BIM 360 to Autodesk Construction Cloud: what happens to old project data

What is changing, and what should firms confirm first?#

Autodesk is moving customers from BIM 360 to Autodesk Construction Cloud, its newer platform built around Autodesk Docs as the shared document environment. Timing, migration tools and continued BIM 360 access can vary by account and contract, so the first job is to confirm what applies to yours.

Ask Autodesk or your reseller, in writing, which dates apply, which projects the migration path covers, whether closed or archived projects are included, how version stacks and markups transfer and how long BIM 360 stays accessible afterward. Treat anything not confirmed as something your firm must export itself.

Autodesk's past retirements show why waiting is risky. Its BIM 360 Plan FAQ says customers can no longer access BIM 360 Plan project data once their contract ends and advises exporting plans and tasks before the term ends. BIM 360 Team and A360 Team files were first moved to read-only access, with options to copy them to Autodesk Docs or download them, and access was removed after those products were fully retired at the end of 2023.

This is a records decision as much as an IT one. The BIM manager knows how projects are structured; the managing principal and whoever handles risk management know which records the firm may need long after a building is occupied.

What to check for each kind of project content#

Each kind of project content raises its own question in the move, and the answer decides whether it can migrate or should be archived. Use the table as a review sheet on a pilot project before committing the whole portfolio.

Keeping version history when you archive#

Version history survives an archive when it preserves what was issued, when and to whom, rather than every intermediate save. For most firms, the issued sets, addenda, bulletins, transmittals and the revision narratives that explain them are the history that matters in a dispute.

• 1Export each issued set as PDF, named with project number, set name and issue date.
• 2Keep native files for current and issued versions: RVT, DWG and an IFC export for long-term readability.
• 3Export transmittal and package logs showing recipients and dates.
• 4Export RFI, submittal and issue logs with full item reports and attachments.
• 5Write a manifest per project: what was exported, by whom, when and from which project.
• 6Store archives in firm-controlled storage with read-only access by role.

Using Data Connector for structured project logs#

Autodesk's Data Connector is the route for getting issues, RFIs and other project records out as structured tables rather than PDFs. It delivers CSV files for each table, downloadable one table at a time or as a zip, and extractions can be scheduled daily, weekly or monthly.

Two details shape the plan. A project administrator can extract data only for the single project they are in, while members with executive overview access, granted by an account administrator, can extract across the whole account; for a portfolio archive, ask for executive overview access. Extracted files can be downloaded for up to 30 days after extraction, so save every run to firm storage straight away.

Keep the CSV tables beside the PDF item reports. The tables preserve IDs, dates and status changes that let you link an RFI to its sheet revision; the PDFs preserve what reviewers actually saw.

Which projects to move and which to archive#

Projects in design, construction administration or closeout usually move to ACC, because teams still work in them. Older closed projects are usually better archived, which keeps the new environment clean and avoids spending migration effort on projects nobody opens.

Set the archive period by risk, not habit. Professional liability exposure, statutes of repose, client contract retention clauses and insurer guidance all bear on how long project records must stay retrievable, and they differ by state and project. Ask your insurer and counsel, then write the rule into the firm's records policy.

A dispute changes the default. When a closed project has an open claim, preserve it exactly as it stands and let counsel decide how it is copied, because a migration or a fresh export can alter dates and metadata that matter as evidence.

Who owns the project records you archive?#

Ownership of project records depends on the owner-architect or owner-engineer agreement, and it is often split. Agreements based on common industry forms typically address instruments of service, licenses to the client and record copies. AIA B101, for instance, provides for the owner to pay the architect a licensing fee for continued use of the instruments of service after certain terminations, and the short-form B105-2017 grants the owner a limited license to use them only as a reference for maintaining, altering and adding to the project. Custom client agreements can go further and claim deliverables outright.

Internal records such as review comments, design team discussions and staffing notes are usually the firm's own, while drawings and models issued to the client may be licensed to or owned by the client. Consultants' files in a shared project belong to the consultants. Sort the archive along those lines so later reuse decisions are easier.

Illustrative: an engineering firm splits its BIM 360 portfolio#

Illustrative: a fictional structural and MEP engineering firm runs most of its projects in BIM 360. Planning the move to ACC, the BIM manager sorts every project into active, in closeout or closed.

Active and closeout projects migrate after a pilot confirms folder structure and version stacks. Closed projects are archived: issued sets as PDF, native models with IFC exports, RFI and submittal logs with responses, issue logs with photos and transmittal records, each with a manifest. Client deliverables and internal review records go into separate folders.

Later, a building owner raises a question about a connection detail on a closed project. The firm finds the RFI, the response, its date and the sheet revision in its own archive without reopening BIM 360.

Why RFI and review history deserves care#

RFI and review history records how engineers and architects reason through problems: the question from the field, the options considered, the response and its effect on the drawings. That sequence protects the firm in disputes, and it is the kind of professional workflow AI developers study when building tools for design and construction.

Any reuse outside the firm starts with client contracts and confidentiality. Records that belong to clients, identify their buildings or carry security-sensitive details are carved out before any assessment.

SourceX begins with a metadata-only fit check that describes which project records exist, how many years they cover and how RFIs, submittals and issues link to drawings and outcomes. No files leave the firm at that stage.

If a package proceeds, the SourceX five-step transaction applies: Supply, Rights, Preparation, Approval and Delivery. The Rights step separates firm-owned records from client deliverables, Preparation removes client, site and personal details, and the firm approves every release.