> ## Content Index > Fetch the complete content index at: https://revitclub.net/llms.txt > Use this file to discover other available public pages before exploring further. # Revit file types: RVT, RFA, RTE and backup files explained - URL: https://revitclub.net/revit-file-types/ - Published: 2026-11-09T13:23:00.000Z - Updated: 2026-11-10T15:01:46.000Z - Description: Match each Revit file to its job: RVT models, RFA families, RTE and RFT templates. Check the saved release first and keep the backup states you still need. - Author: Andrew Mercer - Tags: Files & links An RVT is the Revit project model; an RFA is a loadable family; an RTE is a project template; an RFT is a family template. Numbered RVT copies preserve earlier states in the documented non-workshared backup workflow, so the extension alone is not enough to choose which file to open. Choose the file for its role, then check the release that last saved it. The filename `Studio.rvt` is an example throughout. | File | Role and next action | | --------------- | ------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------- | | .rvt | A [Revit model](https://help.autodesk.com/cloudhelp/2027/ENU/Revit-GetStarted/files/GUID-B3112DE3-A923-4950-B547-3A83A30CDD38.htm?ref=revitclub.net). Check its saved release before opening it. | | .rfa | A [loadable family](https://help.autodesk.com/cloudhelp/2027/ENU/Revit-Customize/files/GUID-81A12807-A549-4722-BD14-FEE16DAA747E.htm?ref=revitclub.net). Load it into the project that needs that component. | | .rte | A project template, used as the starting point for a new model. | | .rft | A family template such as [Section Head.rft](https://help.autodesk.com/cloudhelp/2027/ENU/Revit-DocumentPresent/files/GUID-9D6B0500-AE8D-427F-9374-817D87F289A9.htm?ref=revitclub.net), used to start a family rather than a project. | | Studio.0012.rvt | A numbered non-workshared backup. Open it when you need a previous saved state, with the release check below. | Revit LT 2027 uses the same file types. Its upgrade rules cover [RVT models, RFA families and RTE templates](https://help.autodesk.com/cloudhelp/2027/ENU/RevitLT-GetStarted/files/GUID-B3112DE3-A923-4950-B547-3A83A30CDD38.htm?ref=revitclub.net) the same way, and a project can go [back and forth between Revit and Revit LT](https://help.autodesk.com/cloudhelp/2027/ENU/RevitLT-Collaborate/files/GUID-BF9D8D6E-3A3C-4563-AD29-54B857A7FD5A.htm?ref=revitclub.net), opened, modified and saved several times. Add-ins are the limit: if a project was modified in Revit with add-ins, Revit LT may not open it. ## Check the saved release before opening or loading In Revit 2027, select a file in the **Open** dialog to see [the release that last saved it](https://help.autodesk.com/cloudhelp/2027/ENU/Revit-GetStarted/files/GUID-B3112DE3-A923-4950-B547-3A83A30CDD38.htm?ref=revitclub.net). Autodesk's upgrade guidance explicitly covers RVT models, RFA families and RTE templates. A filename's four-digit backup counter is not that release number. An earlier model may need an upgrade when opened in a later release. Once the model is **upgraded and saved**, Autodesk says it can no longer be opened in an earlier release. Keep an unmodified copy if [the original release still matters](https://revitclub.net/revit-older-version/). I'd start the intended Revit release and navigate to the model from there, because double-clicking a model starts the most recently installed release by default and can start an upgrade for an older model. Opening a model or loading a family that requires an upgrade can also start the process automatically. For a model you do not want to upgrade, choose **Cancel Upgrade**. It remains unopened and unupgraded. Start the appropriate Revit release indicated in the message, then navigate to and open the model there. Agree the required release with the people receiving the model before saving an upgrade. That compatibility decision