Yea, I can absolutely understand that. I was thinking about making some videos but I kind of suck at that (and don’t like hearing myself talk). I think that as WebUI v3 becomes the recommended version, some documentation and repos will get updated so hopefully it gets clearer.
Here’s a run down which gives some overview and thoughts on the confusion:
Why I Prefer WebUI v3
- I like the jog panel (even the default one) waaaaay more than v2. The v2 one is fine if using a mouse, but terrible with a touch screen.
- Macros are much easier.
- I like that things can be customized through themes and extensions.
- It is a lot more customizable. Show what you want and hide the rest.
- Other Features
- Keyboard/gamepad control - I tried this but don’t use regularly.
- Drag and drop files to upload - I use this all the time.
Firmware
This is still whatever the V1 recommended firmware version is. It’s officially 3.9.1 but I think that’s going to change to 3.9.7 soon. For the most part, the WebUI is independent of the FluidNC version.
WebUI v3 Version
3.0.0.5-FluidNC
Release 3.0.0-5-FluidNC · michmela44/ESP3D-WEBUI
My Stuff
This is all completely optional. All the links go to my Github page with instructions.
- Themes - Dark V1E and FluidNC Themes
- These are nice if you like dark themes. They used to have some additional tweaks but they’re now a part of the base theme. I think the base theme is completely fine now.
- ESP3D-WEBUI-Mods/Themes at main · jeyeager65/ESP3D-WEBUI-Mods
- Extension - Joystick Jogging - Just an alternate jogging panel for touch based joystick control. If you don’t like the included jog panel, you can try this.
- Extension - Hold Monitor (this thread) - Shows a message history and shows a popup of any M0 messages with a resume button. It’s handy because otherwise you need to go find the message in the terminal, but if it’s still giving status updates, it won’t be the latest thing in the terminal.
WebUI v3 Installation
This is where instructions could probably be improved.
Source
Right now, there’s Mike’s Github (linked above) which is the official FluidNC fork of the WebUI.
Ryan has versions in the FluidNC_Configs repo:
- Lowrider: FluidNC_Configs/LowRider CNC/UI V3 LRCNC at main · V1EngineeringInc/FluidNC_Configs
- MPCNC: FluidNC_Configs/MPCNC/UI V3 MPCNC at main · V1EngineeringInc/FluidNC_Configs
Both of those folders have the same files as far as the WebUI is concerned:
- favicon.ico - Just the icon shown in the corner of the browser window.
- index.html.gz - Main WebUI v3 page
- preferences.json - WebUI configuration. WebUI v2 has this file as well, but it’s completely different.
- theme-FluidNC.gz - This file isn’t needed anymore because it’s integrated into the main page.
I wonder if the WebUI files should be separated from the config.yaml file.
Actually Installing It
First I would backup the existing files on Flash so you can restore if necessary.
- Get the WebUI v3 index.html.gz from Mike’s repo or Ryan’s repo (which I assume will be updated soon so they’re the same version).
- Get the preferences.json and favicon.ico from Ryan’s repo.
- Upload them all to Flash. On WebUI v2, that’s under FluidNC tab, then green folder icon to “Manage local files”. You can do it via FluidTerm or the Web Installer.
But the WebInstaller…
This is where I don’t know all the details. The WebInstaller (https://installer.fluidnc.com/) is sometimes quirky for me and I don’t really use it.
Not too long ago, they added the option to add WebUI v2 or v3 with that. At some point, Mike will create a PR to update the FluidNC repo, which will then make that the version installed from the web installer.
But, I don’t think that installs a preferences.json file. It’s not that bad to setup yourself, but having a start helps.
So, yea, it’s a little all over the place, but ignoring my stuff, it’s not any more all over the place than WebUI v2. This is why I understand Ryan trying to put stuff all in a single folder to help to simplify things a bit. I’m not sure what the complete solution is.