Fabrication 2022.0.1 Update Released

Update: 2022.09.04

It’s recommended NOT to install this update for CAMduct or ESTmep. Installing the 2022.0.1 Update will prevent access to the Projects folder. CADmep does not appear to have issues with this update.

Thanks to Chris Nash of William R. Nash Company for reporting this issue on the XtraCAD.Com forums.

It’s been a long time, but Autodesk finally released an update to Autodesk Fabrication. 2022.0.1 Update was released recently and contains several fixes for 2022 versions of CADmep, CAMduct and ESTmep.

Install from the Autodesk Desktop App or download from your Autodesk Account portal (https://manage.autodesk.com)

Fabrication 2020.1 Update Released

Autodesk has released update 2020.1 for Autodesk Fabrication products CADmep, CAMduct and ESTmep. You can see the small token list of fixes here.

Really not much in the way of fixing the many legacy, multi-release defects that have been piling up. Still no word on the update to plug the security hole in Revit where you’re COST/LABOR data can be mined by others.

One thing to note about this release, it’s not an “Update” that patches your existing system. The Update requires a full install. That means that 2020 versions of CADmep, ESTmep, CAMduct as well as Tracker, CAMduct Components and Remote Entry need to be removed first.

I would NOT recommend installing the update from the Autodesk Desktop App. I’ve tested on multiple systems both personal and corporate and it gets hung indefinitely on the uninstall of the 2020 versions.

If you do want to install the update, I highly recommend uninstalling yourself before adding the 2020.1 versions. Even manual uninstalls of 2020 have been hit or miss. If they hang, they’re usually already uninstalled and using Task Manager to cancel the running MSIEXEC tasks is enough to finish the uninstalls. Best of luck!

Revit 2020 Fabrication Extension

For MEP fabricators using Revit, Autodesk has finally released the Fabrication Extension for Revit 2020. This extension allows you to Export and Import MAJ files from Revit. Imports have always been problematic and prone to issues but Exports typically work well.

You can download the extension 3 different ways…

1: Autodesk Desktop App

Likely the easiest way, check your Autodesk Desktop App for available updates and download/install from there.

2: Autodesk Accounts – Updates

The second easiest way is to log into your Autodesk Accounts portal and click the Product Updates button on the left. This lists all the available product updates associated with the products you have.

3: Product Download Page – Updates

The least easy way to get product updates is to do to the Revit product downloads and look at the Updates section. Takes a little longer to get here but all the updates associated with a single product can be found here.

Critical Update for Older Autodesk Products

If you’re using 2017 or older Autodesk products, your software may stop working on June 15th, 2019. Newer versions will continue to work but may have intermittent issues with any of their cloud related services. Exact services and product versions vary.

Many products and services use Transport Layer Security (TLS) 1.0/1.1. Due to known vulnerabilities, on June 15, 2019, Autodesk will be updating their systems to no longer support this protocol. This service is what’s used for Autodesk to determine your “Identity” when providing access to your products and services.

You can read more about the affected products and versions here. This article is specific to which older products will stop working completely. It does not cover newer products that have services which may stop working.

https://knowledge.autodesk.com/search-result/caas/sfdcarticles/sfdcarticles/Transport-Layer-Security-TLS-Updates-Required-to-Maintain-Software-Access.html

A fairly comprehensive description of the issue was also posted to the Autodesk forums. You can read it here…

https://forums.autodesk.com/t5/installation-licensing/transport-layer-security-updates-required-email-notifications/td-p/8798819

What You Really Need to Know

This issue isn’t nearly as bad as it seems. Based on Autodesk’s information you only need to be concerned if…

  • Login access to use your core product will be affected subject to the following
    • You are NOT using Perpetual Licenses
    • You are NOT using Network (FlexLM) Licenses
    • Your product IS using Single User Subscription Licensing
    • Your product IS listed in the Knowledge Base Article
  • Newer products (2018-2020) Not mentioned in the Autodesk articles are also affected subject to the following….
    • Ancillary related services and newer products have their own security updates
    • Access to core product is Not an issue
    • Ancillary cloud connected services May be affected such as…
      • Revit Cloud Worksharing
      • Personal Accelerator (PAC) for Revit Cloud Worksharing
      • Communicator
      • Energy Analysis
      • Dynamo Package Search/Upload
      • P&ID Modeler
    • Licensing type of product does NOT matter

Most products have updates available however there are a few that do not. Autodesk Fabrication products in version 2014 or 2015 do not have updates. So unless you’re using those version with a Single User Subscription, you don’t need to worry. If you are using a product that does not have an update, you will need to upgrade to continue working.

ATTN: Autodesk Fabrication Part Users – Revit 2019.2.1 Hotfix

For Autodesk Fabrication Part users, this is a Hotfix you’ll want to get applied. Since the first release of Fabrication Parts in 2016, there’s been ongoing issues with MEP Systems modeled with Fabrication Parts.

The issues is that to add/remove or update Fabrication services, you need to reload your configuration. This often would cause “disconnects” between parts. Often this would happen for no good reason or explanation as the parts involved may not have even had changes to them.

This has been a difficult issue for Autodesk to resolve because it’s been difficult to reproduce. Since the 2016 until now, Autodesk has slowly made the issue better but it’s still not eliminated. With this hotfix in 2019, Autodesk is taking another stab at it and hopefully it’ll be eliminate. IF not fixed once an for all, hopefully it’ll be another small incremental step better.

You can review the release notes for all Revit 2019 updates here. Look for the notes under 2019.2.1 Hotfix and you’ll see the following note…

“Resolved an issue that could cause MEP Fabrication elements to disconnect when reloading a Fabrication configuration.”

Downloading The Update

The Update is available from the Autodesk Desktop App provided it’s working for you. (Note: Mine seems to lockup or crash repeatedly since installing the Autodesk Desktop Connector. Uninstalling and reinstalling the Desktop App seems to only resolve the issues for a short while)

Alternatively you can download from the Autodesk Accounts portal if you have download permissions given to you from your contract administrator.