Export to Excel with Model Element Data

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Description

This sample application demonstrates how to extract metadata of model on your Autodesk360, BIM360 or Autodesk Construction Cloud(ACC) account, into an excel spreadsheet. The sample code demonstates 3-legged OAuth, a simple viewer extension and code to handle meta-data and format it into an excel spreadsheet file.

In the project tree of this sample, Autodesk360, BIM360 and ACC project are listed with different icons.

Live version

https://forge-exportxls.autodesk.io

Video: Youtube

Setup

For using this sample, you need to log into your Autodesk developer account. Visit the Forge Developer Portal and sign up for an account, then create an app. When asked for the 'callback URL' in your new app, use http://localhost:3000/api/forge/callback/oauth. Finally take note of the Client ID and Client Secret.

Run locally

Install NodeJS.

Clone this project or download it. It's recommended to install GitHub desktop. To clone it via command line, use the following (Terminal on MacOSX/Linux, Git Shell on Windows):

git clone https://github.com/Autodesk-Forge/forge-exportxls

To run it, install the required packages, set the enviroment variables with your client ID & secret and finally start it. Via command line, navigate to the folder where this repository was cloned and use the following:

Mac OSX/Linux (Terminal)

npm install
export FORGE_CLIENT_ID=<<YOUR CLIENT ID FROM FORGE DEVELOPER PORTAL>>
export FORGE_CLIENT_SECRET=<<YOUR FORGE CLIENT SECRET>>
npm run dev

Windows (use Node.js command line from Start menu)

npm install
set FORGE_CLIENT_ID=<<YOUR CLIENT ID FROM FORGE DEVELOPER PORTAL>>
set FORGE_CLIENT_SECRET=<<YOUR FORGE CLIENT SECRET>>
npm run dev

Open the browser: http://localhost:3000.

Important: do not use npm start locally, this is intended for PRODUCTION only with HTTPS (SSL) secure cookies.

Deploy on Heroku

To deploy this application to Heroku, the Callback URL & redirect_uri must use your .herokuapp.com address. After clicking on the button below, at the Heroku Create New App page, set your Client ID & Secret and the correct callback URL.

Watch this video on how deploy this sample to Heroku.

Packages used

All Autodesk Forge NPM packages are included by default, see complete list of what's available at NPM website. OAuth, Model Derivative and OSS are used. Some other non-Autodesk packaged are used, including express and its session/cookie middlewares (express-session and cookie-parser) for user session handling. The front-end uses bootsrap and jquery.

Tips & tricks

For local development/testing, consider use nodemon package, which auto restart your node application after any modification on your code. To install it, use:

sudo npm install -g nodemon

Then, instead of npm run dev, use the following:

npm run nodemon

Which executes nodemon server.js --ignore www/, where the --ignore parameter indicates that the app should not restart if files under www folder are modified.

Troubleshooting

getProperties does not return data: In default, Get Properties endpoint can only respond with data if the resource < 20M. A query param forceget forces get the large resource even if it exceeded the expected maximum length (20 MB).
Cannot see my BIM 360 or ACC projects: Make sure to provision the Forge App Client ID within the BIM 360 or ACC Account, learn more here. This requires the Account Admin permission.
Cannot load Autodesk360 model: In Autodesk360, the model is not translated by default until the end user loads the model one time in Autodesk360, or the developer posts job to translate.
error setting certificate verify locations error: may happen on Windows, use the following: git config --global http.sslverify "false"

Blogs

License

This sample is licensed under the terms of the MIT License. Please see the LICENSE file for full details.

Written by

Developer Advocate and Support, Autodesk

Autodesk-Forge/bim360appstore-model.derivative-nodejs-xls.exporter