klipper-macros

This is a collection of macros for the Klipper 3D printer firmware. I originally created this repo just to have a consistent set of macros shared between my own 3D printers. But since I've found them useful, I thought other people might as well.

What can I do with these?

Most of these macros just improve basic functionality (e.g. selectable build sheets) and Klipper compatability with g-code targeting Marlin printers. However, there are also some nice extras:

• Schedule commands at heights and layer changes - This is similar to what your slicer can already do, but I find it simpler, and you can schedule these commands while a print is active. As an example of usage, I added an LCD menu item to pause the print at the next layer change. This way the pause won't mar the print by e.g. pausing inside an external perimeter.
• Dynamically scale heaters and fans - This makes it easy to do things like persistently adjust fan settings during a live print, or maintain simpler slicer profiles by moving things like a heater bump for a hardened steel nozzle into state stored on the printer.
• Cleaner LCD menu interface - I've simplified the menus and provided a much easier way to customize materials in the LCD menu (or at least I think so). I've also added confirmation dialogs for commands that would abort an active print.
• Optimized mesh bed leveling - Probes only within the printed area, which can save a lot of time on smaller prints.

A few warnings...

• You must have a heater_bed, extruder, and other sections listed below configured, otherwise the macros will force a printer shutdown at startup. Unfortunately, the Klipper macro doesn't have a more graceful way of handling this sort of thing.
• The multi-extruder and chamber heater functionality is very under-tested and may have bugs, since I haven't used it much at all. Patches welcome.
• There's probably other stuff I haven't used enough to thoroughly, so use at your own risk.

Installation

To install the macros first clone this repository inside of your klipper_config directory like so.

git clone https://github.com/jschuh/klipper-macros.git

Then paste the below section into your printer.cfg to get started. The settings are all listed in globals.cfg, and can be overridden by creating a corresponding variable with a new value in your [gcode_macro _km_options] section.

Note: If you have a [homing_override] section you will need to update any G28 commands in that section to use to G28.6245197 instead (which is the renamed version of Klipper's built-in G28). Failure to do this will cause G28 commands to error out with the message "Macro G28 called recursively".

Klipper Setup

# All customizations are documented in globals.cfg. Just copy a variable from
# there into the section below, and change the value to meet your needs.

[gcode_macro _km_options]
# These are examples of some likely customizations:
# Any sheets in the below list will be available with a configurable offset.
#variable_bed_surfaces: ['smooth_1','texture_1']
# Length (in mm) of filament to load (bowden tubes will be longer).
#variable_load_length: 90.0
# Hide the Octoprint LCD menu since I don't use it.
#variable_menu_show_octoprint: 0
# Customize the filament menus (up to 10 entries).
#variable_menu_temperature: [
#  {'name' : 'PLA',  'extruder' : 200.0, 'bed' : 60.0},
#  {'name' : 'PETG', 'extruder' : 230.0, 'bed' : 85.0},
#  {'name' : 'ABS',  'extruder' : 245.0, 'bed' : 110.0, 'chamber' : 60}]
gcode: # This line required by Klipper.

# This line includes all the standard macros.
[include klipper-macros/*.cfg]
# Uncomment to include features that require specific hardware support.
# LCD menu support for features like bed surface selection and pause next layer.
#[include klipper-macros/optional/lcd_menus.cfg]
# Optimized bed leveling
#[include klipper-macros/optional/bed_mesh.cfg]

# The sections below here are required for the macros to work.
[idle_timeout]
gcode:
  _KM_IDLE_TIMEOUT

[pause_resume]

[respond]

[save_variables]
filename: ~/klipper_config/variables.cfg

[virtual_sdcard]
path: ~/gcode_files

# Uncomment the sections below if Fluidd complains (because it's confused).
#[display_status]
#
#[gcode_macro CANCEL_PRINT]
#rename_existing: CANCEL_PRINT_BASE
#gcode: CANCEL_PRINT_BASE{% for k in params %}{' '~k~'='~params[k]}{% endfor %}

Moonraker Configuration

Paste the following into your moonraker.conf if you want the macros to automatically update directly from this repo.

[update_manager klipper-macros]
type: git_repo
origin: https://github.com/jschuh/klipper-macros.git
path: ~/klipper_config/klipper-macros
primary_branch: main
is_system_service: False
managed_services: klipper

Slicer Configuration

PrusaSlicer / SuperSlicer

PrusaSlicer and its variants are fairly easy to configure. Just open Printer Settings → Custom G-code for your Klipper printer and paste the below text into the relevant sections.

Start G-code

M190 S0
M109 S0
PRINT_START EXTRUDER={first_layer_temperature[initial_tool]} BED=[first_layer_bed_temperature] MESH_MIN={first_layer_print_min[0]},{first_layer_print_min[1]} MESH_MAX={first_layer_print_max[0]},{first_layer_print_max[1]} LAYERS={total_layer_count}
; Any purge, intro lines, etc. go after this...

