What are the differences between FreeCAD's Clone and Link tools?

00:00 Introduction
00:41 Clone Tool
01:50 Cloning a whole body
02:45 Modifying a cloned body
03:55 Cloning part of a body
04:45 Modifying a cloned body - Part 2
05:32 Clone Tool limitations
05:50 Cloning a Part Workbench solid
07:07 Link Tool
07:42 Linking to a whole body
08:38 Modifying a linked body
09:27 Linking to part of a body
10:54 Modifying a linked body - Part 2
11:45 Final thoughts

FreeCAD sometimes has multiple ways of doing similar things differently to achieve the same result. The Link Tool and the Clone Tool are examples of this. Both tools allow you to reuse existing components in your models but they do it slightly differently.

Let's have a brief look at how to tools work.

The Clone Tool

The Clone Tool allows you to clone a component that exists in your current model. The tool places an exact copy of the existing component on top of the existing component and you must use the Transform Tool to move it so that both are visible.

The Clone Tool creates a link to the existing component. FreeCAD will automatically update all cloned instances of the original when modifications are made.

Important

Cloned objects can only have a single solid so compund objects such as Part Container, Part Compound, and Draft Array cannot be cloned.

The Link Tool

The Link Tool allows you to create a link to another component in the same model OR a component that is stored in a completely separate model.

Important

The Link Tool allows you to create a link to whatever item in the object you've selected.

Selecting the Body causes a link to the body to be created;
Selecting a feature (e.g. a pad) links to the feature only;

You can use the Transform Tool to move bodies, but you must manipulate the placement point of links to non-bodies directly in order to move them.

Similarities

The two tools have several features in common:

You can only edit the original component;
You cannot edit cloned or linked copies;
Modifications to the original compoenent are automatically applied to all it's cloned or linked copies;

Differences

The two tools have several differences as well:

The Link Tool allows you to link to components within the current model or external models, wherease the Clone Tool only allows you to clone a component within the same model;
The Clone Tool only allows you to clone an entire component, whereas the Link Tool allows you to link to an entire component OR a feature within the component;

Conclusion

So which of these two tools should you use? The answer is not always clear cut because you can use either tool to achieve the same result in most cases.

The Link Tool provides you with more flexibility than the Clone Tool because it allows you to link to components in the same or external models, as well as allowing you to link to an individual feature within a component.