Sync to Autodesk 360

Autodesk® 360 is a web-based data management system for sharing simulation results, documents, and data. It enables access to simulation data anytime, anywhere. Unlike Vault, which is designed for internal data management, Autodesk 360 enables access from anywhere.

Simulation CFD 2014 introduces a direct connection to Autodesk 360. The Autodesk 360 tools in Simulation CFD let you tailor how data is uploaded to Autodesk 360 to suit your needs and the needs of your organization.

• You can manually upload the design study as a share file. This is useful for archiving the design study as well as for sharing with others.
• You can manually save images of simulation results. This is useful for collaborating and sharing data with others in your product development process or even interested parties outside of your organization.
• You can automatically save your simulation data to Autodesk 360. This option is called "Automatic Sync Settings" because it synchronizes every simulation you run to Autodesk 360. This is a powerful way to promote broad collaboration and automatically gain access to your results anytime, anywhere.

To access these tools, click the Autodesk 360 tab.

All Simulation CFD users on current Subscription and Simulation CFD 360 users are entitled to an Autodesk 360 account. This account entitles you to 25 GB of free storage space. The power of Autodesk 360, however, is its accessibility. When you post results images to Autodesk 360, you can access them later from any device that has Internet access, even your Mobile devices! If you enable automatic upload of results images, you can check your results remotely as soon as the simulation finishes, without even opening the design study.

The Autodesk 360 connection is included in both the desktop and 360 versions of Simulation CFD. You can sign in to Autodesk 360 using the login prompt in the upper right corner of the Simulation CFD user interface.

Manually sync Simulation Data

You can use the commands in the Autodesk 360 > File panel to sync data manually to Autodesk 360. When you invoke these commands, Simulation CFD first saves the data files to your local workspace folder. Next, Simulation CFD syncs the files to the Libraries\Simulation CFD folder of your Autodesk 360 account.

Save Share File

Archive your simulations to Autodesk 360 with Save Share File. This service is useful for collaboration as well as for data protection, especially if you do not have access to a Vault. When you update a share file that has already been saved, Autodesk 360 stores the update as a new version. Versioning the file instead of overwriting the previous version or incrementing the file name improves accessibility to previous design study versions.

When you click Save Share File, Simulation CFD compresses the design study folder structure before checking it in. You can select from several options to define how much of the design study is saved to Autodesk 360. To archive the entire design study, use the option called Everything.

Save Static Image

To save the current view to your Autodesk 360 account, click Save Static Image. This tool is a great way to share your results data with others in your team. Additionally, when you save results images to Autodesk 360, you can view them remotely, even from a mobile device with Internet access.

There are several available formats including .jpg , .bmp , and .png .

Save Dynamic Image

Dynamic Images are a powerful way to examine and share results data. Unlike static images, you can navigate Dynamic Images to get a complete view of the model. Like static images, dynamic images are great for collaboration and for viewing results remotely.

To view dynamic images from Autodesk 360, you do not need to download and install any additional software.

Manage the local workspace and Autodesk 360 Folders

Before syncing data to Autodesk 360 (the cloud), Simulation CFD copies the data to a local cache folder on your computer. The folder and subfolder structures are created automatically, and mimic the folder structure in your Autodesk 360 Documents folder. To manage your local cache and Autodesk 360 folders, use these commands.

Open Folder

Open your local sync cache folder. Simulation CFD automatically syncs the contents of this folder to your Autodesk 360 folder.

Launch Web

Open your Autodesk 360\All Documents\Libraries\Simulation CFD\ folder.

Automatically Sync Simulation Data

To sync to Autodesk 360 automatically, click Simulation Sync Settings from the Autodesk 360 ribbon. Select the items that you want to sync automatically from the Simulation Sync Settings dialog box:

• To change the location of file storage within your Autodesk 360 account, specify a different A360 Path location.
• Autodesk 360 syncs the Summary and Status files generated at the conclusion of the simulation. These files contain information about the model, results, and the calculation.
• If you select Static image or Dynamic image, Simulation CFD captures and syncs the model view at the conclusion of the simulation. This automatic syncing is convenient for examining results remotely: after you start the simulation, define the view of interest using the Results tools. Later, when the simulation completes, Simulation CFD captures and syncs an image using your view. You can then view this image and check your results from any Internet-enabled device, even if you are not near simulation computer.
• If you select Support share file, Simulation CFD saves and syncs the Support file version of the share. The Support file is the smallest type of share file, and contains the simulation settings, but not the mesh or results. To sync a complete share file, click File > Save Share File from the Autodesk 360 tab.

Simulation CFD syncs the selected files at the end of each simulation. If you continue a simulation or run it multiple times, the data is synced each time the simulation finishes. Instead of overwriting data from the previous simulations, Autodesk 360 creates a unique version for each execution. Versioning provides access to all of your simulation data, and does not count against your Autodesk 360 data quota.