Generating Smart Views (.bcsv) files

A .bcsv file describes Smart Views in a simple text format. Your software or script can create these files, and users can import them into BIMcollab Zoom. This article explains how a .bcsv file is built and guides you from your first file to testing it in BIMcollab Zoom.

💡 Tip: Not sure which developer option fits your project? See BIMcollab developers options overview.

What is a .bcsv file?

A Smart View in BIMcollab Zoom shows, hides, or colors model elements based on their properties. For example, a Smart View can show only the external walls, or color all doors by fire rating. Smart Views are grouped in Smart View sets.

A .bcsv file is an XML file that describes one or more Smart View sets and their Smart Views. BIMcollab Zoom can import it. After import, the Smart Views can be stored on a BIMcollab project and used by any team member.

Common things people build with it:

Smart Views from company standards: generate Smart Views from a classification or naming list.
Integrations with checking or modeling software: create Smart Views from the results or settings of your own software.
Standard sets for all projects: share the same Smart Views across projects and teams.

📝 Note: Unlike the BIMcollab API and SDK, to generate a .bcsv it is not required to have a connection to BIMcollab, credentials, or access to the Playground.

How a .bcsv file is organized

A .bcsv file has two parts: a file header and the Smart View sets.

.bcsv file
├── File header (bimcollabsmartviewfile)
└── Smart View sets (SMARTVIEWSETS)
    └── Smart View set
        └── Smart Views
            └── Smart View
                ├── Rules
                │   └── Rule: IFC type + property + condition + action
                └── Information takeoff (optional)

Part	What it is
File header	Identifies the file as a .bcsv file.
Smart View set	A group of Smart Views, shown as a folder in the Smart View tree.
Smart View	One view, with a title, description, author, dates, and rules.
Rule	One filter and action. A Smart View can have several rules.
Information takeoff	An optional listing of property values, such as a sum or an average.

How a rule works

Each rule answers four questions:

Question	XML element	Example
Which elements?	IFCTYPE	*Wall*
Which property?	PROPERTY	The *GUID* property in *Summary*
Which condition?	CONDITION	The value is *2bXUpgcvJoHutIc7vy_Ovl*
What happens?	ACTION	*Add* and *color* the elements in *pink*

Read together: "For all walls where the GUID is 2bXUpgcvJoHutIc7vy_Ovl, add them to the view and color them pink."

💡 Tip: For all allowed values, see .bcsv file reference.

Before you begin

Make sure you have:

BIMcollab Zoom, with a test model (IFC) loaded.
An active Zoom license for Smart View importing and exporting capabilities.
A text editor, or a programming language that can write text files, such as Python or C#.
The XSD file, to validate your files. Download the XSD file.

💡 Tip: The easiest way to start is from an example. Create a Smart View in BIMcollab Zoom, export it, and open the .bcsv file in a text editor. You see the structure with real values from your own model.

Create the file

Create a text file with the extension .bcsv, and save it with UTF-8 encoding. Start from this example. It contains one set with one Smart View and one rule that adds all building stories that have a value for the Model property:

