Overview

Macros are mini-programs that run within Citavi. They let you do things with your project that are not possible with Citavi's standard features. For example, you could batch move contents from one field to another, or sort categories alphabetically.

Citavi macros are written in the C# ("C sharp") programming language and interact with the Citavi object model, which is specific to a version of Citavi. This means that macros from earlier versions of Citavi usually will not work in a later version of Citavi.

Using a Macro

If you receive a macro as a file from Citavi support staff, or from a forum post, here's how to use it:

1. Macro files have the .cs file extension. If you received the macro in a ZIP archive, be sure to extract it from the ZIP first. On GitHub, follow the link to the macro in the readme file, right-click the Raw button at the top right, click Save As , and select any directory for the cs file.
2. Start Citavi and open the project you want to work on.
3. Important: Back up the project before running a macro on it. (To create a backup, on the File menu, click Create backup ). Creating a backup is very important because the changes made by a macro cannot be undone!
4. Many macros apply to the current selection only, so if you want them to apply only to some references, use the filter or search features to create a selection first. (You can identify a macro that applies to the current selection because the macro's program code will contain .GetFilteredReferences() somewhere.)
5. Press Alt+F11 to open the Macro Editor. It can take several seconds before it opens.
6. In the Macro Editor, on the File menu, click Open and choose the macro file ( .cs ) you prepared in step 1.
7. Click Compile . No errors should appear in the lower pane of the window.
8. Click Run to run the macro. You will be asked to confirm that you created a backup. If you haven't, cancel, create the backup, and then continue.