Extracting File Attributes

Overview

Foreman's Attribute Extract lets you pull file metadata from one or many Autodesk Forma folders and generate structured reports. Key capabilities include:

• 15+ standard attributes (File Name, Size, Version, Created By, Modified Date, Approval Status, Review Status, etc.) plus unlimited custom attributes per project.
• Three output formats — CSV, XLSX, or JSON.
• Template population — upload Excel templates for TIDP/MIDP reports and let Foreman fill them with live data while preserving your formatting.
• Scheduling — set up daily, weekly, monthly, or custom cron schedules for recurring extracts with optional email notifications.
• Saved definitions — save extract configurations and re-run them with a single click.

Navigate to Extract from the sidebar (under Files & Folders) to get started, or launch an extract directly from the File Browser by selecting files and clicking Extract Attributes in the selection bar.

The 4-Step Wizard

The extract process follows a four-step wizard. Click any completed step in the stepper to go back and adjust your selections.

Step 1: Select Source

Choose what to extract from.

1. Select a hub and project from the dropdown selectors in the left panel.
2. The right panel displays the project's folder tree with checkboxes. Tick one or more folders to include them.
3. The Include subfolders toggle (on by default) controls whether files in nested subfolders are included.

Smart deduplication prevents double-counting: when you select a parent folder with subfolders enabled, any child folders that are also checked are automatically greyed out since they are already covered by the parent selection.

Step 2: Choose Method

Pick how to structure your output:

• Custom Columns — manually select which attributes to include and choose CSV, XLSX, or JSON output. Best when you want full control over the column layout.
• Use Template — upload an Excel template and map its headers to file attributes. Best for TIDP/MIDP reports or any standardised spreadsheet your organisation already uses.

Step 3a: Select Attributes (Custom Columns)

A two-panel layout shows available attributes on the left and your selected columns on the right.

Standard attributes include:

Attribute	Description
File Name	Name of the file (with or without extension)
File Type	File extension (e.g. .dwg, .pdf)
Size	File size in your chosen unit
Created Date	When the file was first uploaded
Modified Date	When the file was last updated
Created By	User who uploaded the file
Modified By	User who last modified the file
Folder Path	Full path from project root
Forma URL	Direct link to the file in Forma
Version	Current version number
Project ID	Autodesk project identifier
Item ID	Autodesk item identifier
Version URN	Unique version reference
Approval Status	Latest review approval status (e.g. Approved, Rejected, Pending)
Review Status	Status of the latest review the file is part of (e.g. Open, Closed)

Custom attributes are auto-discovered from your project. Common examples include Document Status, Suitability, Discipline, Revision, and any other metadata fields configured in your Forma account.

Click an attribute to add it to the selected columns. Use the up/down arrow buttons to reorder columns, or the Clear all link to start over.

Output settings bar — located at the bottom of Step 3, this bar lets you configure:

Setting	Options	Default
Format	XLSX, CSV, JSON	XLSX
Date format	Multiple options with live preview	yyyy-MM-dd HH:mm
File size unit	MB, KB, Bytes, Auto	MB
Include extensions	On / Off	On
Review Status	Include Approval Status and Review Status columns	Off
Hyperlinks (XLSX only)	Clickable file name links replacing raw URLs	On
Split by folder (XLSX only)	One sheet per folder	Off

Step 3b: Template Mapping (Use Template)

If you chose Use Template in Step 2:

1. Select or upload a template — pick from your saved templates or upload a new .xlsx / .xls file (max 5 MB).
2. Set the header row number — tell Foreman which row contains your column headers (1-based).
3. Click Detect Headers — Foreman reads the template and lists all non-empty cell values from that row.
4. Map each header to a file attribute using the dropdown. Attributes are grouped into Standard and Custom.
5. Click Auto-match to automatically match headers by case-insensitive name similarity.
6. Unmapped headers are shown with a warning icon so you can decide whether to map or skip them.

Step 4: Review & Execute

The final step shows a summary of your selections: hub, project, folders, column count, and output format.

Save as reusable definition — check this box and enter a name to save the extract configuration. A default name is generated from the project name and date. Saved definitions appear in the Saved Extracts tab for one-click re-runs.

Schedule — click the Schedule button to create a recurring job. This opens the schedule picker where you choose frequency, time, timezone, and optional email notification. Scheduling automatically saves a definition.

Extract Now — runs the extraction immediately. A progress dialog shows:

• Indeterminate progress bar while resolving files from the selected folders.
• Determinate progress bar with percentage during attribute enrichment.
• File count and elapsed time updated in real time.
• Cancel button to abort the extraction at any point.

When complete, click Download to save the file to your computer.

Saved Extracts Tab

Switch to the Saved Extracts tab (or navigate directly via ?tab=saved in the URL) to manage your extract history.

Downloads section — lists your recent exports with:

• Format badge (XLSX, CSV, or JSON)
• Row count showing how many files were extracted
• Definition name (if the extract was saved)
• Download button to retrieve the file
• Delete button to remove the export

Definitions section — lists your saved extract configurations with:

• Run button to re-extract with the same settings
• Delete button to remove the definition

Both sections have a search bar to filter by name, and scrollable lists with a maximum height for clean navigation.

Output Formats

XLSX (Excel)

The default format produces an Excel workbook with:

• Bold headers in the first row
• Frozen header row so headers stay visible while scrolling
• Auto-filter on every column for quick sorting and filtering
• Hyperlinks (when enabled) — Forma URL cells display the file name as a blue clickable link
• Split by folder (when enabled) — each folder gets its own sheet, with an "All Files" summary sheet first. Sheets are named after their folder; duplicate names are suffixed with a number (e.g. "Drawings (2)")

CSV

Plain comma-separated values. Suitable for import into databases, other tools, or further processing with scripts.

JSON

A structured array of objects, one per file, with keys matching your selected column headers. Useful for programmatic consumption or API integrations.

User Name Resolution

Autodesk Forma stores "Created By" and "Modified By" as raw user IDs (e.g. QD82ZFBZMJBG2AHE). Foreman automatically resolves these to real user names by fetching version details from the Data Management API. If resolution fails for a particular file, the raw ID is used as a fallback.

Settings Persistence

All output preferences (format, date format, size unit, hyperlinks, split by folder, include extensions, review status) are saved in your browser's localStorage and restored automatically on your next visit. This means your preferred settings carry over across sessions without needing to reconfigure each time.

Review & Approval Status

Enable the Review Status toggle in the output settings bar to include two additional columns in your extract:

• Approval Status — the approval outcome from the most recent review (e.g. "Approved", "Rejected", "Pending").
• Review Status — the current state of the review itself (e.g. "OPEN", "CLOSED").

When this toggle is on, Foreman queries the Autodesk Construction Cloud Reviews API for each file's latest version. If a file has been included in multiple reviews, the status from the most recent review (highest sequence number) is used.

Files that have never been part of a review will show empty values in both columns.

From the File Browser

You can launch an extract directly from the File Browser. Select one or more files, then click Extract Attributes in the selection action bar. This navigates to the Attribute Extract page with the hub and project pre-selected.

See Also

• Using Excel Templates with Attribute Extract — detailed guide to template upload, header detection, and mapping.
• Scheduling Recurring Extracts — set up automated extract jobs with email notifications.
• Managing Saved Extracts & Exports — organise your saved definitions and download history.
• Using the File Browser — navigate and select files before extracting.
• Exporting to CSV — quick CSV export from the File Browser.