Do you get the error “File you are trying to open has failed to lock automatically” when opening a Revit file? Then you are not alone. The problem is related to one of the latest updates for the Autodesk Desktop Connector, to be specific, version 16.0.0.1902.
The Autodesk Desktop Connector is used for file management and sharing from the cloud storage. It is used in combination with BIM 360 or Autodesk Construction Cloud (ACC).
In this article, we are going to take a look at how to fix the file that failed to lock automatically in the Desktop Connector error.
The problem
When you have installed or updated the Autodesk Desktop Connector to version 16.0.0.1902 from November 30th of 2022, and open a Revit file with linked files from the cloud (BIM 360/ ACC), you probably will see an error that says: “File you are trying to open has failed to lock automatically“.
Solutions
The problem is caused by the Automatic File Locking mechanism. When have linked files in your existing model through the Autodesk Desktop Connector then the Automatic File Locking is unable to lock the files.
Another possible cause of the issue is incorrect file permissions. You need to have edit permission on the linked files to be able to lock them.
To avoid or resolve the issue, there are three options:
- Link Cloud Models Through External Resources.
- Adjust Permissions Settings for users.
- Install the Previous Version of the Autodesk Desktop Connector.
Method 1: Link via External Resources
Link the Cloud models from BIM 360 / ACC through the External Resources folder.
- Open the Insert tab
- Click on Link Revit > Import/Link RVT window will open
- Click on External Resources on the left side
- Search for your Revit file inside the folder of Project Files > Click on the file
- Click on Open
Method 2: Adjust Permissions Settings
Change the permissions in the folder for the user in question. You can do this on the docs.b360.autodesk.com or acc.autodesk.com website. The user should at least have Edit permission.
- Go to the designated folder with Revit files and click on the three dots
- Click on Permissions settings
- Select Edit Permission from the drop-down menu
Method 3: Install the Previous Version
Autodesk will always keep the previous releases of the Desktop Connector available for downloading. In order to install a previous version, keep in mind to thoroughly uninstall the current Desktop Connector version before installing any previous version. Note that this is a short-term solution and it’s recommended to try the other methods before resorting to this.
Wrapping Up
When using the Autodesk Desktop Connector 16.0.0.1902, users can get an error when opening Revit files with linked files from the Cloud service (BIM 360 / ACC). The error message is “File you are trying to open has failed to lock automatically”. There are three possible solutions you can try to avoid or resolve the problem.
I hope this article helped you to understand the error, and how to avoid or resolve this. If you have any questions, just drop a comment below.
