Catenda Hub provides flexible export methods tailored to various project needs, ranging from day-to-day downloads to automated enterprise archiving.

Depending on specific project requirements, it is possible to synchronize large folder structures using Desktop Connector, generate custom document delivery checklists and PDF/A archives via the Reports Page, or document project access permissions for audit trails.

For organizations requiring continuous cloud-to-cloud backups, Catenda Data Export provides automated transfers directly to AWS S3 or Azure Blob storage.

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Project owners and project participants often need to maintain local copies of project documentation during and after a project's lifecycle.

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Project data may be needed at various project milestones:

Phase changes

Transitioning between planning, design, and construction often requires extracting data snapshots, especially if projects are put on hold or handed off to new parties.

Government inquiries

Formal submittals to authorities are frequently required during or upon completion of a project.

Tendering

Preparing document submittal packages for tenders.

Exporting is not limited to project completion.

Project members who do not own the main project data often require their own copies to ensure continuous access to their work.

Project members are not always informed in advance when project access will end, and access can sometimes be revoked earlier than expected. Because access can be lost without warning, configuring scheduled, repeating exports, such as with Catenda Data Export or the Catenda Desktop Connector, is critical.

These recurring tools ensure project members retain a local or cloud backup up to the last scheduled run prior to losing access.

Regulations and industry standards frequently mandate that responsible parties store project records for long periods, often spanning years or decades.

System documentation, product records, and compliance files may need to be stored on company servers or designated repositories.

When an active project finishes or a license period ends, Catenda ensures project data remains stored safely.

Even if project access ends, data remains recoverable on Catenda servers for up to three years.

An archiving option allows projects to remain accessible as frozen, read-only repositories for selected members.

These built-in export tools are available directly within the standard interface for all authorized project participants.

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Because every model in Catenda is linked to a document in the documents section, standard document export capabilities also apply to models.

In addition, dedicated export options are available specifically for models:

Selected model download

Select one or more models on the models page and use the download action to extract their latest revisions.

Individual revision download

Select a model on the models page and use the download button next to each revision in the right information panel.

This provides an efficient way to download specific revisions directly without needing to load the full model contents page.

Alternatively, individual revisions can also be downloaded directly from the content page of a model.

Advanced model export

Access the model export page to package selected revisions across multiple models into a single downloadable ZIP file.

This method includes advanced options to enhance the exported model files by baking in tags, user-defined properties, or library information.

Topic data can be extracted using three primary formats via exchange topics, depending on how the information will be viewed, analyzed, or stored:

BCF (BIM Collaboration Format)

An open standard designed to capture and transfer topic information that conforms strictly to the official BCF specification, including individual topic creation timestamps.

This format guarantees broad cross-platform interoperability, making it ideal for reopening, editing, or exchanging topic data seamlessly with other BCF-compatible software.

For general long-term document repositories where direct file previews are needed, PDF or Excel formats are typically preferred.

Excel

Exports topic parameters into a spreadsheet format for filtering, sorting, and data manipulation.

This format provides structured rows and columns that are ideal for selecting and copying data, and Excel files can be easily previewed within most archiving platforms.

For archiving purposes, the PDF export is generally preferred over Excel because it includes more information.

PDF

Generates a clean, readable summary report in standard PDF format (v1.4) accessible without specialized software (see exporting topics to PDF).

Standard PDF exports include a consolidated download timestamp for formal authority reporting and archiving, providing more information than an Excel export.

While the base export generates a standard PDF (v1.4) file, which many archiving systems automatically convert to PDF/A upon upload for long-term previewing, direct export to native PDF/A-1, PDF/A-2, and PDF/A-3 formats is also available via the opt-in Reports Page.

Batch & folder downloads

Select individual folders, specific document batches, or all visible table items at once to generate a downloadable ZIP archive. Downloading in manageable batches by selecting specific subfolders or targeted file groups is recommended for smooth transfers when working with large datasets.

Individual revision download

Select a document on the documents page and click the download button next to each revision listed in the right information menu.

