Autodesk App Store Maya

Depending on the type of content, there may be different requirements. We'll list the details below.

Most of the information we need from you is collected through the web form you complete when submitting your content. This includes gathering information to create an HTML quick-start page that is included with the download of your product and viewable online.

Compatibility

Your product must be relevant to (and usable with) Maya® 2024 and must run on all version of the operating system supported by Maya 2024, but you don't necessarily have to support all platforms. You can choose to support Windows and MacOS only, for example. You may also indicate compatibility with Maya® 2023 | 2022 |  2020 | 2019.

Your product must work with any higher tiered version of the Maya product. For example, if your application works with the Maya Suites, it must also work with the standard version of Maya.

User privileges

The default user privilege for the Store apps is Windows 7/8.1/10/11 Admin User. The installer should have elevated user privileges. For MacOS, the user will need the root password like for every application installed on a Mac. For Linux, the user can either install as single user or root.

Product stability

Your product should be stable and not behave or alter the behavior of Maya in a way that we deem unsuitable, for example, blocking standard functionality, blocking the functionality of another plug-in, causing data loss, etc.

HTML help page

The documentation information you provide as part of the submission process is used to create a standard HTML page. This information must allow the user to quickly understand how to use your product. You can reference additional information (for example, additional help files posted on your website) from this standard documentation. The HTML page will be created using information you provide when submitting your product to the store—you will be prompted to supply it as part of the submission process.

Ready to run

Your product must be ready to run as soon as it's installed. It must not require the user to manually copy or register files, or manually edit Maya settings (such as support paths).

If you use a licensing system, then it must allow your product to run as soon as it is installed by the user. This means that your application allows either instant activation (for example, online activation), or full functionality with a time-bombed grace period that is long enough for you to send activation information to the customer.

There are no additional requirements for products that are not integrated with Maya. This might include eBooks, video tutorials, industry specific calculators, connectors to cloud-based services, and the like.

Additional requirements

• Your plug-in must include a shelve button in the Custom shelve and/or a menu to access your main command(s) when applicable. If your application has many buttons, you may also choose to have a separate custom shelve.
• You must use a plug-in manifest as the loading mechanism. This is typically a PackageContents.xml file.

Use of the bundle and XML file for the Maya 2024 | 2023 | 2022 | 2020 | 2019 plug-in

As a default location, we’ll be using All-user location to place the plug-in manifest: Windows: %ProgramData%\Autodesk\ApplicationPlugins OSX - /Users/Shared/Autodesk/ApplicationAddins Linux - ~/Autodesk/ApplicationPlugins (single user) or /usr/autodesk/ApplicationPlugins (all users / root)

The plug-in files will be contained in a specific folder and a PackageContents.xml file (created by the installer we create for your app) will be stored within this bundle folder together with the contents that you need for your application:

PackageContents.xml contains a series of XML tags that describe the contents of the bundle, including the various components of the application. These tags will define where to load the application from, and also details about the application such as version(s) it supports.

Use the autoloader system

We strongly encourage you to make use of the autoloader mechanism to deploy your plug-in. Information on the required format for autoloader ‘bundles’ is documented here.

You can also download some of the free plug-ins already available on Autodesk App Store and study their format, such as one of the Autodesk Plug-in of the Month samples (for example, MathNode).

Use a NodeID for custom nodes

We must get and assign your own NodeID when your plug-in defines a custom node. Autodesk supports a developer registration scheme to prevent Maya node conflicts between different applications. Register your own block.

Special considerations

If your app or content has any special requirements that the standard installer template cannot handle as is, let us know. For example, if you have specific requirements for your app to be written to a single-user, we can create the installer that install only to the current user.

For any other special needs that require a custom installation, you can provide them in the form of Windows Installer Merge Modules (.msm) files. We will merge your MSM file with the Windows Installer (.msi) file that we create for your app. Examples of such a scenario would be: writing entries to the registry for a licensing system you are using, installing dependent components by other vendors, and running custom scripts. For additional information, contact us at appsubmissions@autodesk.com.

End User License Agreement

The installer that the ADN team creates for your app includes a button that allows the user to view the standard End User License Agreement (EULA) during the app installation.
Note: This EULA is not modifiable. If you wish to include your own EULA to your app, you can do either:

• Reference your EULA from the standard HTM help file text.
• Display your EULA when the app runs for the first time, and require the user to accept it before the app will work.

The ADN team is here to help you be a successful publisher on the Autodesk App Store. If you have any further questions after reviewing these guidelines and the other documentation on the Autodesk App Store Publisher Center, email us at appsubmissions@autodesk.com for support.