Forge to APS Migration Guide

Complete step-by-step guide for migrating from legacy Autodesk Forge APIs to modern Autodesk Platform Services (APS)

⚠️ Important: Forge APIs are being phased out. New applications should use APS APIs. Existing Forge applications must migrate by December 31, 2026.

Migration Overview

What’s Changing

Aspect	Forge (Legacy)	APS (Current)	Impact
Base URL	`developer.api.autodesk.com`	`developer.api.autodesk.com`	No change
Branding	”Forge"	"Autodesk Platform Services”	Marketing/docs only
API Endpoints	Mixed versions	Standardized versions	Some endpoints updated
Authentication	OAuth 2.0	OAuth 2.0	Scope format changes
SDKs	Forge SDKs	APS SDKs	Package names changed
Documentation	forge.autodesk.com	aps.autodesk.com	New doc site

What Stays the Same

✅ OAuth 2.0 flow - Same authentication mechanism
✅ Core API functionality - Same capabilities
✅ File formats - Same supported formats
✅ Data structure - Same JSON responses
✅ Rate limits - Same throttling rules

API Endpoint Migration

Authentication API

Forge Endpoint	APS Endpoint	Status	Notes
`/authentication/v1/authenticate`	`/authentication/v2/token`	✅ Updated	New version required
`/authentication/v1/authorize`	`/authentication/v2/authorize`	✅ Updated	New version required

Migration Steps:

Update endpoint URLs to use /v2/ instead of /v1/
Update scope format (see OAuth Scopes section)
Handle new response structure

RAPS Migration:

# Old Forge authentication
curl -X POST "https://developer.api.autodesk.com/authentication/v1/authenticate" \
  -H "Content-Type: application/x-www-form-urlencoded" \
  -d "client_id=$CLIENT_ID&client_secret=$CLIENT_SECRET&grant_type=client_credentials&scope=data:read"

# With RAPS (handles APS v2 automatically)
raps auth login --default

Data Management API

Forge Endpoint	APS Endpoint	Status	Notes
`/project/v1/*`	`/project/v1/*`	✅ No change	Same endpoints
`/data/v1/*`	`/data/v1/*`	✅ No change	Same endpoints

Migration Steps:

✅ No changes required for Data Management API endpoints
Update authentication to use v2 tokens

Model Derivative API

Forge Endpoint	APS Endpoint	Status	Notes
`/modelderivative/v2/*`	`/modelderivative/v2/*`	✅ No change	Same endpoints

Migration Steps:

✅ No changes required for Model Derivative API endpoints
Update authentication to use v2 tokens

Object Storage Service (OSS)

Forge Endpoint	APS Endpoint	Status	Notes
`/oss/v2/*`	`/oss/v2/*`	✅ No change	Same endpoints

Migration Steps:

✅ No changes required for OSS API endpoints
Update authentication to use v2 tokens

Design Automation API

Forge Endpoint	APS Endpoint	Status	Notes
`/da/us-east/v2/*`	`/da/us-east/v3/*`	⚠️ Updated	Version bump required

Migration Steps:

Update endpoint URLs to use /v3/ instead of /v2/
Review breaking changes in v3 API
Update WorkItem and Activity definitions

RAPS Migration:

# RAPS automatically uses DA v3
raps da engines

# Create activities with the correct subcommand
raps da activity-create --file activity.json

OAuth Scopes Migration

Scope Format Changes

Forge Scope (v1)	APS Scope (v2)	Notes
`data:read`	`data:read`	✅ No change
`data:write`	`data:write`	✅ No change
`data:create`	`data:create`	✅ No change
`bucket:read`	`bucket:read`	✅ No change
`bucket:create`	`bucket:create`	✅ No change
`bucket:delete`	`bucket:delete`	✅ No change
`code:all`	`code:all`	✅ No change
`viewables:read`	`viewables:read`	✅ No change
`account:read`	`account:read`	✅ No change
`account:write`	`account:write`	✅ No change

Good News: OAuth scopes are identical between Forge and APS! No changes needed.