also matters when you move on to the coordination tasks in [Revit files and links](https://revitclub.net/tag/files-links/). ## Review an RVT in a browser If you only need to inspect the model, Autodesk Viewer is a [free browser application](https://help.autodesk.com/cloudhelp/ENU/ADSKVIEWER-Help/files/ADSKVIEWER%5FHelp%5FGettingStarted%5Fhtml.html?ref=revitclub.net). Its [supported-file list](https://help.autodesk.com/cloudhelp/ENU/ADSKVIEWER-Help/files/ADSKVIEWER%5FHelp%5FSupportedFileTypes%5Fhtml.html?ref=revitclub.net) includes RVT files from Revit 2015 or later. Uploading a file requires signing in with an Autodesk Account. You can also open a shared design-view link. Check the project's sharing rules before uploading. Autodesk Viewer [converts uploaded files to design views](https://help.autodesk.com/cloudhelp/ENU/ADSKVIEWER-Help/files/ADSKVIEWER%5FHelp%5FGettingStarted%5Fhtml.html?ref=revitclub.net). People receiving those shared design views cannot access or edit the source files through the view. Use Revit for the family-loading and saved-model recovery steps below. ## Load an RFA into the receiving project With the receiving project open in the intended release, use Insert > Load from Library > Load Family. Select the RFA in the [**Load Family** dialog](https://revitclub.net/load-family-revit/) and click **Open**. ![Load Family button with a folder and blue down arrow on the Insert tab in Load from Library](https://storage.ghost.io/c/85/87/8587d5e4-79c0-44e6-83d8-329eb0b5abe6/content/images/2026/11/load-family-control-r2-d9996dd82663.webp) Use [Insert > Load from Library > Load Family](https://help.autodesk.com/cloudhelp/2027/ENU/Revit-Model/files/GUID-2A6C26DE-63D7-48E8-A986-CAB6C362049A.htm?ref=revitclub.net) to load the RFA into the receiving project. [Open full-size view](https://storage.ghost.io/c/85/87/8587d5e4-79c0-44e6-83d8-329eb0b5abe6/content/images/2026/11/load-family-control-r2-d9996dd82663.webp?ref=revitclub.net) The family type becomes available to place and [appears under **Families** in the **Project Browser**](https://help.autodesk.com/cloudhelp/2027/ENU/Revit-Model/files/GUID-2A6C26DE-63D7-48E8-A986-CAB6C362049A.htm?ref=revitclub.net), inside its category. Check there after loading. An RFA is the separate file for a loadable family; do not use its extension as a definition of [every family in Revit](https://revitclub.net/families-in-revit/). ## Start the right object from its template An RTE starts a new model. Project templates can carry [view templates, loaded families and defined settings](https://help.autodesk.com/cloudhelp/2027/ENU/Revit-Customize/files/GUID-4C16B54A-7ADA-4DEB-A278-C199B1BC4207.htm?ref=revitclub.net), such as units and line styles, plus geometry if desired. Choose the template for the model you are starting; receiving a template does not mean you have received the existing project model. Use an RFT to start the family. Autodesk's [family-template guidance](https://help.autodesk.com/cloudhelp/2027/ENU/Revit-Customize/files/GUID-E36987A9-A68F-4121-A391-907306BAA60A.htm?ref=revitclub.net) describes the starting information needed to create a family and place it in projects. The resulting loadable family is saved as an RFA. Keep the two starting points separate: a project template sets up a model, while a family template sets up a family. ![Project template RTE creates a new RVT model; family template RFT starts a family saved as RFA](https://storage.ghost.io/c/85/87/8587d5e4-79c0-44e6-83d8-329eb0b5abe6/content/images/2026/11/template-output-r2-789c6b6d6969.webp) [An RTE starts a new model.](https://help.autodesk.com/cloudhelp/2027/ENU/Revit-Customize/files/GUID-4C16B54A-7ADA-4DEB-A278-C199B1BC4207.htm?ref=revitclub.net) [An RFT starts a family](https://help.autodesk.com/cloudhelp/2027/ENU/Revit-Customize/files/GUID-E36987A9-A68F-4121-A391-907306BAA60A.htm?ref=revitclub.net) that can be [saved as an