MicroStation - Webinar Event with Bentley and Matrix

Version Support Deadline Looms

Bentley Systems' lifecycle policy for MicroStation stipulates that CONNECT Edition versions released prior to January 1, 2023, enter a supported phase only until December 31, 2025, at the earliest. After this cutoff, these older versions will no longer receive technical support, bug fixes, or security updates, even if some extensions apply for less frequent releases.

This deadline arrives amid Bentley's rollout of MicroStation 2025, which introduced AI-driven automation, Python enhancements, Google Photorealistic 3D Tiles integration replacing Bing Maps, and RealDWG 2026 compatibility. These features address demands for faster design annotation, better real-world geospatial context, and interoperability in infrastructure projects ranging from civil engineering to urban planning.

The real-world impact hits engineering consultancies, government agencies, and asset owners hardest. Many still run legacy CONNECT Editions on large portfolios of .dgn files; migration requires testing workflows, retraining staff, and potential hardware upgrades for performance-heavy features like 3D reality meshes. Costs can run into tens or hundreds of thousands of dollars per firm, depending on scale, while inaction risks project delays if issues arise without Bentley assistance.

Non-obvious tensions include the trade-off between sticking with stable older versions versus adopting AI tools that promise efficiency but introduce learning curves and dependency on cloud services. Smaller firms in regions like New Zealand—where Matrix Applied Computing operates as a reseller—may feel squeezed by the timing, especially as Bentley's 2025 announcements emphasized AI co-innovation and productivity boosts that favor early adopters.