CEE 120A/220A:
Software Tools to Install - Fall 2026
Please install these software tools on your personal computer, so you can work on the class modules and design projects from anywhere.
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You are highly encouraged to install the free software on your own computers.
If that’s not possible:
- The computers in Y2E2 184 all have the software installed and ready to use.
- Stanford offers a cloud-based virtual machine service (stanford.apporto.com) that enables you to access the software from any web browser.
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CAUTION: While it’s very convenient to use the cloud-based virtual machines, you cannot always count on the software being available this way.
If you experience problems with using Apporto to access the software, you can:
- Try connecting again in a few minutes.
- Use the computers in Y2E2 184.
As with any cloud-based service, you cannot rely on it to always be working. Be resilient and have backup strategies for when the web service is not available. Problems with using software or the Apporto service will not be accepted as a valid excuse for late assignment submissions.
Follow these steps to set up your computer to use all the software tools that we’ll be using in class.
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Sign Up for an Autodesk ID
If you already have a student Autodesk ID from another class, you’re all set.
If you haven’t created a student Autodesk ID (or if you’re currently using one that created for your workplace), sign up for a new student Autodesk ID by following these steps:
Scroll down to the Request or Renew Access section of the page.
Click the Select Product button.
Scroll down the list of products available to the Revit tile, then click the Select button.
Click the Select button in the Student tile to request a student subscription plan.
Complete and submit the registration form.
Be sure to check your email for a message from Autodesk and click the confirmation link to finish activating your new Autodesk ID by providing information about the school you attend.
Notes about Autodesk IDs
Most students use their school email address as their Autodesk ID.
If you already have a student Autodesk ID from another school, you can continue to use it or sign up for a new one.
You can create as many Autodesk IDs as you like -- but if you use an email address that is not recognized as being from an educational institution, Autodesk may ask you to provide additional documentation of your student students (for example, an image of your student ID) to confirm that you are eligible for their free education offerings.
If you need to create a second Autodesk ID, you can create an alias to your Stanford email address and then use this alias to create another Autodesk ID.
Click the Login link to login to your Autodesk Account and access your student subscription.
Click the Access Products button.
Scroll down the list of products to the Revit tile.
Select 2027 and Win64 as the version to be installed.
Click the INSTALL button
IMPORTANT: If you see a DOWNLOAD button (instead of INSTALL), the Autodesk website has detected that you cannot install the software directly because you are in the wrong environment. This typically happens when you try to install Windows software from the Mac environment.
If this happens, it's typically better to switch to the Windows environment and let the Autodesk installer do all the work.
If you choose to Download the files to the Mac environment, you'll need to copy them over to the Windows file system, and do a manual install there by following these steps:
When you open the Autodesk software for the first time, you will be prompted to login using your Autodesk ID to confirm your eligibility to use the software.
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Install the Autodesk Sample Content Libraries
You need to install the sample Revit families separately, and you can do that in two ways:
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If your disk space is limited, you may want to download these Revit families as needed -- one at a time. To do that:
Open Revit Application.
Switch to the Insert tab in the ribbon, and open the Load Autodesk Family tool (Insert > Load from Library > Load Autodesk Family).
Browse or search for the Revit Family that you’d like to load, then click the Load button.
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If you have disk space available, it’s typically more convenient to download and install the entire Autodesk Content Library (which includes all the sample Revit families) on your computer all at once. To do that:
For Revit 202, download the US English Content for Revit 2027 using this link:
Run the RVTCPENU.exe (or app with a similar name for the language you selected), and accept the default choices to install the Autodesk Content Library in your Revit application.
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Install all Updates to Autodesk Software
After installing the Revit application, Â be sure to run the Autodesk Desktop App from the Windows taskbar to install the latest product updates.
Close the Revit application.
Open the Autodesk Access app from the Windows taskbar.
Login using your Autodesk ID.
Go to the Available Updates list and click ALL of the Update buttons to install ALL of the Revit-related product updates and Revit extensions.
If your software is already up-to-date, the list of available updates may be empty.