RFA](https://help.autodesk.com/cloudhelp/2027/ENU/Revit-Customize/files/GUID-81A12807-A549-4722-BD14-FEE16DAA747E.htm?ref=revitclub.net). [Open full-size view](https://storage.ghost.io/c/85/87/8587d5e4-79c0-44e6-83d8-329eb0b5abe6/content/images/2026/11/template-output-r2-789c6b6d6969.webp?ref=revitclub.net) ## Read numbered RVT files as recovery states Autodesk's [backup instructions apply to non-workshared models](https://help.autodesk.com/cloudhelp/2027/ENU/Revit-GetStarted/files/GUID-E79353E9-CC57-4ECE-93B8-5D12D9B3B135.htm?ref=revitclub.net). On a save, Revit preserves the model state from **before the current save** in the same folder. That is what a numbered copy is for. The naming pattern is `..rvt`. The four-digit part is a save counter. In the example, `Studio.rvt` is the current model and `Studio.0012.rvt` holds an earlier state. The number does not tell you whether that state contains the change you want to recover. Revit LT 2027 [uses the same backup naming and restore](https://help.autodesk.com/cloudhelp/2027/ENU/RevitLT-GetStarted/files/GUID-E79353E9-CC57-4ECE-93B8-5D12D9B3B135.htm?ref=revitclub.net). ![Studio.rvt current plan with a solid partition beside Studio.0012.rvt previous plan with an interior door, callout 1](https://storage.ghost.io/c/85/87/8587d5e4-79c0-44e6-83d8-329eb0b5abe6/content/images/2026/11/revit-file-types-backup-states.webp) In this non-workshared example, the interior door removed before the latest save survives only in Studio.0012.rvt. Check the saved Revit release before opening either file. [Open full-size view](https://storage.ghost.io/c/85/87/8587d5e4-79c0-44e6-83d8-329eb0b5abe6/content/images/2026/11/revit-file-types-backup-states.webp?ref=revitclub.net) For recovery, Autodesk documents opening the backup and using Save As. Preserve the working RVT while you check the candidate: 1. Choose a candidate backup and check the release that last saved it. 2. Open it in the appropriate Revit release. 3. Use [File > Save As](https://help.autodesk.com/cloudhelp/2027/ENU/Revit-GetStarted/files/GUID-A00D1018-6D25-40C9-8B58-D051830C59B0.htm?ref=revitclub.net) to save it with a distinct name or location. Open the view or schedule that showed the lost change, such as the floor plan where the door stood, and confirm the element is there before you replace or rename the working RVT. A different recovery filename preserves the working model while you inspect the candidate. The saved-release check still matters: opening and saving a backup in a newer release can introduce the same upgrade limitation. ## Keep the recovery states you still need Don't treat every numbered copy as safe to delete. Deleting one removes a recovery state. Revit lets you [set a maximum number of retained backup files](https://help.autodesk.com/cloudhelp/2027/ENU/Revit-GetStarted/files/GUID-E79353E9-CC57-4ECE-93B8-5D12D9B3B135.htm?ref=revitclub.net); when the maximum is exceeded during saving, it purges the oldest files. Choose that limit around the states the project still needs, not an assumed universal number. The procedure above stops at non-workshared models. Workshared rollback needs its own workflow; do not infer it from a numbered filename. DWG, IFC and Rhino 3DM files aren't Revit's own formats. DWG and 3DM files come in through [Insert > Import > Import CAD](https://help.autodesk.com/cloudhelp/2027/ENU/Revit-Model/files/GUID-E8705303-0610-4A82-9118-0C3A742706D2.htm?ref=revitclub.net) or [Link CAD](https://help.autodesk.com/cloudhelp/2027/ENU/Revit-Model/files/GUID-B69ED66A-4272-4332-9872-FD802DA1C9E7.htm?ref=revitclub.net), and an [IFC file is opened or linked](https://help.autodesk.com/cloudhelp/2027/ENU/Revit-DocumentPresent/files/GUID-6708CFD6-0AD7-461F-ADE8-6527423EC895.htm?ref=revitclub.net), with an opened IFC becoming a new RVT. For 3DM work, [bringing Rhino geometry into Revit](https://revitclub.net/rhino-to-revit/) has its own guide.