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Reference

ZOOM in AutoCAD

How AutoCAD's ZOOM (Z) works: Extents, Window, Previous, Scale with nX, Object and All, the mouse wheel, zooming inside a command. Try it free online.

ZOOM makes the view larger or smaller; nothing in the drawing moves or changes size. Its first prompt takes a corner, which starts a window, a scale factor, or an option. Typed with an apostrophe, 'ZOOM or 'Z, it works inside another command, which goes on after it. The mouse wheel zooms in and out about the cursor, and a double-click of the wheel button is ZOOM Extents. Each ZOOM is an undo step, consecutive ones a single step, so U takes the view back too.

At the command line

The engine draws it and writes its history as you would type it: the prompts in AutoCAD 2027's order, with the same option letters.

A plate with a small hole near its corner: ZOOM Extents, then a window round the hole, which then fills the view.
  1. Command: ZOOM
  2. Specify corner of window, enter a scale factor (nX or nXP), or [All/Extents/Previous/Scale/Window/Object]: E
  3. Command: ZOOM
  4. Specify corner of window, enter a scale factor (nX or nXP), or [All/Extents/Previous/Scale/Window/Object]: 0,0
  5. Specify opposite corner: 24,24
A plate with a small hole near its corner: ZOOM Extents, then a window round the hole, which then fills the view.

Options

All (A)

Frames everything drawn, as Extents does.

Extents (E)

Frames everything drawn, as large as the window allows. With nothing drawn, it says Regenerating model., and typed inside another command it refuses with ** Requires a regen, cannot be transparent., as AutoCAD's does.

Previous (P)

Goes back to the view before, up to 20 views back. With none left: No previous view saved..

Scale (S)

A factor: 2X zooms twice as close as the current view, 0.5X half as close, and 2 without the X twice the scale of ZOOM All's view. nXP, paper space's factor, is read as nX: there is only model space here. A factor typed at the first prompt does the same without choosing the option.

Window (W)

Two corners, picked or dragged, frame that rectangle. A corner picked at the first prompt does the same.

Object (O)

Frames the objects you select, or those selected before ZOOM.

What it does not do yet

Realtime: Enter at the first prompt ends ZOOM, where AutoCAD starts zooming with the mouse; the wheel does that here. Dynamic, Center and the hidden Left and Vmax.

What it does and still lacks, in detail (in English)

Questions

What is the shortcut for ZOOM in AutoCAD?

Z, then Enter or Space. The full name works too, and _ZOOM in any language of AutoCAD. Z then E is ZOOM Extents.

How do I zoom to fit the whole drawing?

Extents: type Z, Enter, E, Enter. Or double-click the mouse wheel button.

What does ZOOM XP mean in AutoCAD?

nXP zooms a layout viewport to a scale relative to paper space: 1/50XP shows the model at 1:50 on the sheet. MellowCAD has no layouts, so XP is read as X.

How do I zoom to an object in AutoCAD?

Choose Object and select it, or select it first and then run ZOOM Object: the view frames it.

How do I go back to the previous view?

Previous, again and again for the views before it, up to 20.

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