LightBurn

Overview

Before this existed, running a laser meant three applications: one to draw, one to convert the drawing into machine instructions, and one to talk to the controller. Each handoff lost something and each one was a place to introduce a mistake. LightBurn collapses all three into a single application where you draw, assign cut settings, preview the exact path the head will take, and send the job to the machine without exporting anything.

The drawing side is a genuine vector editor rather than a token one. Beziers with node editing, boolean operations, offsets for inside and outside cuts, text with true type and single line engraving fonts, text on a path, arrays and grid duplication, alignment and distribution, measuring and dimensioning, and image import with dithering and threshold controls for engraving photographs. Imported vector files from the common formats come in with their layers preserved.

Cut settings are organised by layer, which is how laser work actually thinks. Each colour is a layer with its own power, speed, pass count, interval, air assist state and mode, so one drawing can cut, score and engrave in a single job with the ordering defined explicitly. The preview simulates the whole job with a time estimate and a travel path, which catches the ordering mistakes that otherwise ruin material.

Machine control is built in and covers a wide range of controllers rather than a single brand. Framing to check placement before firing, camera assisted positioning for aligning a job onto an irregular piece of material, jogging and homing, rotary attachment support for cylindrical objects, material test grids for finding settings on something new, and a device profile system that keeps the correct configuration for each machine when more than one is on the bench.

Key Features

• Vector drawing with node editing, booleans, offsets and array duplication
• Text with true type and single line engraving fonts, including text on a path
• Image import with dithering, threshold and grayscale controls for photo engraving
• Layer based cut settings for power, speed, passes, interval, air assist and mode
• Job preview with travel path simulation and time estimation
• Direct machine control over a wide range of controllers without an intermediate exporter
• Framing, jogging and homing with camera assisted material positioning
• Rotary attachment support for engraving cylindrical objects
• Material test grid generation for finding settings on unfamiliar stock
• Device profiles so several machines can be managed from one install

What Changed in This Build

• Additional controller profiles added for recent machines
• Faster preview generation on very large engraving jobs
• Improved camera calibration accuracy for material alignment
• Node editing tools extended with better curve fitting on imported artwork

System Requirements

Processor	Any 64-bit x86 processor, 2 GHz or faster
Memory	4 GB minimum, 8 GB recommended for large engraving jobs
Graphics	Any card with a current driver
Storage	500 MB free
Connection	USB or network connection to a supported controller

Release Details

Full title	LightBurn
Version string	2.0.05
Publisher	LightBurn Software
Category	CAD and 3D
Licence	Full version with all device profiles
Platform	Windows 7 through 11, 64-bit
Interface language	Multilingual, 15 interface languages
Archive size	128 MB
Mirrors	4 active, all reporting online
Listed	refreshed 3 months ago, checked again 40 minutes ago

Installation Notes

• Create a device profile for each machine on the bench rather than editing one profile back and forth.
• Run a material test grid on any unfamiliar stock before committing a real job to it.
• Always frame the job before firing. It costs ten seconds and saves a sheet of material.

Before You Start

Read the notes above before running setup. Most of the problems people write in about are covered there, and almost all of them come down to an older version of the same software still being installed, a graphics driver that predates the release, or a security suite quarantining part of the package mid install.

There is no archive password on this or any other entry in the library. If something you downloaded elsewhere claims to come from here and asks for one, it did not come from here. Nothing on this site is behind a survey, a shortener or a countdown either.

If the entry does not match what the page describes, say so on the contact page and include the version string from the release details table. Reports naming a specific version get checked first because the checker can reproduce them straight away.

Frequently Asked