"Is it Me, or is the Cloud Down?"

Did you know there are public websites where you can check the status of the Autodesk cloud service you are trying to use?

Bookmark these!

• https://health.autodesk.com/ is a site that reports the status of many of the most highly used Autodesk 360 products. You can sign up for status change alerts for your favorite services. 

• http://statusdashboard.cloud.autodesk.com/status/status-autodesk-cloud-prod.html If you use Green Building Studio, accounts.autodesk.com or cloud rendering, this address will be the place you go to check server status. 

If you are wondering why Infraworks 360 or ReCap 360 are not in the list here's why: Infraworks and Recap use a mix of the services listed on those pages to do it's thing. Signing in and getting your entitlements is done by the Identity and Accounts server, Oxygen (that's true of all of the web services that require sign in). If you run a profile optimization in Infraworks or create a 3D photo model in Recap, the computations are performed by a different server. Your online models are stored on another server (check Nitrogen if you are having trouble accessing online models).

Knock on wood, unplanned service outages are pretty rare. If everything looks good in the above web pages, the next step is to look at your connectivity to the outside world. 

How to Make Your Autodesk Deployments Portable

Here is a case I had WAY too much fun with. A CAD manager at one of my customers wanted to copy deployment packages to various local offices. The problem with that is the servers have different names so moving a deployment renders it useless unless you know which files to tweak.

 If one were to move a deployment image there are a few files that hang onto the path location.

1. The target in the properties main shortcut used to launch the installer. (the shortcut circled above)
2. Paths inside the ini file (in this example it will be in the img folder and called Infraworks_360_16.2.ini)
3. Paths to modify the deployment. This is optional, but handy to have ready to go.

In this example I'm showing an Infraworks 360 deployment. However, this technique will work with most Autodesk product deployments.

• So, instead of using the shortcut to launch the deployment, use a batch file. The batch file is short, but sweet and looks like this:

%~dp0Img\Setup.exe /W /q /I Img\Infraworks_360_16.2.ini /language en-us

%~dp0 means "use the current folder"
img is the next folder to look in. Note that there is no space between the %~dp0 and the Img
Setup.exe is the installation executable
/w means wait for any other installers to finish
/q means quiet (no dialog boxes except for a progress bar)
/I means install

• Once you have the batch file, you can delete the original shortcut if you wish.

• The last required step is to modify the ini file. Go to the IMG folder and edit the ini file with your deployment name (in my example Infraworks_360_16.2.ini ).
• Scroll down to the Global MSI Properties Area
• Remove the path to the Admin Image. You can delete this because it is only used when creating new deployments.
• Change the path to the Network log to %tmp%

• Save the ini file and that's it. 

If you want, you can also create a batch file to replace the Create & Modify a deployment shortcut too. The new deployment you create will be created in the same location as the one you are working with.

If you are a real stickler, you can use the same techniques to modify the path to the update tools in the ApplyUpdates folder. I find it much easier to manually run AdAppMgr.exe from ..\IMG\Setup\AdAppMgr\ but this is what it would look like if you want to make a batch file:

Because I kept all of the install tools in their default directories, I needed to use %~dp0..\..\ to tell the batch  file to look 2 directories up.

At this point you can move the deployment package to any server or USB drive without If you try this, I'd love to hear your feedback on how it worked for you. 

Special thanks to Richard H. for his ideas on doing this. 

Dispatch from Support: Does Infraworks 360 Account for the Curvature of the Earth?

Infraworks does take into account the curvature of the earth, BUT it does not compensate for that when importing a large FBX or other 3D models. For example, I had a support case for a user that had a single FBX that contained an entire city's worth of buildings. He noticed that buildings far from the basepoint appeared to "float." It turned out that the ground had curvature but the 3D model did not. The workaround is to break up the 3D models into multiple pieces to avoid running into the curvature of the earth. 

engineering would be so much easier with a flat earth

The curvature of the earth also impacts Infraworks users if you are working in a custom coordinate system with Civil 3D. If you are used to Civil 3D, you may know that the curvature of the earth is completely ignored in any AutoCAD based product. If you are using an out-of-the-box, real-life coordinate system, the ellipsoid is taken into account when transferring data to Infraworks (e.g. adjustment to work with the curvature of the earth happens automatically). However, if you are working in a custom coordinate system in Civil 3D and are pushing it out to Infraworks there is no ellipsoid to adjust to, therefore you may see coordinate weirdness in large models.  

