you disable this option, the confirmation dialog will no longer be shown and the default behavior is as follows: Deleting an object symbol - the symbol only is deleted. Deleting an object in the browser - the object, any sub-objects it contains, and any associated diagram symbols are deleted. You can delete any object without confirmation at any time by selecting its symbol in a diagram and pressing Shift+Delete. For more information, see Deleting Objects.
Startup	Auto-reload last workspace - Opens the last-edited workspace when you launch PowerDesigner. If this option is unchecked, PowerDesigner will open with an empty workspace. Show welcome page - Displays the Welcome Page when starting PowerDesigner. If you select the Do not show this page again check box in the Welcome page, this option is deselected.
Browser	Drag and drop: Default action - Specify the default result of dragging and dropping an object (without any modifier key) in the Browser. You can choose from the following: Move (Shift) – The object is displaced to the new location (parent object, package, model, etc). Copy (Ctrl) – A copy of the object is created in the new location. Create Shortcut (Ctrl+Shift) – A shortcut to the object (see Creating Shortcuts) is created in the new location. Create replica (Alt+Shift) – A replica of the object (see Creating Replicas) is created in the new location. The modifier keys given after the option are valid no matter what the default behavior. Show shortcuts - Specifies that shortcuts are displayed in the Browser.
Output log	Log path - Specifies the path to the log file where PowerDesigner records all of its outputs.
Graphical tool behavior	Edit in place after creation - Allows you to directly modify the name of an object from the object symbol in the diagram without opening its property sheet whenever you create an object with the Toolbox.
Sort	Natural Sort - Treats numbers numerically when sorting objects in the Browser. For example, a naturally sorted list of tables would have the order: Table_1, Table_3, Table_12, Table_20.

Dialog Box Options
To review and edit options that control the look and behavior of dialog boxes, select Tools > General Options, and click the Dialog category in the left pane.
Text Editors
By default, all files are edited using PowerDesigner's internal editor. To define external editors for editing various kinds of text, such as object descriptions and annotations or PDM SQL scripts or OOM Java files, select Tools > General Options, and click the Editors category in the left pane.
Environment Variables
Environment variables provide access to paths and executables on your workstation for use in generation commands and GTL templates. To review and edit variables, select Tools > General Options, and click the Variables category in the left pane.
Named Paths
Named paths allow you to resolve links between models and resource files in different environments. To review and edit named paths, select Tools > General Options, and click the Named Paths category in the left pane.
Interface Fonts
To review and modify the fonts used in the general user interface, code and rtf editors, and matrices, select Tools > General Options, and click the Fonts category in the left pane.
Add-Ins
To review and enable add-ins to provide additional features and services in PowerDesigner, select Tools > General Options, and click the Add-Ins category in the left pane.
Model Creation Options
To review and modify options for creating models in the New Model dialog, select Tools > General Options, and click the Model Creation category in the left pane.
Repository Options
To review and modify options for connecting to the repository, controlling the Repository Browser tab, and setting various defaults, select Tools > General Options, and click the Repository category in the left pane.

Parent topic: Customizing Your Modeling Environment