Getting Started with Revit API: Building a Simple Add-In

Creating a Simple Revit External Command Program (Revit 2017 + VS 2015)

1. Open Visual Studio (VS2015 in this example). Click New Project → Visual C# → Class Library. Enter a project name, for example, Hello World.
2. Go to Project → Add Reference → Browse. Locate and add RevitAPI.dll and RevitAPIUI.dll from your Revit installation folder.
3. In Solution Explorer, right-click on both RevitAPI and RevitAPIUI references, select Properties, and set Copy Local to False. This prevents copying many referenced files to the output folder.
4. Optionally, rename the default class Class1 in Solution Explorer to a preferred name.
5. Replace the class code with the following:

using Autodesk.Revit;
using Autodesk.Revit.DB;
using Autodesk.Revit.UI;
using Autodesk.Revit.Attributes;

namespace Hello_World
{
  [Transaction(TransactionMode.Manual)]
  public class Command : IExternalCommand
  {
    public Result Execute(ExternalCommandData commandData, ref string message, ElementSet elements)
    {
      try
      {
        TaskDialog.Show("Hello", "First Revit Program.");
      }
      catch (Exception e)
      {
        message = e.Message;
        return Result.Failed;
      }
      return Result.Succeeded;
    }
  }
}

6. Go to Project → Properties → Debugging. Under Start External Program, browse to your Revit installation directory and select Revit.exe. For example: D:Revit2017Revit 2017Revit.exe. Save the settings.
7. Build the project. The compiled DLL file (e.g., Hello World.dll) will be generated in the Debug folder.
8. To add your external command to Revit, navigate to the folder:
   C:UsersAdministratorAppDataRoamingAutodeskRevitAddins2017 (For Windows 10; similar path for Windows 7).
   Create a new text file named Hello World.addin with the following content:

<?xml version="1.0" encoding="utf-8"?>
<RevitAddIns>
  <AddIn Type="Command">
    <VendorId>ACID</VendorId>
    <Text>Hello Revit</Text>
    <Description>Hello World to Revit.</Description>
    <FullClassName>Hello_World.Command</FullClassName>
    <Assembly>F:MyTestDemosHello WorldHello WorldbinDebugHello World.dll</Assembly>
    <AddInId>E2CB270D-2889-48AD-8193-C93663BE7AD9</AddInId>
  </AddIn>
</RevitAddIns>

• VendorId: Developer ID, can be any name you choose.
• Text: The plugin name as it will appear in Revit.
• Description: Optional description of the plugin.
• FullClassName: The full namespace and class name of your command.
• Assembly: The full path to the compiled DLL.
• AddInId: A unique ID, which you can generate in Visual Studio via Tools → Create GUID.

After completing these steps, open Revit. Navigate to Add-Ins → External Tools and you should see your Hello World plugin listed.

xuebim

Follow the latest BIM developments in the architecture industry, explore innovative building technologies, and discover cutting-edge industry insights.

← Scan with WeChat