MINDSTORMS RI app going away June 1

[AVCampos]

Alternatively, if I'm not mistaken both Spybotics and Cybermaster can also be programmed with BricxCC, but I never used the former and don't have the latter.

[Toastie]

32 minutes ago, AVCampos said:

Alternatively, if I'm not mistaken both Spybotics and Cybermaster can also be programmed with BricxCC, but I never used the former and don't have the latter.

Can confirm, both can be programmed/operated with BricxCC. Have both, and they do behave well.

Best
Thorsten 

[Guest]

2 hours ago, Toastie said:

Control Lab: Just use DOSBox-X, install Control Lab for DOS and there you go. Original software is available on the Internet Archive.

This "portable" option is working as is on my Windows 10 64bit laptop.

https://archive.org/details/control-lab-win-95-portable

Edited March 26 by Gunners TekZone

[Jetro]

6 hours ago, Gunners TekZone said:

This "portable" option is working as is on my Windows 10 64bit laptop.

https://archive.org/details/control-lab-win-95-portable

Thank you for the direct link! Looking forward to having some time this weekend to try it out.

 

8 hours ago, AVCampos said:

Alternatively, if I'm not mistaken both Spybotics and Cybermaster can also be programmed with BricxCC, but I never used the former and don't have the latter.

I've used BrickxCC with Spybotics - I had a GBC module based on a Spybotics pBrick that I programmed that way

[Jetro]

It's been over 2 weeks and the app is still not allowing me to download the content. I sent a follow-up to LEGO, and their reply was:

Quote

I have contacted the team that manages all our apps, and they have informed me that the LEGO® MINDSTORMS app is currently experiencing issues. This will be resolved as soon as possible, and you will be able to access all the content again. 

I hope "as soon as possible" is before they pull the app from the store.

Still no word about making the app available through some other channel to ensure future access 
Have any of you heard back from LEGO?

[sizlaq]

Hi,

I will be emailing Lego support with the concerns raised here. Stopping support is fine and understandable but I hope they don't pull the apps as they contain content which isn't available in other formats or means.

I was able to download the additional content from the app on Android and Mac OS but not Windows. It would be good to see if we can extract the APK on Android along with the additional content so that it could be reloaded on other devices if needed.

It is a shame the additional builds don't have a PDF download option which would have made things a bit easier.

 

[vascolp]

I asked this in late march:

I recently realized that the Mindstorms Robot Inventor application will be discontinued in June. What can I do after that date? Is it possible to obtain copies of the installation version of the application?

Since it will no longer be supported, is it possible for the source code to be made available for the community to continue using?
----

(yes I asked for the source code! :-).

Got a fast one day after answer:

Thanks for reaching out about the LEGO MINDSTORMS theme! Our designers in Denmark are busy inventing new LEGO® toys all the time, which means we sometimes have to stop making a few of the older sets to make room for even awesome-er things.  

Sadly, we're unable to share any source code or copies of this application for future use.

We'd recommend making sure you update as often as possible before it's removed from the app store. You may find more information on fan-based websites or forums dedicated to this theme. These websites aren’t affiliated with the LEGO Group but are run by passionate fans.

Have you checked out any of our newer tech-based sets? Go to Coding for Kids, Trains, Powered Up and Robots for Kids on LEGO.com to see what we’ve got to offer!

 

[sizlaq]

I emailed Lego and also used the support form on the website with the following:

Quote

Dear LEGO Support,

I own the LEGO MINDSTORMS Robot Inventor set and have some questions regarding the discontinuation of the app from 1 June 2026:

1. Will the Robot Inventor app continue to function on devices where it is already installed, or will it stop working after this date?
2. Will the app be removed from app stores and users’ download libraries after 1 June 2026?
3. If it is removed from official app stores, will LEGO provide an alternative way to download or access the app?
4. Will the app continue to include all existing downloadable content and community features after discontinuation?
5. Will the building instructions and other downloadable content be made available separately (e.g., as PDFs), similar to the five base models?
6. Will LEGO provide guidance on recreating or replacing the custom blocks required for the official models?
7. Since existing Robot Inventor programs are not compatible with the SPIKE app, will there be any tools or guidance to support migration?
8. If transitioning to the SPIKE app, how can users access or recreate the custom blocks required for Robot Inventor models?

