When the Cloud Is Down: A Real-Time Reminder About What We Rely On
Meanwhile, back on Earth, we’re reminded that “cloud” still means someone else’s computer (stock.adobe.com landing page as of 10am PST, 10/20/2025)
As of this morning, Autodesk Construction Cloud, BQE Core, and Bluebeam Studio are all experiencing login and connectivity issues. The common thread is Amazon Web Services (AWS), which appears to be having intermittent disruptions.
If you’re in design or engineering, you’ve probably noticed. The ripple effect isn’t catastrophic, but it’s enough to stall some of the cloud-based workflows many of us depend on.
What’s actually happening
AWS isn’t offline — but parts of it are under strain. When that happens, the services built on it (like Autodesk’s authentication servers or Bluebeam’s collaboration platform) can slow down or temporarily fail to connect.
So while your internet connection is fine, the cloud systems behind your tools might be unavailable for a bit.
This is a good reminder of how integrated our industry’s tools have become: Autodesk for design models, Bluebeam for markup, BQE for admin, Procore for project management — all running on the same foundation.
Staying productive anyway
We’ve been through enough of these moments to know the answer isn’t panic — it’s patience and a little flexibility.
Here’s what we’re doing while we wait:
Checking status dashboards (like health.autodesk.com) to confirm the issue isn’t local.
Shifting to offline tasks — markups, planning, calculations, documentation — anything that doesn’t require cloud sync.
Communicating internally so deadlines stay visible, even if software access isn’t.
Someone in the office joked about going back to hand drafting. That sparked a conversation about old drafting kits, scale rulers, and family stories — a reminder that our profession existed long before Wi-Fi.
And honestly, that mindset still applies: when the software pauses, thinking doesn’t. Grab a PDF, mark it up offline, sketch ideas on paper. Keep momentum.
The broader takeaway
Cloud collaboration has become the backbone of modern practice, and it’s a good thing — but it’s not infallible. Outages like this one are temporary, yet they expose how centralized our digital workflows have become.
Even so, the work continues.
We’re still designing, coordinating, and moving toward deadlines.
The tools may pause — the team doesn’t.
If your systems are down today:
What are you doing to stay productive?
Do you have an offline plan, or do you use moments like this to regroup and refocus?
Sources & Further Reading
Reuters – Amazon’s cloud unit reports outage; several websites down
The Guardian – AWS outage shows internet users ‘at mercy’ of too few providers
Bluebeam – Security and Compliance Information
Procore – Trust & Security – Infrastructure Overview
Autodesk – Health Dashboard