Warning to Others: Collaborate Subscribers can't use Teamwork with SSA Subscribers

[Russell-Myhill]

I am hoping my recent discovery with Graphisoft Support is mistaken, but according to them Archicad Collaborate Subscribers cannot currently join a BIMCloud server managed by an Archicad SSA firm with a BIMCloud SaaS license. Their proposed solution is for me to purchase an additional Cloud License for the other firm to use. To make matters worse, I also can't seem to be able to invite any external members to our own BIMCloud server. 

I think anyone considering the switch to the Collaborate Bundle ought to know about this issue-- I see this as a particularly grievous error if Graphisoft is trying to convert SSA subscribers to Cloud Licensing. If you collaborate with other firms then doing so, for the moment, appears to be more expensive than it initially seems. (So it's somewhat ironic to call it the "Collaborate" bundle!)

Ultimately, the cloud license is not recognized as a license when joining standalone BIMCloud SaaS servers (You'll get a message stating you don't have a license). There is not currently a workaround other than to give graphisoft more money.

This is the error message that I get when joining anyone else's BIMCloud domain: 

And this is the official answer I received from Graphisoft: 

"Hi [redacted], the issue you mentioned is a known behaviour of the cloud license.
See this link: https://help.graphisoft.com/BCSAAS/INT/_BIMcloud_SaaS_/10_BIMcloud_SaaS/10_BIMcloud_SaaS-12.htm#XREF... at this point:

---

Bring Your Own License [OP's Note: This suggestion does not seem applicable since this is the configuration that doesn't work]
Assign this status to make sure that this user cannot use a license from your BIMcloud. They can work here only if they “bring their own license”: a GSID license assigned to them from another BIMcloud. This way, you don’t use up a license for users who already have one from a different tenant.
 
Note: If a user was named “BIMcloud administrator” as part of the Graphisoft Store subscription process, the “Bring Your Own License” option is not available. Such a user gets a floating license.

---

Probably in the next future this option should be available, but I don't know at the moment when it could be.
To ensure any other your collaborator can access to your Bimcloud tenant, you could buy a new BIMcloud license and then invite the external user to became a member of your company (Graphisoft ID).  
See here: https://community.graphisoft.com/t5/Licensing/Getting-started-with-Graphisoft-cloud-licensing/ta-p/3... 
 
PS: remember the new member have to create a new Graphisoft ID with a different email never used before on a Graphisoft portal. The Graphisoft ID must be new so you can invite to your company.

Operating system used: Mac Apple Silicon

 

[torben_wadlinger]

Sorry, but I think you have a general misunderstanding about the bimcloud licensing. These licenses are like ACL’s and there is no difference between subscription and a "normal" bimcloud access license. That’s why you can buy these bimcloud licenses separately from your archicad license.

for that reason your warning is no warning but simply "you didn’t read the fine print".

The answer from Graphisoft in your post shows that GS has painted them self into the corner with all these different and slightly chaotic license systems. But that’s an other story …

[Russell-Myhill]

I’m not sure what you mean. But things worked just fine when I was on archiplus with a separate stand-alone BIMCloud SaaS license. I was able to join external SaaS servers with my license and invite external collaborators to our server (where they would also bring their own license).

It’s also not an issue of how many licenses I have since I have 2. That’s only useful if, as Graphisoft’s response indicates— our external collaborators were willing to make 2nd email addresses just to work on our projects and use one of our floating licenses when doing so. 

The problem is the cloud license type and the perpetual license are straight up incompatible. And if there’s some small print somewhere that makes that okay… sounds like a great thing to warn others about. 

[torben_wadlinger]

Again, working with bimcloud (not basic) involves two different licenses: one for archicad and one for bimcloud. The Archicad license is taken from the local license pool or from your subscription. The bimcloud license is pulled from the bimcloud server you are connected with / where the project is hosted. 

[Russell-Myhill]

Maybe I’m missing something. The collaborate bundle is supposed to include both types of license you are referring to. And I want to reiterate that teamwork works within my own firm without issue. But there is also for some users (not me anymore after switching to the subscription pricing) a BIMCloud setting for users to “Bring their own license”. With that setting turned on a user can pull their BIMCloud (not basic) license from their own license pool and bring it with them to the remote server. That’s the behavior that no longer functions for the cloud license. This worked seamlessly before. 

[Russell-Myhill]

A fix is at least coming soon on the updates roadmap:

https://community.graphisoft.com/t5/Product-Roadmap/Portable-BIMcloud-SaaS-License/idi-p/633324

[SeaGeoff]

Graphisoft clearly got the cart before the horse on the licensing switch. And what makes matters worse is the most favorable upgrade deals they are offering to existing customers will end at the end of 2024 with no guarantee that these BIMcloud licensing problems, or the asinine multiple GSID workarounds will be fixed by then. We are left to hope against a backdrop of what has been a clumsy and poorly communicated rollout so far. One cannot help wondering if the Nemetschek overlords forced this transition before GS had a chance to prepare their backend.

[Lingwisyer]

There should be a huge disclaimer on the Collaborate page regarding that... "Subscribe to Collaborate, but you will not be able to collaborate with people who do not subscribe to Collaborate!"