Thank you for your support and clarification.

Kind regards.

Got the following response:

Quote

Thanks for getting in touch with us about the LEGO® MINDSTORMS® Robot Inventor set.

 

With the set being retired, it limits the support we can provide but the app is expected to continue to function on devices where it is already installed. Just keep in mind that the app will not receive further updates and will be removed from app stores. Unless you already have it downloaded on your device there won't be an alternative way to download or access the app but you will still be able to find all of the building instructions on our website here.

 

As for guidance on future projects or information about the community section, we are looking into option we can provide but as the product is officially retired, we won't be able to promise a future support. I would suggest keeping an eye on the website for further instructions.

For now, let me know if there's anything else I can do for you.

I'm currently looking into a way to see if I can extract the Android APK (along with content) and install that on another device.

Edited April 23 by sizlaq

[Jetro]

9 hours ago, sizlaq said:

I'm currently looking into a way to see if I can extract the Android APK (along with content) and install that on another device.

Thanks. Let me know how you fare!

[sizlaq]

It looks like the Robot Inventor APK is a split-APK. I extracted the APKs from my Pixel phone and was able to successful install the app on a Samsung Galaxy Tab S4 (with Internet turned off on the tablet to make sure it didn't depend on a Lego server). Interestingly I was not able to officially install it on a Samsung Tab S4 when using the Google Play Store but I was able to install it using the APKs and the adb tool. 

I'm going to check if there is a way to copy the additional downloads (further activities, advanced activities, and community content) so it can be preserved.

[Jetro]

I called LEGO Customer Service - I really wanted to vent, but as usual the people who man their phones are really nice and it isn't their fault LEGO is being a **** about this. Anyway, still no downloadable content and still no insight into what will happen after June 1.

[sizlaq]

I can download content from the app on Android and MacOS. Downloading from the Windows app is still broken for me.

[sizlaq]

Just an update, I've managed to copy the all the additional content/downloads off an Android device. I've also managed to restore the downloaded content after installing the app from scratch. Note: This requires the device to be rooted however this should mean that as long as you have an Android device that is Android 7+ or greater and has been rooted, you should be able to install the Lego Mindstorms app and have access to all the additional content without any issues.

[Jetro]

3 hours ago, sizlaq said:

Just an update, I've managed to copy the all the additional content/downloads off an Android device. I've also managed to restore the downloaded content after installing the app from scratch. Note: This requires the device to be rooted however this should mean that as long as you have an Android device that is Android 7+ or greater and has been rooted, you should be able to install the Lego Mindstorms app and have access to all the additional content without any issues.

Great!! Let us know if you can make this available somewhere

 

[sizlaq]

I will make this available somewhere for everyone to access with some basic steps on how to load the app and restore the data. Some additional good news, I've managed to copy the Mac OS version of the app with the additional content and made it so that it can be manually installed and restored with all the downloaded content. Might see if I can do the same for Windows as well.

[Jetro]

Just now, sizlaq said:

Might see if I can do the same for Windows as well.

That would be brilliant! I wanted to look into that and then discovered I could not download the additional content. That's what started this thread in the first place.

[Repkovsky]

Installer of Mindstorms for Windows (appx file) can be downloaded using https://store.rg-adguard.net/ (or https://msft-store.tplant.com.au/) + Mindstorms App ID, which is 9mtq0n7w1d6x. For now it seems to work, I have put it in my google drive https://drive.google.com/file/d/1CMtGbpDzl44eDxhv-hZWh4I4N2gVuwZO/view?usp=sharing.

