Topics FAQ

Below is a checklist to follow if importing certain Topics from a BCF file fails. 

1. Check that the file you are importing is compatible with the Connect BCF Topics Supported Import Formats. 

   1. How to check what BCF standard version a BCF file is? 

      1. Refer to the support and documentation resources of the original source application that exported the BCF file to see which standard version the export is compatible with

      2. Examine the BCF-XML file structure

2. Check the Import Log for import warnings or errors

3. See the section Import BCF Topics Dialog for tips how to use the “Assignee” input field and the “Update Topic project settings with values imported from file(s)” option to work around import challenges

4. In the case when the Import log tells that the BCF file was malformatted or had standard incompatible data in it, refer to the documentation and support resources of the original source application that exported the BCF file on how to fix the file

5. If the reason for the import failure is unclear, contact the Trimble Connect support team (connect-support@trimble.com). Please note that the support team will need the BCF file and the full error and warning texts from the Import log and from the Import history / Import details to do detailed analysis.

Important: The BCF files contain only Topics data. Often the Topics refer to models via 3D views. The models need to be uploaded to the Trimble Connect project separately as the model files are not included in the BCF files.

Trimble Connect BCF Topics offers buildingSMART BCF open industry standard compatible API and file import & export. A definition of an open industry standard is that applications that are compatible with the standard can exchange data between other applications and cloud services given that they both support the same standard version.

For more detailed information, please refer to the sections and links below

• Topics API

• Importing Topics

• Exporting Topics

The buildingSMART BCF Topics open industry standard specifies 2 methods for exchanging (=importing & exporting) Topics, which are 1) .BCF files and 2) BCF-API (https://technical.buildingsmart.org/standards/bcf/). The Trimble Connect BCF Topics implementation supports both of these methods. Typically file based way of exchanging Topics is a manual process, while developing a BCF-API integration offers rich ways for automating and "live-synchronizing" Topics between a client and a server.

• Please find the .BCF file based import & export method documentation here: https://docs.browser.connect.trimble.com/bcf-topics/importing-topics & https://docs.browser.connect.trimble.com/bcf-topics/exporting-topics

• Please find the BCF-API based method documentation here: https://docs.browser.connect.trimble.com/bcf-topics/topics-api

With regards to the BCF-API it is essential to notice that the Trimble Connect BCF Topics is a BCF Server (not a client) that acts as a central repository enabling multiple client applications to exchange Topics. In the client-server interaction, the client initiates the communication (in this case the import/export) with the server, not the other way around. This means that scheduling and/or automating happens in the client application side. The client can start the import / export whenever it wants, while the server is available in the cloud. The picture from buildingSMART available from the following link illustrates nicely the client/server topology: https://github.com/buildingSMART/BCF-API/tree/release_2_1#22-topology-2---colocated-bcf-server-and-model-server . 

The allowed BCF Topics attribute values (Type, Status, Priority) can be configured in the Trimble Connect project settings: https://docs.browser.connect.trimble.com/projects/project-settings/bcf-topic-settings

A Topic in Trimble Connect must always be assigned to Trimble Connect project member(s) or user group(s). The assignee can be configured during the import using the Assignee field as described in this section of the user guide:

https://docs.browser.connect.trimble.com/bcf-topics/importing-topics#h.ed5hfii87fgr