Sasha Crotty
April 7, 2019
3 min read
If you haven’t explored using cloud models for Revit yet, I’m here to convince you to drop what you’re doing now and give it a try. The big news is that with Cloud Models for Revit, individual users can now store and share projects created in Revit and Revit LT as cloud models simply and easily in BIM 360.
A cloud model is a very useful data format optimized for cloud storage and syncing that –unlike a desktop Revit file (RVT)– is comprised of smaller pieces of data that can be much more efficiently transferred between the cloud and Revit. Other advantages of using cloud models include anytime, anywhere access to project data in the cloud and the ability to link directly into Revit.
It used to be that only workshared models could be stored in the Autodesk BIM 360 platform as cloud models. This limited use of the cloud model format and by definition excluded those using Revit LT which does not have the capacity for multi-user collaboration. However, there are so many benefits to using BIM 360 — a unified platform connecting project teams and data in real-time—for storage and collaboration that we wanted to extend access to more users.
Now with Cloud Models for Revit you can manage non-workshared models in the same way you work with workshared models. Individual users can store and share projects created in Revit and Revit LT as cloud models simply and easily in BIM 360.
Simply hit the “save as” button, choose “Cloud Model”, then select the “Project Files” folder where you would like to save the model in BIM 360 Document Management. Anytime you save, your changes are saved to the cloud. Whether workshared or non-workshared models, the workflow is the same and you get the speed and syncing benefits of working in the cloud.
Using cloud models for Revit, individual contributors or Revit LT users can link in a workshared model into a non-workshared model. This means it’s easier for individual contributors or small contractors to work with a larger project team using BIM 360, and the benefit to the team is that the individual can easily share their models with them. You can also link a non-workshared cloud model to another workshared or non-workshared cloud model.
Because a new version is created each time someone saves their changes to the cloud, you can easily view and restore to previous versions of a project. Sort by “version”, “time” or “by” to find the version you need and easily update.
Subscribers to BIM 360 Design can easily turn a non-workshared cloud model into a workshared cloud model with just one click. You can pass on your Revit work to another firm for them to further iterate on in BIM 360 Design. Storing your projects as cloud models is the entry point to a full range of tools and collaboration capabilities in BIM 360.
Cloud models are special for another reason – they can be automatically upgraded to later versions of Revit. Just one click and you avoid the pain of manual upgrades and can use the latest Revit features and enhancements as soon as they are available with existing projects. See how to get started.
To use cloud models in Revit or Revit LT, you need to be running 2019.2 – available to current subscribers — or later versions and have an entitlement to BIM 360 Document Management.
Learn more about how to get started using cloud models for Revit in this post by Autodesk Technical Specialist Stephan Gumpert.
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