Install the Revit plugin

The Planscape Revit plugin (STING Tools) brings 763+ commands to your Revit ribbon and dockable panel. This tutorial walks through downloading, installing, and signing in on a single workstation.

Step 1 — Download the plugin

1. Go to planscape.build and sign in.
2. Open any project workspace.
3. Click Tools → Download Revit plugin.
4. You get StingTools.zip (about 45 MB).

Step 2 — Pick a Revit version folder

On your Windows machine, press Win + R to open the Run dialog. Paste this path and hit Enter:

%APPDATA%\Autodesk\Revit\Addins\

You'll see folders for each Revit version installed (2025, 2026, 2027). Open the one matching your Revit. If the folder doesn't exist, create it.

Step 3 — Extract the ZIP

1. Open the downloaded StingTools.zip.
2. Select all contents (Ctrl+A).
3. Copy / drag everything into the Addins folder you opened in Step 2.

The folder should now contain:

• StingTools.addin
• StingTools.dll
• Newtonsoft.Json.dll + a few other supporting DLLs
• data/ subdirectory with 72 runtime data files

Step 4 — Start Revit

Launch Revit. Wait for it to fully load (open the home screen at minimum). You should see:

• A new STING Tools tab on the Revit ribbon
• A dockable panel on the right side called "Planscape"

If you don't see them, see the troubleshooting section at the bottom.

Step 5 — Allow the addin (first run only)

Revit checks the digital signature of each addin and asks you to confirm on first load:

1. You'll see a dialog: "Planscape Ltd — Always Load / Load Once / Do Not Load".
2. Click Always Load.

Subsequent Revit launches load the plugin without asking.

Step 6 — Sign in

1. In the dockable panel, click the Sign in button at the bottom-left.
2. Enter your Planscape email + password.
3. If you're a member of multiple firms, pick the firm to bind to.
4. Pick the project you want to work on.

The panel header changes to show your name, the project, and a green "Connected" status.

Step 7 — Run the smoke test

Confirm the plugin actually does something:

1. Open any Revit project (a sample if you don't have one).
2. In the dockable panel, click the SELECT tab.
3. Click Lighting Fixtures.
4. You should see a count of lighting fixtures in the active view (or "0 found" if there aren't any).

If that works, the plugin is correctly installed.

Step 8 — Optional first-run setup

The plugin offers to do project-level setup the first time you open a project on a logged-in account:

• Load shared parameters? — Yes, on new projects. Binds the 2,555 STING shared parameters. ~30 seconds.
• Apply ISO 19650 view templates? — Yes on a brand new project; No if you've set them up manually.
• Run compliance scan? — Yes. Surfaces orphaned elements or non-compliant naming up front.

You can skip these and run them later from the SETUP tab.

Troubleshooting

I don't see the STING Tools tab

1. Is StingTools.addin actually in the Addins folder? Files starting with a dot can be hidden — switch on "show hidden files" in Explorer.
2. Open StingTools.addin in Notepad. The <Assembly> element should point to a file that exists in the same folder.
3. Check the log: %LOCALAPPDATA%\Planscape\StingTools.log — last few lines usually explain.

"Cannot connect to api.planscape.build"

• Most common cause: your corporate firewall blocks outbound HTTPS.
• Ask IT to allow outbound 443 to api.planscape.build.
• You can still use most non-sync commands offline.

The dockable panel won't appear

Revit hides docked panels by default. From the Revit menu:

View → User Interface → STING Tools Panel

"This addin is not signed by a trusted publisher"

Revit's security policy is strict. Click Always Load — we sign every release with a code-signing certificate from Planscape Ltd. If "Publisher: Unknown" instead of "Publisher: Planscape Ltd", you probably have a corrupted download. Re-download from your project workspace.

What's next

• Tag elements in Revit (ISO 19650) (10 min)
• Sync your Revit model to the cloud (5 min)
• Run clash detection (12 min)
• Read the full Revit plugin guide