Getting started with BIM Collaborate Pro

Follow the below steps to activate your new BIM Collaborate Pro account and licenses.

Note: Only the Autodesk Contract Manager (Primary administrator to the Autodesk Account who purchased the ABC Pro licenses) can do the below steps to activate your organization's Autodesk Construction Cloud (ACC) hub. 

Intended Audience:

This guide is for Autodesk contract managers, Autodesk account admins, and Autodesk ACC admins.  

Topics Covered:

1. First steps in the Autodesk Account 
   • Assign users ABC Pro licenses
   • Download and install the Desktop Connector
   • Activate the Unified Platform Hub 
2. Access the Unified Platform (ACC or BIM 360 Hubs)
3. Add members to the ACC Hub
4. Create a project
   • Add members 
   • Project notifications
   • Setup folder structure
   • Upload files online
   • Folder permission settings
   • Share files with outside organizations
5. Upload a Revit cloud model
6. Initiate Revit cloud worksharing 
   • How to open a workshared model
   • How to save changes to a workshared model
   • How to publish changes to the ACC Hub
7. Collaboration Cache location

 

First steps in the Autodesk Account

1. Admins will need to assign users ABC Pro licenses by doing the below: 
   • Login to manage.autodesk.com
   • Go to User Management > By Product > assign users licenses
2. Users can opt to install the Desktop Connector which integrates Autodesk cloud data with your local desktop folder and file structure. Read more information about the Desktop Connector here: What is Desktop Connector?
   • Go to All Products and Services > locate Desktop Connector > click Download Now
   • Once installed, make sure you are signed into the Desktop Connector by right-clicking the icon in your system tray. 
3. Primary Admins will need to activate the company's Unified Platform Hub 
   • Locate BIM Collaborate Pro (either on your home page or by going to All Products and Services) and click Access Now
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   • When prompted, enter your Company Name and US server to activate your ACC Hub. 

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Access the Unified Platform

For quick access to the cloud hub, you can bookmark the following URLs: 

• Autodesk Construction Cloud (ACC): acc.autodesk.com
• BIM 360: admin.b360.autodesk.com

You can also access the hub by going to your Autodesk Account (manage.autodesk.com) > All Products and Services > BIM Collaborate Pro > Access

Projects created in the Autodesk Construction Cloud will be designated with a blue sphere icon. 

Projects created in BIM 360 will be designated with a blue B icon. 

Add members to the ACC Hub

Follow the below steps to add members to the ACC Hub. Note that assigning a user a BIM Collaborate Pro license does not automatically give the user access to this ACC Hub. You will still need to do the below to add members to this separate ACC Hub. 

1. Login to acc.autodesk.com 
2. Go to Account Admin
3. Navigate to the Members tab from the left hand menu and click Add Members
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4. Enter in user's email address and select company. 
   • Selecting a role is optional. You can create outside companies for adding third party consultants to your hub. You can read more about adding Roles and Companies in the BIM 360 Admin settings here: 
     • BIM 360 Admin | Manage Roles
     • BIM 360 Admin | Company Directory
   • Select Account Administrator if the user should also be an ACC account admin. 
5. Click Add
6. Select the user from the list and confirm the user has the BIM Collab Pro subscription activated from the right-hand panel. This means the ACC Hub recognizes a BIM Collab Pro license is assigned to the user. 
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Create a project

Follow the below steps to create a project. 

1. Projects can be created from the Projects List (acc.autodesk.com/projects) > click Create Project; or, from the Account Administration > Projects Tab > Create Project. 
2. Enter in Project Name, Account, and Project Type. All other details are optional. 
3. Click Create Project

Add Members

1. Once a project has been created, you will automatically be taken to the Project Admin > Members tab. The project creator is automatically added as a Project Administrator. You can have as many Project Admins you desire, but need a minimum of one. 
2. Select your name from the Members list. Enable access to Docs, Design Coordination, and Model Coordination (all entitlements for BIM Collab Pro) from the right side panel. These do not automatically default on. 
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3. Click Add Members to add new project members
4. Enter in user's email address, select Project Member or Admin, and enable Docs, Model Coordination, and Design Collaboration to turn on their access. 
   • Note: The user will not populate as a project member if user has not been added to the ACC Hub first. 
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5. Click Add when done to add the user. The system may take a minute to add the new user. Refresh the browser window to see the new project member appear in the member list. 

Project Notifications

To adjust project notifications, go to Project Admin > Notifications. 

The Project Admin can choose how frequently to notify project members and can even turn off notifications. 