Token Structure

Aspect	Forge	APS	Migration Required?
Token format	JWT	JWT	✅ No
Expiration	3600 seconds	3600 seconds	✅ No
Refresh tokens	Supported	Supported	✅ No
Scope validation	Same	Same	✅ No

SDK Migration

JavaScript/Node.js

Forge Package	APS Package	Install Command
`forge-apis`	`autodesk-aps-sdk`	`npm install autodesk-aps-sdk`
`forge-data-management`	`@aps/data-management`	`npm install @aps/data-management`

Code Changes:

// Old Forge SDK
const ForgeSDK = require('forge-apis');
const forgeApi = new ForgeSDK.AuthClientTwoLegged(clientId, clientSecret, scopes);

// New APS SDK
const APS = require('autodesk-aps-sdk');
const apsApi = new APS.AuthenticationClient(clientId, clientSecret, scopes);

// With RAPS (no SDK needed for prototyping)
// raps auth login && raps project list

.NET

Forge Package	APS Package	Install Command
`Autodesk.Forge`	`Autodesk.APS.SDK`	`dotnet add package Autodesk.APS.SDK`

Python

Forge Package	APS Package	Install Command
`forge-python-wrapper`	`autodesk-aps-python`	`pip install autodesk-aps-python`

Java

Forge Package	APS Package	Install Command
`forge-java-sdk`	`aps-java-sdk`	Maven/Gradle dependency update

Documentation Migration

URL Changes

Forge Resource	APS Resource	Notes
`forge.autodesk.com`	`aps.autodesk.com`	Main documentation
`learnforge.autodesk.io`	`tutorials.autodesk.io`	Tutorials moved
`forge-tutorials.autodesk.io`	`tutorials.autodesk.io/tutorials/`	Path updated
GitHub: `autodesk-forge/*`	GitHub: `autodesk-platform-services/*`	Repo organization

Postman Collections

Collection	Forge	APS
Download	Forge Postman	APS Postman
Base URL	Variable: `{{forge_base_url}}`	Variable: `{{aps_base_url}}`

Migration Checklist

Phase 1: Assessment (Week 1)

RAPS Assessment:

# Test current APS credentials
raps auth test

# Verify 3-legged auth works
raps auth login --default
raps auth status

Phase 2: Development Environment (Week 2)

RAPS Development Testing:

# Set up APS development profile
raps config profile create dev-aps
raps config profile use dev-aps
raps config set client_id YOUR_DEV_CLIENT_ID
raps config set client_secret YOUR_DEV_SECRET

# Test common workflows
raps auth test
raps auth login --default
raps project list
raps translate start <test-urn> --format svf2 --wait

Phase 3: Testing (Week 3)

Phase 4: Production Migration (Week 4)

Common Migration Issues

1. Authentication Token Issues

Problem: Forge v1 tokens not working with APS
Solution: Update to Authentication API v2

# Test APS v2 authentication
raps auth test

# Re-login with APS v2 (RAPS uses v2 by default)
raps auth login --default

2. SDK Breaking Changes

Problem: Method names changed in new SDKs
Solution: Update method calls according to new SDK documentation

// Old Forge method
forgeApi.authenticate().then(token => { ... });

// New APS method  
apsApi.getAccessToken().then(token => { ... });

// Or skip SDKs entirely
// raps auth login && raps <command>

3. Design Automation v3 Changes

Problem: DA v2 Activities not compatible with v3
Solution: Recreate Activities using v3 format

# RAPS uses DA v3 by default - recreate activities in v3 format
raps da activity-create --file activity-v3.json

4. URL Reference Updates

Problem: Hardcoded Forge URLs in application
Solution: Update to APS URLs

// Update base URLs
const OLD_BASE = 'https://forge.autodesk.com';
const NEW_BASE = 'https://aps.autodesk.com';

// Better: Use configurable base URL
const baseUrl = process.env.APS_BASE_URL || 'https://aps.autodesk.com';

Performance Considerations

API Rate Limits

API	Forge Limits	APS Limits	Change
Authentication	500/min	500/min	✅ Same
Data Management	100/min	100/min	✅ Same
Model Derivative	20 concurrent	20 concurrent	✅ Same
OSS	500/min	500/min	✅ Same
Design Automation	50 concurrent	50 concurrent	✅ Same

No performance impact expected from Forge to APS migration.