[deltamc]

If I install Pybrick, will I be able to revert to the original firmware after support ends?

[AVCampos]

Yes, Pybricks is completely revertable.

[Jetro]

I wrote to Customer Service again: so far I got nothing but empty promises of "we're working to resolve this as soon as possible", but in the meantime I still don't have access to the additional content in the app that is technically still available for Windows and no solution has been offered. It's been well over 2 months since I first wrote to them and the result is zero.

1 hour ago, Repkovsky said:

Installer of Mindstorms for Windows (appx file) can be downloaded using https://store.rg-adguard.net/ (or https://msft-store.tplant.com.au/) + Mindstorms App ID, which is 9mtq0n7w1d6x. For now it seems to work, I have put it in my google drive https://drive.google.com/file/d/1CMtGbpDzl44eDxhv-hZWh4I4N2gVuwZO/view?usp=sharing.

What about the additional files though?

[sizlaq]

I'm investigating a way to fix the download issue for the Windows app but it is tricky. Will see if there is a way to transplant the content files from the Mac OS version to the Windows version if the download feature can't be fixed.

[sizlaq]

Managed to get the downloadable content and updates working for the Windows App. 

Fix LEGO MINDSTORMS Windows Content Download Failure

Problem

The LEGO MINDSTORMS Windows app may fail when downloading content because its app configuration points to a broken QA S3 bucket:

lego-education-atlas-app-content-qa.s3.amazonaws.com

The app receives this configuration from a local appconfig endpoint:

http://localhost:<port>/content/appconfig/appconfig.json

This workaround replaces that local appconfig response using Fiddler AutoResponder, removing the broken AWS/S3 config so the app uses the normal LEGO Education content URL instead.

---

What you need

Install:

Fiddler Classic

PowerShell does not need to be run as Administrator for the main workaround.

---

Step 1 — Open Fiddler

1. Open Fiddler Classic.

2. Make sure traffic capture is enabled:

File > Capture Traffic

It should be ticked.

---

Step 2 — Start the LEGO MINDSTORMS app

Open the Windows MINDSTORMS app.

In Fiddler, look for a request like:

http://localhost:53389/content/appconfig/appconfig.json

The port number may be different each time, for example:

localhost:53389
localhost:50123
localhost:62410

The important part is:

/content/appconfig/appconfig.json

Keep a note of the port number for Step 3.

---

Step 3 — Save the current appconfig

In PowerShell, replace the port number with the one shown in Fiddler:

$Port = <PORT NUMBER>
curl.exe -s "http://localhost:$Port/content/appconfig/appconfig.json" -o "$env:USERPROFILE\Downloads\appconfig-original.json"

---

Step 4 — Create a patched appconfig

Run this in PowerShell:

$Original = "$env:USERPROFILE\Downloads\appconfig-original.json"
$Patched = "$env:USERPROFILE\Downloads\appconfig-patched.json"

$json = Get-Content $Original -Raw | ConvertFrom-Json

# Remove the broken QA/S3 config
if ($json.contentstack.PSObject.Properties.Name -contains "aws") {
    $json.contentstack.PSObject.Properties.Remove("aws")
}

# Ensure the normal LEGO Education content URLs are present
$json.contentstack.url.global = "https://education.lego.com"
$json.contentstack.url.cn = "https://education.lego.cn"

$json | ConvertTo-Json -Depth 100 | Set-Content $Patched -Encoding UTF8

Write-Host "Patched config created at: $Patched"

---

Step 5 — Confirm the bad bucket has been removed

Run:

Select-String -Path "$env:USERPROFILE\Downloads\appconfig-patched.json" -SimpleMatch "lego-education-atlas-app-content-qa"

If there is no output, the bad QA bucket has been removed.