<?xml version="1.0"?>
<bimcollabsmartviewfile>
  <version>5</version>
  <applicationversion>Win - Version: 4.3 (build 4.3.18.1)</applicationversion>
</bimcollabsmartviewfile>
<SMARTVIEWSETS>
  <SMARTVIEWSET>
    <TITLE>Smart view basics</TITLE>
    <DESCRIPTION>The smart views in this set demonstrate the basic usage of smart views.</DESCRIPTION>
    <GUID>ce7451f3-00df-4239-afde-738639c67de2</GUID>
    <MODIFICATIONDATE>2021-03-02T15:20:52</MODIFICATIONDATE>
    <SMARTVIEWS>
      <SMARTVIEW>
        <TITLE>Adding elements</TITLE>
        <DESCRIPTION>Adds all building stories with a model name.</DESCRIPTION>
        <CREATOR>[email protected]</CREATOR>
        <CREATIONDATE>2019-07-03T10:27:54</CREATIONDATE>
        <MODIFIER>[email protected]</MODIFIER>
        <MODIFICATIONDATE>2021-03-02T15:20:52</MODIFICATIONDATE>
        <GUID>acbc3e24-7e5a-478c-97f8-2cd6f58000b6</GUID>
        <RULES>
          <RULE>
            <IFCTYPE>Building Story</IFCTYPE>
            <PROPERTY>
              <NAME>Model</NAME>
              <PROPERTYSETNAME>Summary</PROPERTYSETNAME>
              <TYPE>Summary</TYPE>
              <VALUETYPE>StringValue</VALUETYPE>
              <UNIT>None</UNIT>
            </PROPERTY>
            <CONDITION>
              <TYPE>StringIsDefined</TYPE>
              <VALUE/>
            </CONDITION>
            <ACTION>
              <TYPE>Add</TYPE>
            </ACTION>
          </RULE>
        </RULES>
        <INFORMATIONTAKEOFF>
          <PROPERTYSETNAME>None</PROPERTYSETNAME>
          <PROPERTYNAME>None</PROPERTYNAME>
          <OPERATION>0</OPERATION>
        </INFORMATIONTAKEOFF>
      </SMARTVIEW>
    </SMARTVIEWS>
  </SMARTVIEWSET>
</SMARTVIEWSETS>

Then change the example:

Titles and descriptions: change them to describe your set and Smart Views. Users see them in BIMcollab Zoom.
GUIDs: give every set and every Smart View a new, unique GUID. Don't reuse the GUIDs from the example. To create a GUID:
- In PowerShell: [guid]::NewGuid()
- In Python: import uuid; print(uuid.uuid4())
- In C#: Guid.NewGuid()
Dates: use the format YYYY-MM-DDThh:mm:ss, for example 2026-10-14T09:30:00.
Creator and modifier: use the email address of the person or system that creates the file.
Rules: change the IFC type, property, condition, and action. See .bcsv file reference for all allowed values.

⚠️ Attention: A .bcsv file has two top-level blocks: the file header and SMARTVIEWSETS. Most XML libraries expect only one top-level block, so they can't read or write the complete file in one go. Write the file header as plain text, and then add the SMARTVIEWSETS block.

Validate the file

Check your file against the XSD file before you import it. This finds errors such as a missing element or a wrong value.

Copy the SMARTVIEWSETS block (from <SMARTVIEWSETS> to </SMARTVIEWSETS>) to a separate file.
Validate that file against the XSD with an XML tool, such as Visual Studio or an XML editor.
Fix any errors, and copy the corrected block back into your .bcsv file.

📝 Note: The XSD only covers the SMARTVIEWSETS block, not the file header. That's why you validate the block separately.

Step 3: Import the file in BIMcollab Zoom

Open BIMcollab Zoom and load your test model.
Go to the Smart Views tab.
Click the import button and select your .bcsv file.
Select one of the imported Smart Views, and check that the right elements are shown, hidden, or colored.

Troubleshooting

Problem	Possible cause	Solution
BIMcollab Zoom doesn't import the file.	The file header is missing or changed, or the XML isn't valid.	Copy the file header exactly as in the example, and validate the `SMARTVIEWSETS` block against the XSD.
Your XML library can't read or write the file.	The file has two top-level blocks.	Write the file header as plain text, and only use the XML library for the `SMARTVIEWSETS` block.
A Smart View shows no elements.	The IFC type, property set name, or property name doesn't match the loaded model.	Check the names in BIMcollab Zoom, in the properties of an element. Names must match exactly.
A second import replaces or duplicates Smart Views.	The GUIDs are reused or not unique.	Give every set and Smart View its own GUID.
Special characters, such as &, break the file.	The characters aren't escaped.	Escape them, for example & for &.
The information takeoff doesn't work.	The Smart View has no AutoColor rule, or the user has BIMcollab Zoom Free.	Add a `SetAutoColored` rule. Information takeoff isn't available in BIMcollab Zoom Free.