ScottW514
cd8a01a3d9
The remaining bench diagnostics run from forgetest's #bench tab. The tools that also run from a LAN host share scripts/bench/gfbench.py: GF_HOST names a remote machine (host mode, sysfs through ssh, Grbl and forgectrl over the LAN); unset, the tool runs on the board itself (local mode, sysfs directly, everything on 127.0.0.1), which is how the page runs them - with GF_HOST=127.0.0.1, the panel token in GF_TOKEN and their data files under <data>/bench/ (FORGETEST_BENCH_DATA). The helper also reads a machine setting from forgectrl, or from the settings file on the board while forgectrl is stopped. Ported: pwm_sweep / pwm_hold (scope = a takeover; the latch relocked, the write refused if FIRE or LASER_ON reads active), pwm_stream_test (PASS/FAIL exit), flow_characterize, flow_recheck_char, flow_warm_validate and flow_matrix (takeovers: forgectrl owns the thermal hardware, so the page's takeover replaces the tools' own controller stop/restart, whose command line predated the supervisor; results and logs in the bench data directory), flow_sustained, fan_test, temp_calibrate (dry; watch bounded in seconds; the threshold and the coolant conversion from the shared code), flow_escalate_drill (cool_confirm_max_s shortened through forgectrl's settings for the drill and restored; the setting's minimum is the default budget), and live_fire_drills (<drill> [S] [F], all six drills, host from GF_HOST, token from the board). flow_matrix joins the registry. What stays unported cannot run against the machine at all: the two null-sink CI harnesses and the .puls decoder. Runner: a scope tool runs inside the takeover wrapper; the bench environment above is passed to every tool. Tests: test_bench_registry (registry <-> scripts/bench consistency, every ported tool builds its command line, every script compiles, gfbench host/local modes) and the server test (scope tool takeover, the environment reaching the tool). Local mode smoke-run on the bench (temp_calibrate watch, setting, token) from /tmp, removed after. No catalog consequence: bench tools are not image components (dev-only forgetest); the acceptance catalog is unchanged.
OpenGlow/ForgeFIRM Firmware for Glowforge
Open-source firmware for Glowforge brand CNC lasers. ForgeFIRM replaces the cloud-dependent factory software on the stock control board — no hardware modification — and gives the machine a local controller, a local web control panel, and a standard Grbl interface.
- Latest Release
- Installation Instructions
- Build Instructions
- Connecting LightBurn
- How the laser safing works
- How a release is accepted
- Community Support
What it does
Two controller modes, selected in the web panel and switchable while the machine is idle:
- GRBL mode — grblHAL runs on the machine and speaks Grbl 1.1 over TCP port 23, so LightBurn, UGS, and cncjs drive the laser directly. Motion runs on the board's own hardware step engine (SDMA + EPIT), fed live by the planner. M3/M4 dynamic laser power, coolant-flow verification, over-temp holds, and an operator button press to arm the laser for each job.
- Cloud mode — the machine presents itself as a stock Glowforge to the Glowforge web service, so the phone and web apps work as they always did. Optional, and off by default. GRBL mode jogs and cuts without it; the one GRBL-mode function that still reaches the Glowforge service is camera-referenced homing (below), until limit-switch homing lands.
Around both modes:
- A web control panel on port 8080: machine status and position, coolant and fan telemetry, safety-switch states, camera view, machine settings, hardware diagnostics, firmware updates, and boot-slot management.
- Unified logging: every ForgeFIRM component logs through syslog into its
own directory under
/data/log/forgefirm, with per-logger levels for the device and for an optional remote syslog server, a live viewer in the panel, and a one-click log bundle — sanitized of identifying details — for attaching to an issue report. - Both cameras as MJPEG streams and full-resolution snapshots — the lid camera feeds LightBurn's camera overlay directly.
- Camera-referenced homing:
$Hfrom any sender runs the factory-style camera homing cycle through the Glowforge service (a Glowforge account and a live service session are required for$H; everything else in GRBL mode runs without them), and the machine records where it is. - Installs alongside the factory firmware in the unused A/B rootfs slot, archiving every factory version first, so the machine can be switched back to stock at any time without the Glowforge cloud.
Hardware
The control board is common to Glowforge Basic, Plus, and Pro. The 5 MP (OV5648) camera modules are fully supported; the 8 MP (OV8856) modules found in "HD" units bind but do not capture yet — see the camera note in kas/README.md.
Roadmap
- Limit-switch homing as an alternative to camera-referenced homing.
- Camera lens calibration and bed alignment for the LightBurn overlay.
- Capture support for the 8 MP (OV8856) camera modules.
- Cloud mode: stream jobs into the motion ring during the run, lifting the job-length cap that buffering the whole job imposes.
Safety
This machine contains a Class 4 CO₂ laser: it burns, blinds, and starts fires. Never defeat the lid switches or interlock, always vent the exhaust outdoors, and never cut PVC or other chlorinated plastics. Never leave a running job unattended — keep a fire extinguisher within reach. Read Before you cut — safety before your first job, and the Regulatory and legal section before installing. How the laser safing works describes the hardware safety chain and the software gates ForgeFIRM stacks on it.
A very important warning: this is experimental software. Use of this software could seriously maim or kill you or others, and voids your warranty. It is not affiliated with or endorsed by Glowforge. Use it at your own risk.