Check the normal content URL is still present:

Select-String -Path "$env:USERPROFILE\Downloads\appconfig-patched.json" -SimpleMatch "https://education.lego.com"

---

Step 6 — Configure Fiddler AutoResponder

In Fiddler:

1. Go to the AutoResponder tab.

2. Tick:

Enable rules
Unmatched requests passthrough

3. Add a new rule.

For the match rule, use:

regex:http://localhost:\d+/content/appconfig/appconfig\.json

For the response, give the location of the patched JSON file. E.g.

C:\Users\bob\Downloads\appconfig-patched.json

---

Step 7 — Restart the app

1. Fully close the LEGO MINDSTORMS app.

2. Keep Fiddler open.

3. Make sure AutoResponder is enabled.

4. Start the LEGO MINDSTORMS app again.

In Fiddler, confirm the request to:

/content/appconfig/appconfig.json

is being handled by AutoResponder.

---

Step 8 — Download all available content and updates

In the MINDSTORMS app, go through the content/update screens and download everything available.

Apply all available updates and download all additional content including community content.

The aim is to let the app fully populate its local content cache while Fiddler is still serving the patched appconfig.

Keep Fiddler running until all updates and additional content downloads have completed successfully.

---

Step 9 — Put the PC back to normal afterwards

Once the content has downloaded successfully, stop Fiddler from modifying traffic.

Disable AutoResponder

In Fiddler:

AutoResponder > untick Enable rules

You can also delete the AutoResponder rule.

Stop capturing traffic

In Fiddler:

File > Capture Traffic

Untick it.

Then close Fiddler.

---

Step 10 — Optional cleanup

Delete the temporary config files:

Remove-Item "$env:USERPROFILE\Downloads\appconfig-original.json" -Force
Remove-Item "$env:USERPROFILE\Downloads\appconfig-patched.json" -Force

---

Summary

The workaround is:

1. Capture the localhost appconfig request in Fiddler.
2. Save appconfig.json.
3. Remove the contentstack.aws block.
4. Serve the patched appconfig using Fiddler AutoResponder.
5. Restart the MINDSTORMS app.
6. Apply all updates and download all additional content, including community content.
7. Disable Fiddler and close it afterwards.

The key fix is removing this block from the appconfig:

"aws": {
  "accessKeyId": "...",
  "secretAccessKey": "...",
  "bucket": "lego-education-atlas-app-content-qa"
}

Once removed, the app stops generating broken QA S3 download URLs.

Edited May 20 by sizlaq

[Repkovsky]

@sizlaq Brilliant solution, worked very well for me. I have uploaded the content here: https://drive.google.com/file/d/1pDewe8LFHKds_LlaA60QbHHw8c13rdTg/view?usp=sharing

It should be unpacked into directory like below (or similar).

c:\Users\<username>\AppData\Local\Packages\TheLEGOGroup.LEGOMINDSTORMSInventor_m36angppq0g76\LocalCache\Local\LEGO MINDSTORMS Content

 

[Jetro]

On 5/20/2026 at 2:15 AM, sizlaq said:

Managed to get the downloadable content and updates working for the Windows App. 

Where's the "like" button when you need it!? Thanks!!

15 hours ago, Repkovsky said:

@sizlaq Brilliant solution, worked very well for me. I have uploaded the content here: https://drive.google.com/file/d/1pDewe8LFHKds_LlaA60QbHHw8c13rdTg/view?usp=sharing

It should be unpacked into directory like below (or similar).

c:\Users\<username>\AppData\Local\Packages\TheLEGOGroup.LEGOMINDSTORMSInventor_m36angppq0g76\LocalCache\Local\LEGO MINDSTORMS Content

 

I downloaded and unpacked the content as indicated. I then started up my MINDSTORMS RI app. It did not recognise the content and shows there is no additional content available. Simply placing the content in this folder doesn't appear to work. Am I doing something wrong?

[sizlaq]

I have generated all the build instructions in the app into PDF format, there are 63 PDFs. I'm looking for a good place to host them that isn't my Google Drive. Any suggestions?

Edited May 21 by sizlaq