Setup Folder Structure

1. Switch from Admin > Docs > Files from the top left drop down menu. 
2. The default parent folder is named Project Files. 
3. To create sub-folders, click 3 dots next to the main folder and click Add Subfolder. Project Admins can continue to build out folder structure. 
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Upload Files Online

To upload files though the web only, users will click the blue Upload Files button. This upload method is for all files that will NOT be collaborated through Revit. This includes DWGs, PDFs, images, etc. 

Important: Do NOT upload workshared Revit models using the Upload Files button online. See "How to upload a Revit cloud model" section. 

Folder Permission Settings

Project admins will need to permit users to access the folders they need. If project members state they have been added to a project but cannot view or access any files, most likely they need their folder permissions set. 

1. Project Admins need to navigate to Docs > Files
2. Select the folder a user needs access to view
3. Click the 3 dots to the right of the folder > Permission settings
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4. In the Permissions window, click Add
5. Enter either member's name, role, company, etc. 
6. Choose the Permission level they need for this folder. For collaboration with Revit models, users will need Edit permissions as a minimum. 
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Share files with outside organizations

Users can now share files via a public link feature that allows file viewing with anyone. Only the Account Admin can turn on this feature for a project. 

1. Account Admin needs to navigate to Docs > Files > Settings > Advanced settings
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2. Toggle "Public links to sheets and files" as ON. 
3. Default days till public link expiration can be adjusted here. 

Once this feature is turned on, users can share public links to any files by doing the below: 

1. Navigate to the file 
2. Click the 3 dots on the far right > click Share
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3. From the Share window, users can choose who to share it with, adjust the link expiration date, and choose to share via email or URL link. 
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Upload a Revit cloud model 

To upload a Revit cloud model to a project in the ACC/BIM 360 hub, you will need to do the process from within the Revit software. 

Important notes: 

• Once a Revit model is set up in a specific version year, you cannot save down to a previous version. It is not backward compatible. All project members will need to use the same Revit version. Cloud models can always be upgraded to newer version years. 
• Saving a cloud model will not initiate cloud worksharing. See next section to turn on cloud worksharing. 
• Revit models that are uploaded online using the project's "Upload File" blue button will not appear in Revit and cannot be collaborated on. 

To upload a Revit cloud model: 

1. Open the Revit model
2. File > Save As > Cloud Model
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3. Confirm you are saving in the correct Project > Navigate to the folder to save it in > Save. 

Initiate Revit cloud worksharing 

For full collaboration and to ensure multiple project members can work on the model at the same time, you will need to upgrade your cloud model to a workshared cloud model. 

1. Open your cloud model in Revit 
2. Navigate to the Collaborate menu tab > select Worksets
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3. Review the Enable Worksharing notes, and select the boxes to indicate you understand > select Enable
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4. Worksharing has been enabled for your cloud model. 

How to Open a Revit Workshared Model 

Once a model has been upgraded to a cloud workshared model, project members will need to open the model directly from Revit.

1. Launch Revit
2. Go to Autodesk Docs
3. Navigate to the correct project and model
4. Click to open model

How to Save Changes to a Revit Workshared Model 

To save your changes to a workshared model, you will need to either go to the Collaborate Tab > click Synchronize with Central, or click the Sync with Central icon from the top ribbon. 

How to Publish Changes to the ACC Hub

Saving changes to a workshared model is easily done by Sync to Central. This means for any users who open the model through Revit Autodesk Docs, they will see the latest changes.

Sync to Central does not push the latest changes back up online to the ACC Hub. For users who access the Revit cloud model through the online project site hosted on ACC, they will not see the latest changes until it has been Published. 

To publish the latest changes back online, 

1. Launch Revit and navigate to the project through Autodesk Docs (click the Refresh icon to see latest status). 
2. You may see "Update Available" with a blue arrow icon in the Publish Status icon. This means there have been changes to the model that have not been published back online.  
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3. Click the 3 dots to the right of the project > select Publish Latest

Collaboration Cache location

Local copies of your cloud models are always being saved onto your computer. If you ever need to access a backup local copy, you can go to the below file path (you will need to access Hidden Folders): 

C:\Users\[your user folder]\AppData\Local\Autodesk\Revit\Autodesk Revit 20XX\CollaborationCache

Keep opening folders until you find your Revit models. They will have long string names. 

You can sort by Date Modified to locate your Revit model. 

Recommended Reading

You can always review the above ACC actions in more detail here: Autodesk Docs | Account Administration

Contact Support

If you are still experiencing issues or have further questions, please reach out to our support team Monday through Friday, 8:00 AM—5:00 PM EST:

• 📧 Submit a Request
• 📞 [phone] or Schedule a Call

For technical assistance regarding your specific projects and setup, please inquire about our Quick Start offerings.