onboard

name	onboard
description	Use when setting up the Bambu LAN printing workflow for the first time on a machine, or when print-to-bambu preflight is not all green — installs/locates the slicer, sets up the Python venv, scaffolds bambu.toml, helps find the printer IP/serial/access code, and walks through enabling Developer/LAN Mode so prints can start.

Onboard: set up Bambu LAN printing

Goal: take the user from nothing to a green preflight.py (ready_to_print=True). Do the steps in order. Some require the user to act on the physical printer — stop and ask them to do it; never invent an IP, serial, or access code.

Paths below assume the repo root is the current directory.

1. Slicer

Detect Bambu Studio / OrcaSlicer:

• macOS: ls -d /Applications/BambuStudio.app /Applications/OrcaSlicer.app 2>/dev/null
• PATH: which bambu-studio orca-slicer

If none, have the user install Bambu Studio (https://bambulab.com/en/download). Newest printers (X2D, H2 series) need an up-to-date build, or the model's slice profile will be missing.

2. Python environment (check, then set up if missing)

One command — run with the system python3 — checks Python, the virtualenv, and the required packages, and sets up whatever is missing (it bootstraps .venv, so it must run before the venv exists):

python3 .claude/skills/onboard/scripts/setup_env.py                # printing deps
python3 .claude/skills/onboard/scripts/setup_env.py --with-design  # + design-stl deps

It needs Python 3.11+ (it creates the venv and pip-installs, but can't install Python itself — if yours is older it says so and stops). Pass --check to verify without changing anything (exit 1 if something's missing). After it reports environment ready, run every later script with .venv/bin/python.

3. Config file

# Pass --machine to auto-fill COMPATIBLE process/filament presets (no guessing):
.venv/bin/python .claude/skills/print-to-bambu/scripts/setup_config.py \
    --machine "Bambu Lab P1S 0.4 nozzle"

This writes a gitignored bambu.toml. Use list_presets.py to find the exact machine name. Then help the user fill it in:

• [printer] ip and serial — from the printer screen (Settings → WLAN / Device).
• [slice] machine/process/filament — --machine auto-fills compatible presets; preflight verifies both existence and machine-compatibility.
• access code — prefer export BAMBU_ACCESS_CODE=... over writing it to the file.

4. Developer / LAN Mode (required to START prints)

Slicing and monitoring work without it; starting a print does not. Walk the user through .claude/skills/print-to-bambu/reference/developer-mode.md and have them read the access code off the printer screen.

5. Confirm hardware — the set-once print params

These rarely change, so confirm them now and store them in bambu.toml; the per-print parameter gate then trusts them instead of re-asking every print.

• Build plate → [slice].bed_type. Ask which plate is physically on the bed (P1S/X1 default is "Textured PEI Plate"). Unset defaults to Cool Plate (~35 °C) — too cold for PLA and a classic first-layer-fail.
• AMS? → [print].use_ams and [print].ams_tray. If an AMS is attached and loaded, set use_ams = true. You can confirm what the printer actually sees (once creds + LAN Mode are set) — it reports the AMS and which slots hold filament. use_ams = false while filament is only in the AMS prints nothing.

6. Verify

.venv/bin/python .claude/skills/print-to-bambu/scripts/preflight.py

Read each line. Resolve every ✗ (see mapping below). Aim for ready_to_print=True. Then confirm the LAN path without printing:

.venv/bin/python .claude/skills/print-to-bambu/scripts/send.py <file>.gcode.3mf --dry-run

A successful dry-run (uploads, does not print) means everything is wired up.

Preflight ✗ → fix

Symptom	Fix
config ✗	run setup_config.py; set ip/serial
slicer ✗	install Bambu Studio / OrcaSlicer, or set [slicer].binary
machine profile ✗	slicer too old for the model, or wrong preset name
process profile ✗ NOT compatible	wrong process family — run list_presets.py --machine "<machine>" (e.g. P1S uses @BBL X1C, not @BBL P1P)
bambulabs-api ✗	re-run step 2: setup_env.py (installs it into .venv)
printer api no / tcp down	printer off, wrong IP/subnet, or only reachable over a VPN ([vpn via utunN])
tcp up but api no	Developer/LAN Mode is OFF, or the access code rotated

When ready_to_print=True, hand off to the print-to-bambu skill.

(Optional) design-stl deps

If the user also wants to design models from descriptions (the design-stl skill, default engine trimesh):

• Python deps (required): re-run step 2 with --with-design (python3 .claude/skills/onboard/scripts/setup_env.py --with-design) — it adds trimesh, manifold3d, matplotlib, scipy, rtree, networkx.
• OpenSCAD (optional, only for the .scad path): brew install --cask openscad.

Verify: .venv/bin/python .claude/skills/design-stl/scripts/validate.py examples/hydrogen_molecule.stl should print a printability report.