Autodesk Automation API guide: Run 3ds Max and Revit jobs in the cloud

Autodesk Automation API lets you run repetitive or high-volume CAD tasks in the cloud through Autodesk Platform Services (APS). Autodesk’s Version 3 developer documentation covers the AutoCAD, 3ds Max, Inventor, Revit, and Fusion engines. For architecture, interior design, and visualization teams, this approach makes it possible to submit suitable tasks that would otherwise be carried out individually on a desktop, using scripts and plugins. The steps below are based on the official documentation for 3ds Max and Revit.

What can you use automation for?

Automation API runs automated jobs in the cloud using the core APIs of supported CAD engines. Autodesk positions it for tasks that are repeated frequently, need to be performed at scale, or require substantial processing power. How a job is executed through the API depends on the software used; each engine has its own development environment and tools.

The 3ds Max engine can be used with MAXScript, Python, and plugins. The documentation lists file import and export, running scripts, modifying files, rendering, and simulation. Existing scripts and plugins can also be run in cloud-based jobs through 3ds Max Batch. For Revit, the cloud-based headless engine is offered for creating, reviewing, and modifying RVT, RTE, and RFA data. Preparing family content, analyzing model data, generating reports, and automating documentation are among the examples in the documentation.

These capabilities don’t amount to a ready-made architectural automation template. To run a specific office workflow through the API, you need to prepare the business logic, the required script or plugin, and the input and output setup.

Steps to submit a 3ds Max job to the cloud

The “Execute a 3ds Max MaxScript” walkthrough in Autodesk’s Version 3 documentation consists of six main steps. Together, they show the general sequence from preparing a job to retrieving its results:

1. Get an access token. This step is required to authenticate API operations. Completing it first allows subsequent requests to be sent to the service.

2. Create a nickname. This step in the walkthrough defines a name to use in subsequent operations. The documentation lists creating a nickname as a separate task in the workflow.

3. Publish an activity. Make the definition of the operation to be run available to the service. This step is part of the process for specifying which automation activity will execute the job.

4. Prepare cloud storage. Plan the transfer of the files needed for the job and its results at this stage. Having inputs and outputs ready helps ensure the submitted job runs with the intended files.

5. Submit a WorkItem. Send the prepared job to the service. This submits the specified automation task for execution.

6. Download the results. Once the job is complete, retrieve its outputs and use them in the next project step.

Autodesk says that, in addition to MAXScript and Python, custom C++, MAXScript, or Python plugins can be uploaded and used with 3ds Max. Plugins can implement logic that connects to different parts of 3ds Max. However, you shouldn’t assume that every plugin that works in a desktop environment will also run without issues in the cloud engine. The documentation emphasizes that each engine has its own development environment, so plugins and file formats need to be validated in the target workflow.

How is the Revit workflow different?

The Revit walkthrough starts with converting a Revit add-in. The steps that follow are getting an access token, creating a nickname, uploading an AppBundle, publishing an activity, preparing cloud storage, submitting a WorkItem, and downloading the result. The flow follows a similar general logic to the 3ds Max MaxScript walkthrough, but includes Revit-specific add-in and data processes.

Revit’s cloud-based headless engine allows you to work with the Revit DB API without installing the desktop software. Autodesk’s documentation lists creating and modifying models, updating existing models to meet company standards, reviewing data, generating reports automatically, and creating documentation as use cases. For getting started, Autodesk recommends the “Execute a Revit add-in” walkthrough, followed by the Count/Delete Revit elements code sample.

For both applications, it’s useful to first define the task to automate: specify which file will be processed, which script or plugin will be used, and what output is expected. This preparation makes the steps of submitting the job to the service and checking its results easier to understand.

What should architecture and visualization teams consider?

If an office wants to automate, for example, repetitive file operations or report generation from model data, it should first define its existing workflow. Then it can run a small-scale test by following the official walkthrough for the relevant engine. The 3ds Max MaxScript walkthrough and the Revit add-in walkthrough are good starting points. The workflow should also be tested with the office’s own files and plugins.

Submitting jobs to the cloud offers an option for reducing reliance on a local computer’s processing power and network bandwidth; Autodesk describes this approach as a way to run jobs at a larger scale. However, the sources don’t provide hardware requirements, API usage pricing, or the time needed to complete a specific job. A pricing link is available, but since no amount is specified, costs should be calculated separately using official pricing information.

Common mistakes

• Assuming plugin compatibility: Don’t use a desktop plugin in a production job before testing it in the cloud engine.

• Failing to define inputs and outputs: Before submitting a WorkItem, specify which files will be processed and what results are expected.

• Confusing the software workflows: The documented steps differ for Revit and 3ds Max; follow the guide for the relevant engine.

• Guessing the price or hardware requirements: The source documentation doesn’t specify a particular price or hardware requirement; check the latest official information before making a decision.

Automation API provides a development foundation for teams looking to scale repetitive tasks in the cloud. The safest way to get started is to select a single task, follow the official walkthrough for the relevant engine, and expand the scope gradually after checking the results.