Connect your machine

Beam Bench supports machines by their controller board and firmware, not by the laser source. GRBL is Supported. Additional G-code, Ruida, and stock K40/Lihuiyu choices are available as Experimental.

Do this

1. Plug in the machine and power it on. Wait for the controller to boot fully (most boards take a few seconds).
2. Open Run > Laser Control or Device Settings > Connection.
3. Choose the connection type your controller actually uses: Serial, Network, or USB.
4. Choose the controller. Use Auto-detect when the firmware can identify itself, or select the installed controller explicitly. Experimental choices carry the label directly in this list.
5. Choose the endpoint. Select a serial port, enter a network host and port, or select the listed USB controller. A serial port is usually named something like /dev/tty.usbserial-* (macOS), COM3 (Windows), or /dev/ttyUSB0 (Linux). If it does not appear, see Port is not listed.
6. Choose a machine profile or accept the default. A profile sets the bed size, max speeds, and other controller-specific values. You can edit profiles in the Device Settings dialog.
7. Verify. Laser Control should reach Ready and show the detected or selected controller. A serial G-code controller may also show its welcome or identity response in the Console panel.

Current controller choices

See Supported machines for the controller table and the capabilities available for each adapter. The original xTool M1 uses HTTP networking and a physical-button start; LaserPecker requires its matching adapter and preset. Neither should be configured as a generic machine merely because a port appears.

A profile remembers its last successful serial or network endpoint and selected controller. Those choices return after restart or profile switching, but the app does not connect automatically. You can paste a host and port together, such as 10.0.1.155:8080; verify both fields before connecting.

Windows WinUSB setup for Lihuiyu

Beam Bench uses the Windows WinUSB backend for a Lihuiyu M2/M3 Nano controller with USB ID 1a86:5512. Windows cannot switch the active device driver when Beam Bench connects. The controller must already be bound to WinUSB.

If Beam Bench reports an incompatible Windows USB driver:

1. Note the driver name shown by Beam Bench and close LaserDRW or any other software using the controller.
2. Use a trusted Windows USB driver management tool or a signed driver package to bind WinUSB to the USB\VID_1A86&PID_5512 device and interface 0. Check the hardware ID carefully so you do not change the driver for another USB device.
3. Disconnect and reconnect the controller, return to Device Settings > Connection, choose USB, and refresh the USB list.
4. Connect again. Beam Bench should allow the connection after Windows reports WinUSB or a compatible composite-device binding.

Changing the binding can prevent LaserDRW or other vendor software from using the controller. Restore the original driver if you need to return to that software. Beam Bench does not install or replace Windows drivers automatically.

What just happened

For Serial and Network Auto-detect, Beam Bench uses bounded read-only identity queries and activates a named adapter only when the controller provides matching evidence. If the identity is inconclusive, the app asks you to choose instead of silently treating the machine as GRBL.

The Ruida choice starts with bounded identity and machine-status queries. RDC6442S uses the established Experimental path. RDC6445G and other responding Ethernet variants can opt into the same guarded runtime, but they remain unverified until owners confirm real-controller results. Ruida USB is not supported. The Lihuiyu choice lists matching CH341 devices and requires a recognized controller status before it enters Ready.

If you see an error, garbled text, or "no response", the most common causes are:

• The wrong connection type, controller, address, port, or serial baud rate was selected. For serial problems, check Baud rate mismatch.
• A required serial or USB driver is not installed, or the operating system has not granted device access.
• Another app is holding the device or network endpoint. Close any other software that talks to the laser.
• An Experimental Ruida Ethernet variant may answer the initial checks but behave differently during framing or a job. Stop the machine if the result is unexpected, then use Help > Report a Bug and include the controller model, firmware version if known, connection type, and what happened.

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