Custom coordinate systems make my brain hurt. I recommend avoiding them altogether, especially if you are using Infraworks. This goes double for large models, where you will see the effects of a curved Infraworks world.

Tschüss!

Where the [BLEEP] Did My Download Options Go?!

Back in March, Autodesk rolled out it's new subscription management site manage.autodesk.com. From a user interface perspective, it is a much more logical layout and you can actually search for products now.

There are many improvements, but one of the things that annoys the ever-lovin' stuffin' outta me is that the download options are more difficult to find for some products. The website encourages people to use the "Install Now" feature for many products.

I'm not a fan of the "Install Now" option for several reasons. When using this option, the install downloads files as it goes. For products with smaller installation media, that's not a problem, but some products are kinda big. The Install Now option requires you to be connected to the internet for the duration of the install and stay logged into your Autodesk account. If something fails or your connection times out, you need to start over.

The best way to download Autodesk products is with the Download Now tool. You can also use the Browser Download, which uses your web browser's download manager rather than the Akamai one (Akamai is the third party web delivery service that manages Autodesk downloads). Both of these options pull the entire installation package to your hard drive.

For some products, you can find the additional download options in the More Options menu.

However, many products don't have those options. Grr. To find them, you have to dig a little deeper.

Scroll alllllllll the way to the bottom of your products listing. You will see a button that says Download Products.

This will bring you to an interface that looks more like the old subscription site. From here, you will be able to find the Download Now or Browser Download option for your product.

More tips for downloading your product install files:

•  Make sure you get all pieces. (Turn off your web browser’s pop-up blocker temporarily to ensure you download all the files). 
• Pay attention to the name of the file. If you see that the name of the exe ends with 001_003, that means your are looking at one of three separate downloads needed.
• If you grabbed the correct files, you will see “dlm” as part of the name. That stands for download manager.  You will see "dlm" in both the Download Now and Browser Download obtained files. If you wee "wi" in the file name, that means you have the web installer which contains a portion of the files you need. If you try to run the Setup.exe from a "wi" folder, you will receive a Communication Failure message. 
  
• Save all the needed files to a directory on your hard drive. These are the files that will be extracted and used to start the deployment. (In the “old days” these would have come on a CD).
• After all pieces are downloaded using Download Now option, the exe will try to self-extract. Your computer’s settings may prevent EXEs from automatically running, in which case you will need to browse to the folder where you saved it and double click. If you used Browser Download, you always need to double-click the exe to get the extraction started.

Have fun downloading!

Etcetera (Totally Random, and Maybe a Little Icky)

This crazy poem popped into my head last night. I hadn't thought of it in YEARS, but the following is a poem that I learned in my college wastewater treatment plant design class. At the time I remember thinking, "Like, oh.mah, gawd. So gross!"

Milorganite is a commercial product sold by the Milwaukee sewerage district (MMSD). It is the concentrated, heat-sterilized organic material left over after the wastewater sludge removal process (eg dried poop). Milorganite is short for "Milwaukee organic nitrogen" You can pick a 36lb bag up at your local garden store for about $15. MMSD essentially breaks even on it after the cost of making it minus the cost of not sending the sludge to a landfill.

Milwaukee is a land of cheer,
German cooking, ale and beer;
They eat and drink from morn' 'til night,
And then they make Milorganite! 

Their ball team is quite their pride,
It's fame has traveled far and wide.
The grandstand has a place in sight
Where they can  go and make Milorganite! 

After the game they go to dinner,
It does not matter whose the winner;
And after sleeping through the night,
Start making more Milorganite!

I state without equivocation,
This chore has keen cooperation;
It's manufacture is an art,
Where everybody does his part. 

Old men, young men, perfumed ladies,
Boys and girls and even babies;
Grunt and strain and do what's right,
To pile up more Milorganite! 

                                          -Author unknown (NOT me)

A poem. Now we're all culture-ified! 

2016 Install Workaround: Navisworks Updates Won't Append to Network Deployment

In most Autodesk products, the page where you can choose to download a service pack or add an MSI has been replaced by Autodesk Application Manager (AAM).


For Navisworks 2016 (all flavors: Manage, Freedom and Simulate) the AAM doesn't pick up the updates for some reason. You'll see an empty screen that reads, "Your Autodesk Software is completely up to date - there are no updates needed."

