How to BULK EXPORT Your Fusion 360 Files

Fusion 360 does not (currently) have a native way to export all your files at once. Of course, you could manually export each file – but that’s unrealistic!

Fortunately, 3rd-party software developers have created add-ins and scripts to extend Fusion 360’s functionality.

There are two add-ins and one script that is available to help automate the bulk export process. Below you’ll find links to the add-ins, along with instructions for installation and troubleshooting.

• Add-ins for Exporting Fusion 360 Files
• Steps to Install the Project Archiver Add-in
• Step by Step Video Tutorial
• Troubleshooting Project Archiver Errors
• Video Transcript

Add-ins for Exporting Fusion 360 Files

I found the following two add-ins and one script that automate exporting all your Fusion 360 files. I’ve tested all three and numbered them in order of how well they worked for me. Try another one if you find one doesn’t work with your files.

Remember, these are add-ins and you may experience unique bugs based on your file names, types, structure, or other variances.

1. Project Archiver (GitHub) – Add-in
2. Fusion 360 Total Exporter (GitHub) – Add-in
3. Fusion 360 Bulk Exporter (GitHub) – Script

Steps to Install the Project Archiver Add-in

IMPORTANT: The Project Archiver download has an extra folder that prevents the add-in from working. To fix this you will have to navigate to the “apper” folder. You will notice the folder contains a second “apper” folder that includes the files. You will need to delete the top-level apper folder. There should only be one, which includes all of the source files, and it needs to be placed at the same level as the other folders.

Troubleshooting Project Archiver Errors

Add-Ins and Scripts are often developed by 3rd-party software developers. (Only a few are actually developed and maintained by Autodesk). This means they are not thoroughly vetted or tested across all operating systems and use cases.

On occasion, you may run into an error message when trying to export your files. Sometimes this results in cryptic error messages full of code snippets or developer lingo.

Below you’ll find a few things to look out for when using the Project Archiver add-in. If you find any additional errors – and their meaning behind them – then please comment them on this page. I’ll update the list accordingly.

• Add-In Won’t Run – If you get an error message immediately after clicking “Run” then it’s likely your file structure. First, make sure all the add-in files are in the correct location (Step 2 above). Second, make sure there are not any unnecessary folders or files within the add-in source folder.
• Weird File Names – Make sure your file names do not include any slashes or unique characters, especially those special characters that programs don’t like [# $ % & ‘ ( ) * + , – . / : ; < = > ? @ [ ] ^ ` { | } ~]
• Delete Empty Folders/Files – If your project has any empty folders or files then you’ll want to delete them before running the add-in. The add-in cannot export something that does not exist. Instead, it will lock up the add-in and you’ll have to run it again.
• STL/Mesh Bodies – Any mesh bodies (STL or OBJ) cannot be exported as a STEP file. You may need to manually export any files that contain mesh bodies.

Did this Save You Time?

Step by Step Video Tutorial

Video Transcript

Are you wondering how to bulk export all your Fusion 360 files? There’s currently not a native way to do it, but I found something that will automate the process and I think you’ll like it.

Today, if you want to export a Fusion 360 file from within Fusion 360, the only option is to have the file open, go to the File dropdown > Export > and then select the file type and location.

There’s no native way to export entire projects or folders. As you can imagine, this would be quite an inconvenience to do for every single file.

However, I found a great add-in that automates the process. There are actually 3 add-ins available that all try to do similar things.

I’ll link to all three of them, but I’m going to walk you through one called Project Archiver, which is the one I’ve had the most success with.

I’ve placed a link in the video description for this tutorials resource page, where I’ve included the links and instructions on how to get the add-ins from Github.

Once you have the add-in files downloaded, you’ll need to head to the Tools tab, followed by the “Scripts and Add-ins Feature”. You can also hit the keyboard shortcut SHIFT + S.

The one I’m using is an Add-in and not a script, so we’ll also need to switch to the add-in tab.

From here, we can select the plus symbol to add it. Simply select the source folder on your local machine, followed by the “Open” button.

The Project-Archiver will then appear in the list. We simply need to select the name and hit the Run button.

Once that add-in is officially running, we’ll be presented with the Project Archiver Tab, up here in the toolbar.

This add-in differs from some of the other export add-ins because it works by the active project in your data panel. The other add-ins that I’ve included on the resource page all try to do every single file regardless of their location in the data panel. I found that often caused Fusion or the computer to lock up, or the add-in runs into an error that stops it from working. The downside is that you then have to figure out what caused the error and run the whole export again.

For this add-in, we simply need to open the data panel and double-click to select one of the projects. Doing it by project means you’ll have to run the add-in a few different times, but if you run into any errors you won’t have to worry about your successful exports. It also makes it easier to figure out which file is causing the error, should you run into any problems.

Once you choose your project, simply select the “Export Active Project” button in the toolbar.

Within the dialog, we can first determine where we want the files to go. This will default to a ProjectArchiver folder. However, we can change this to our desktop or downloads folder.

Second, you’ll find that we can choose which file types to download. Of course, you’re likely looking to get STEP files for their wide acceptance with other CAD programs. I’d also recommend checking STL and the native Fusion 360 file, which are both nice to have as backups. The IPT file is an Autodesk Inventor file should also be considered, as you can always convert inventor files to step files as a last resort.

This add-in also allows us to define the document name from one of three options. We can use the default document name, which is the file name…or we can use the Description, or we can use the Part number. Both of these will be pulled from the Properties dialog of your top-level component.

“Preserve Folder Structures” will export the files in addition to the folders that you have within your project. However, if we leave this unchecked then all the files will be placed in a single folder.

Last but not least, if we check the versions option it will output the latest version number along with your chosen file name.

It’s also important to note that this add-in is going to export the latest version of each file, it will not export every single file version. If for some reason you want specific versions of a file, then you’ll need to manually export them or promote them to the latest version and run the add-in a second time.

We can then click OK and the add-in will automatically open all the associated files within the active project… and it will export each of the selected file types to your chosen location.

This may take several minutes depending on how many files you have within a given project.

As you can see, this exported the files to my Desktop, including the folders, names, and all the file types that I selected.

Lastly, it’s important to note that this is an add-in, so you may run into bugs or cryptic error messages.

I want to share two common things that are likely to cause errors. First, make sure that none of your file names include slashes or unique characters. This likely conflicts with the add-in code, which causes the add-in to stop working.

Second, if you have any empty files or even empty folders within a project, then it’s going to cause an error as it cannot successfully export something that does not exist.

I recommend taking a minute or two to browse your project beforehand, and delete any empty files or folders. Change any file names if you need to, and you’ll have greater success in exporting every file in one pass.

Oh, and one last thing. I know that many of you are upset about the recent license changes. I have my own mixed feelings and opinions, but I want to take a moment to clarify a few things. First, I am not paid by Autodesk, nor will I accept any payment or form of compensation to influence my opinions. The reason I started this channel was to help democratize CAD education to make it more accessible to anyone that wants to learn.

With that in mind, the second thing is that I will still be doing Fusion 360 tutorials. Whether you stay on the Personal Use license, or you upgrade to a Commercial license, Fusion 360 is still a very powerful software package, and to be honest, there really is nothing comparable at the same price point when you compare it with other professional CAD software.

That’s all for now, I’ll have a project-based video for you next week! Be sure to subscribe if you haven’t already and get back to designing – check out that 3D printing playlist in the lower right corner.