Caching Strategy

✅ Authentication tokens: Same caching strategy
✅ API responses: Same response format, no caching changes
✅ Rate limiting: Same rate limiting logic

Testing Your Migration

Compatibility Testing

# Test APS authentication
raps auth test
raps auth login --default

# Test core operations
raps project list
raps bucket list
raps translate status <test-urn>

Regression Testing

API Response Validation
- Compare JSON structure between Forge and APS
- Verify all fields present
- Test error responses
Workflow Testing
- Upload → Translate → View pipeline
- Authentication → API call chains
- Webhook event handling
Performance Testing
- Compare response times
- Test under load
- Monitor memory usage

Post-Migration Cleanup

Remove Legacy Dependencies

# JavaScript/Node.js
npm uninstall forge-apis
npm uninstall forge-data-management

# Python
pip uninstall forge-python-wrapper

# .NET
dotnet remove package Autodesk.Forge

Update Documentation

Update API documentation references
Change Forge → APS in user-facing text
Update code examples
Update support documentation

Monitor Migration Success

# Verify all operations work with APS v2
raps auth status
raps bucket list
raps project list

Migration Timeline Examples

Simple Application (1-2 APIs)

Week	Tasks	Effort
Week 1	Assessment, planning	2-4 hours
Week 2	Code changes, testing	4-8 hours
Week 3	Production deployment	2-4 hours

Complex Application (Multiple APIs)

Week	Tasks	Effort
Week 1-2	Assessment, planning	8-16 hours
Week 3-4	Code changes, unit testing	16-32 hours
Week 5	Integration testing	8-16 hours
Week 6	Production deployment, monitoring	4-8 hours

Enterprise Application

Month	Phase	Tasks
Month 1	Planning	Full audit, stakeholder alignment
Month 2	Development	Code changes, CI/CD updates
Month 3	Testing	Comprehensive testing, user training
Month 4	Migration	Phased rollout, monitoring

Getting Help

Migration Support Resources

Official Documentation
- APS Migration Guide
- API Breaking Changes
Community Support

Migration Tools

# RAPS auth commands
raps auth --help
raps auth test
raps auth login --default

Professional Migration Services

For complex enterprise migrations, consider:

Autodesk Professional Services
Certified Autodesk Partners
Independent APS consultants

FAQ

Q: Do I have to migrate immediately?
A: No, but Forge APIs will be sunset December 31, 2026. Plan your migration well in advance.

Q: Will my existing Forge tokens work with APS?
A: Forge v1 tokens will not work with APS v2 endpoints. You need to update to v2 authentication.

Q: Are there any breaking changes in API responses?
A: Most API responses are identical. The main change is authentication (v1 → v2).

Q: Can I use both Forge and APS during migration?
A: Yes, you can run both in parallel during your migration period.

Q: Does RAPS work with both Forge and APS?
A: RAPS uses APS APIs by default, but can be configured for backward compatibility during migration.

Q: What happens if I don’t migrate by the deadline?
A: Forge APIs will be shut down, breaking your application. Migration is mandatory.

💡 Pro Tip: Use RAPS CLI to simplify your migration. Instead of updating complex SDK code, many operations can be replaced with simple raps commands, reducing migration effort significantly.

Last updated: February 2026 | Migration deadline: December 31, 2026
This guide covers the most common migration scenarios. For complex cases, consult the official APS migration documentation.