This is an easier way to download individual or historical revisions because the document preview page does not have to be loaded, allowing you to select another document in the table and download its revisions in the right menu without needing to open a new preview page.

Public collections

Use collections to create public links for selected document subsets, allowing external parties to download files without requiring a Catenda account. Note that only published revisions can be added to collections.

Deleted files

Search for "deleted" in the documents search bar to locate and export previously deleted documents.

Keep in mind that this filter is language-specific and will correspond to the term for "deleted" in your current language settings.

The Catenda Desktop Connector enables background synchronization to periodically download new document revisions directly to a local drive.

Unlike batch web exports, downloaded documents arrive directly on your system as raw, unzipped files without requiring manual archive extraction.

Scheduled & instant backups

Tasks can be scheduled to run automatically at regular intervals or executed on demand, ensuring project members preserve an up-to-date local copy of documents even if project access is unexpectedly revoked.

Direct API transfers

Transfers large datasets significantly faster than web browser downloads by leveraging direct API connections without browser limitations or overhead.

Hierarchy options

Downloads select folder structures with their complete hierarchy intact, or extracts individually selected files directly as a flat list into the designated local folder.

Topic boards

Document board access permissions using two available views:

Document & Model access

Export the access overview to record permissions for members and teams.

Access required: Project administrator.

Because every model is linked to a document in the documents section, access permissions for models are governed by the underlying document permissions and are recorded using the same document access overview or permission menus.

Document & Model revision access

View permissions from the right menu of a document revision and capture screenshots as needed.

Project-wide action permissions

Document project-wide permissions on the project settings page (such as creating topic boards, inviting new members, configuring document statuses, and creating or removing models) using two available views:

User profiles & member details

Information regarding project members and teams is available to extract or document, including:

Capture notification pages via screenshots from the project notification page, using the limit filter to maximize visible items per page.

Configure a dedicated administrative account with project specific notification settings enabled for email summaries to maintain searchable notification logs.

Opt-in activation

The reports page is an opt-in feature that can be requested to be enabled for ongoing projects. While no additional payment is required to use this tool, the project owner must agree to enable it on the project, meaning it is not active by default in many projects. Note that new projects created from template projects where reports are enabled do not automatically have this feature enabled.

Template-based management

When enabled, project administrators can use the report templates page to configure custom report templates and generate formatted exports for selected documents or topics.

Document reports

Export document metadata and revision details for all selected files, including document name, revision name, latest revision number, status, custom fields, creator, uploader, and creation/upload timestamps.

Topic reports

Export overall topic headers as well as complete topic body details, including descriptions, comments, and embedded comment images.

Available export formats

Reports created from any template can be exported to multiple formats depending on your workflow requirements:

Centralized storage

Generated reports are listed directly within the reports table and automatically integrated into the main documents table for easy management.

Unlike standard user-driven downloads, Catenda Data Export is an automated, self-service solution designed to seamlessly transfer project data directly into an organization's cloud storage.

If your organization is interested in enabling this feature, sales can be reached at sales@catenda.com.

Once enabled, it provides automated backups directly between cloud environments without needing custom scripts, bypassing browser memory constraints, local drive storage limitations, and network interruptions through automated checksum verification.

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Setting up and managing Catenda Data Export requires an Organization Administrator.

Unlike an Organization Owner, whose administrative rights are restricted to a single organization, or standard project members, an Organization Administrator holds elevated access across all organizations belonging to an overarching account.

This unique role grants the required cross-organization visibility and authority to configure and manage automated cloud exports.

Setting up automated data exports involves four main steps:

Metadata & Custom Fields

Custom fields associated with documents and topics are exported alongside primary files as structured JSON files, ensuring full attribute retention without manual report generation.

Integrity Verification

Every export run generates a checksum file to verify that exported files match the source data in Catenda Hub and were transferred completely without network loss.

Organized Hierarchy

Exported files are automatically structured into folders organized by date, project name, and the exact folder hierarchy maintained in Catenda Hub.