This is a known issue and luckily there is a simple work-around.

When you create a deployment, you will see an Img folder with the reset of the deployment stuff. Inside the Img folder you will see an INI file who's name matches the deployment name. For example, if I create a deployment called Navis_Man2016, there will be a corresponding file called Navis_Man2016.ini.

Open this file in Notepad. In this file locate the section:

#==================== Autodesk Navisworks NW

[NW]
PLATFORM=x64

At the end of this section (before the language pack area), add the following line:
UPI=NAVMAN&2016&ENU64&13.0.1237.08

Believe it or not, that's it. After making that change to the INI, your deployment will recognize what version it is, therefore it knows what updates to grab from the internet.

For Navisworks Freedom 2016 and Navisworks Simulate 2016, you will do a very similar thing.

Find the sections:

#==================== Autodesk Navisworks Freedom

[FREEDOM]PLATFORM=x64

and add:

UPI=NAVFREE&2016&ENU64&13.0.1237.08 

For Simulate find:

#==================== Autodesk Navisworks Simulate

[FREEDOM]PLATFORM=x64

and add:

UPI=NAVSIM&2016&ENU64&13.0.1237.08

Such a small line to fix such an annoying issue. 

Enjoy. 

My Love Affair with Revo Uninstaller

Installing software on Windows is like ripping open a feather pillow in a wind tunnel. You can tell where many of the files go, but there are hundreds of registry entries, user-specific files and other files that seem to get stuck in the unseen corners of your computer.

A common solution to Autodesk software problems is to "uninstall and reinstall". Running the traditional Windows uninstaller from Control Panel > Add/Remove Programs really only uninstalls a small portion of the product. As a support person, we often tell people to do a "complete" uninstall. I find that people either, 1) Don't know what I mean exactly, or 2) Lie about it, thinking I'm just making them do extra steps to be sadistic.

A true, complete uninstall involves:

1. Running the uninstaller.
2. Manually deleting the following 
   • C:\Program Files\Autodesk\Autodesk AutoCAD Civil 3D 2014\
   • C:\ProgramData\Autodesk\C3D 2014
• C:\Program Files (x86)\Autodesk AutoCAD Civil 3D 2014
• C:\Users\[user login]\AppData\Roaming\Autodesk\C3D 2014
• C:\Users\[user login]\Appdata\Local\Autodesk\C3D 2014
3. Go to REGEDIT.exe
• Verify that the following keys were removed:
• HKEY_CURRENT_USER\Software\Autodesk\AutoCAD\R1#.#\ACAD-D000:409\
• HKEY_LOCAL_MACHINE\SOFTWARE\Autodesk\AutoCAD\R1#.#\ACAD-D000:409\
• (If the uninstall completed successfully, these should already be gone - but I always like to check *just* in case.)
4. Clear the contents of the %temp% directory.

Even following those steps may not be enough. If you search your registry for the product you uninstalled, there are still many cling-ons. Additionally, doing all those steps is a huge PIA. That is where Revo Uninstaller Pro comes in. 

Revo is worth the license fee of $30-$70 (depending on what version and how many licenses you buy) because it cleans all the leftover files and registry entries automatically. Even if the program does not appear in Add/Remove programs, Revo Uninstaller will find it. It's like a high-colonic for your registry. 

A feature I use frequently is the Quick Uninstall tool. This allows you to pick a bunch of programs at once and uninstall them as a batch.

You do need to stay close by to keep hitting continue, however. It does not delete or uninstall anything without verifying twice. 

There are three modes; Safe, Moderate and Advanced. I recommend sticking with Moderate. With Autodesk products, Revo will delete the Autodesk Shared stuff if you set this to Advanced, and you don't want that; it will break other products you have installed alongside the one you want to obliterate. 

The best part comes when it gathers leftover registry entries, files and folders. It is so satisfying to select all those checkboxes and click DELETE!

There isn't anything that Revo does that a half-way decent IT person couldn't do manually (or script out if they are 3/4 decent), however it is a lovely convenience. 

For those of you in large organizations that want to uninstall stuff using SCCM or similar, Revo has command line support. 

My $0.02. I'm not getting any kickbacks from the Revo people for writing all this (although if you happen to work at Revo and want to pat me on the head for endorsing your product, I'd love a free copy of the Revo Uninstaller Pro Portable!), I genuinely like the tool and have used it for years.