Scope and Draft
| Control | Action |
|---|---|
| Selected, pointer icon | Targets selected layers in the active comp. |
| Comp, square icon | Targets all layers in the active comp. This is the default scope. |
| Nested, stacked-layers icon | Targets the active comp and all nested precomps, at every depth. |
| Draft, large toggle | Suspends enabled effects and expressions, or restores all remembered work when already on. See Draft mode. |
| More, ellipsis | Opens switches that do not fit in the current slot. |
| Back, X in the More view | Returns to the main controls. Escape or clicking outside the tool also closes this view. |
The scope choice is saved. Scope controls can become icon-only in small slots; hover to read Selected layers, Active comp, or Comp + all nested precomps.
Layer switches
An ordinary on/off switch sets every eligible layer on, or off if they are already all on. Mixed values become on. Only the eligible, unlocked layers are included unless Include Locked Layers is enabled. Lock always includes locked layers.
| Tile | Eligible layers | Values in click order |
|---|---|---|
| Motion blur | Layers with video, including text and shapes. | On, off. Enabling also enables comp motion blur. |
| Collapse | Precomps, supported shape and text layers, and vector files ending in .ai, .eps, .pdf, or .svg, where After Effects allows collapse transformations. | On, off. The tooltip is Collapse / Continuous raster. |
| Quality | Layers with video. | Best → Draft → Wireframe → Best. Mixed values become Best. |
| Frame blend | Precomps and moving footage with video, including image sequences. Still sources are excluded. | Off → Frame mix → Pixel motion → off. Mixed values become Frame mix. Enabling also enables comp frame blending. |
| 3D | Layers with video. Cameras, lights, and audio-only layers are excluded. | On, off. |
| Shy | All layer types. | On, off. This does not change Hide shy layers automatically. |
| Lock | All layer types, including locked layers. | On, off. |
| Guide | Audio/video layers, including text and shapes. Cameras and lights are excluded. | On, off. |
| Adjust | Layers with video. | On, off. The tooltip is Adjustment layer. |
| Audio | Layers with audio. | On, off, to unmute or mute the layer’s audio. |
These are After Effects layer switches. Their starting values come from the project, rather than Switched defaults. Turning layer motion blur or frame blending off leaves the related comp switch unchanged.
Modifiers
Alt is Option on Mac. Shift has a special action only on the three listed switches.
| Gesture | Result |
|---|---|
| Alt-click an on/off switch | Forces every eligible target off. |
| Alt-click Quality | Sets Best. |
| Alt-click Frame blend | Sets off. |
| Shift-click Motion blur | Toggles Comp motion blur. Mixed comp values become on. |
| Shift-click Frame blend | Toggles Comp frame blending. Mixed comp values become on. |
| Shift-click Shy | Toggles Hide shy layers. Mixed comp values become on. |
| Shift+Alt-click any of those three | Forces the corresponding comp control off. |
| Alt-click Draft | Suspends more work instead of restoring. |
Shift-hover on a comp-capable switch changes its glyph to a comp symbol. In layouts with a bottom hint, that hint shows the comp control’s current state. The tile’s dot continues to describe layer state.
Dots, hints, and results
Dots summarize the eligible targets in the chosen scope. They update after Switched actions, on panel focus, and when the pointer enters the tool.
| Indicator | Meaning |
|---|---|
| Filled dot | All eligible targets are on. For Quality, this means Best. For Frame blend, it means Frame mix or Pixel motion. |
| Empty dot | All eligible targets are off, or Quality is Draft or Wireframe. Hover for the exact value. |
| Half-filled dot | Eligible targets have different values. |
| Faint dot, none here in the tooltip | No eligible targets are available under the current scope and lock rules. |
| Hover tooltip | Shows the switch name, current value, eligible layer and comp counts, skipped locked count when present, and modifiers. |
| Bottom hint | Shows scope and layer count, or information about the hovered control. It appears only when there is room. |
| Temporary tile badge | Reports a changed count and value when there is room. Narrow tiles may show only the count. |
| All set, or an already result | The requested value was already set. |
| No comp, No selection, Locked, None or None here, Off, Not done | Brief refusal badges. Read the result message for the cause and use Troubleshooting. |
| Draft count | Total remembered effects plus expressions. Resolution changes are not included. |
Slot sizes
Switched supports half-width and full-width slots, with a minimum size of 140 × 132. The grid rearranges to fit the available area. Labels disappear or shorten as tiles shrink. In a wide slot, scope and Draft can sit beside the grid.
A half-width slot keeps the same actions. Hover an icon whenever its label is hidden.
A short, wide slot moves scope and Draft beside the switches.
If the panel is compressed beyond its configured minimum, More holds switches that cannot fit. They keep their usual modifiers. Use Back to return, or enlarge the slot to keep more controls visible.