End G-code

PRINT_END

Before layer change G-code

;BEFORE_LAYER_CHANGE
;[layer_z]
BEFORE_LAYER_CHANGE HEIGHT=[layer_z] LAYER=[layer_num]

After layer change G-code

;AFTER_LAYER_CHANGE
;[layer_z]
AFTER_LAYER_CHANGE

Ultimaker Cura

Cura is a bit more difficult to configure, and it comes with the following known issues:

• Cura doesn't have proper placeholders for before and after layer changes, so the before triggers all fire and are followed immediately by the after triggers, all of which happens inside the layer change. This probably doesn't matter, but it does mean that you can't use the before and after triggers to avoid running code in the layer change.
• Cura doesn't provide the Z-height of the current layer, so it's inferred from the current nozzle position, which will include the Z-hop if the nozzle is currently raised. This means height based gcode triggers may fire earlier than expected.
• Cura's Insert at layer change fires the After trigger and then the Before trigger (i.e before or after the layer, versus before or after the layer change). These macros and PrusaSlicer do the opposite, which is something to keep in mind if you're used to how Cura does it. Note that these macros do use an Insert at layer change script to force LAYER comment generation, but that doesn't affect the trigger ordering.
• Cura does not provide the first layer bounding rectangle, only the model bounding volume. This means the XY bounding box used to speed up mesh probing may be larger than it needs to be, resulting in bed probing that's not as fast as it could be.

Accepting the caveats, the macros work quite well with Cura if you follow the configuration steps listed below.

Start G-code

M190 S0
M109 S0
PRINT_START EXTRUDER={material_print_temperature_layer_0} BED={material_bed_temperature_layer_0}
; Any purge, intro lines, etc. go after this...

End G-code

PRINT_END

Post Processing Plugin

Use the menu item for Extensions → Post Processing → Modify G-Code to open the Post Processing Plugin and add the following four scripts. The scripts must be run in the order listed below and be sure to copy the strings exactly, with no leading or trailing spaces.

Search and Replace

• Search: (\n;(MIN|MAX)X:([^\n]+)\n;\2Y:([^\n]+))
• Replace: \1\nPRINT_START_SET MESH_\2=\3,\4
• Use Regular Expressions: ☑️

Search and Replace

• Search: (\n;LAYER_COUNT:([^\n]+))
• Replace: \1\nINIT_LAYER_GCODE LAYERS=\2\nPRINT_START_SET LAYERS=\2
• Use Regular Expressions: ☑️

Insert at layer change

• When to insert: Before
• G-code to insert: ;BEFORE_LAYER_CHANGE

Search and Replace

• Search: (\n;LAYER:([^\n]+))
• Replace: \1\nBEFORE_LAYER_CHANGE LAYER=\2\nAFTER_LAYER_CHANGE
• Use Regular Expressions: ☑️

Command Reference

Customization

All features are configured by setting variable_ values in the [gcode_macro _km_options] section. All available variables and their purpose are listed in globals.cfg.

Bed Mesh Improvements

BED_MESH_CALIBRATE_FAST

Wraps the Klipper BED_MESH_CALIBRATE command to scale and redistribute the probe points so that only the appropriate area in MESH_MIN and MESH_MAX is probed. This can dramatically reduce probing times for anything that doesn't fill the first layer of the bed. PRINT_START will automatically use this for bed mesh calibration if a [bed_mesh] section is detected in your config.

The following additional configuration options are available from globals.cfg.

• variable_probe_mesh_padding - Extra padding around the rectangle defined by MESH_MIN and MESH_MAX.
• variable_probe_min_count - Minimum number of probes for partial probing of a bed mesh.
• variable_probe_count_scale - Scaling factor to increase probe count for partial bed probes.

Note: See the optional section for additional macros.

BED_MESH_CHECK

Checks the [bed_mesh] config and warns if mesh_min or mesh_max could allow a move out of range during BED_MESH_CALIBRATE. This is run implictily at Klipper startup and at the start of BED_MESH_CALIBRATE.

Bed Surface

Provides a set of macros for selecting different bed surfaces with correspdonding Z offset adjustments to compensate for their thickness. All available surfaces must be listed in the variable_bed_surfaces array. Corresponding LCD menus for sheet selection and babystepping will be added to Setup and Tune if lcd_menus.cfg is included. Any Z offset adjustments made in the LCD menus, console, or other clients (e.g. Mainsail, Fluidd) will be applied to the current sheet and persisted across restarts.

Lists all available surfaces.

SET_SURFACE_ACTIVE

Sets the provided surface active (from one listed in listed in variable_bed_surfaces) and adjusts the current Z offset to match the offset for the surface. If no SURFACE argument is provided the available surfaces are listed, with active surface preceded by a *.

• SURFACE - Bed surface with an associated offset.

SET_SURFACE_OFFSET

Directly sets the the Z offset of SURFACE to the value of OFFSET. If no argument for SURFACE is provided the current active surface is used. If no argument for OFFSET is provided the current offset is displayed.

• OFFSET - New Z offset for the given surface.
• SURFACE (default: current surface) - Bed surface.

Note: The SET_GCODE_OFFSET macro is overridden to update the offset for the active surface. This makes the bed surface work with Z offset adjustments made via any interface or client.

Beep

Implements the M300 command (if a corresponding [output_pin beeper] section is present). This command causes the speaker to emit an audible tone.

M300

Emits an audible tone.

• P (default: variable_beep_duration) - Duration of tone.
• S (default: variable_beep_frequency) - Frequency of tone.

Fans

Implements scaling parameters that alter the behavior of the M106 command. Once set, these parameters apply to any fan speed until they are cleared.

SET_FAN_SCALING

Sets scaling parameters for the extruder fan.

• BOOST (default: 0) - Added to the fan speed.
• SCALE (default: 1.0) - The BOOST value is added an then the fan speed is multiplied by SCALE.
• MAXIMUM (default: 255) - The fan speed is clamped to no larger than MAXIMUM.
• MINIMUM (default: 0) - The fan speed is clamped to no less than MINIMUM; if this is a non-zero value the fan can be stopped only via the M107 command.
• SPEED (optional) - This specifies a new speed target, otherwise any new adjustments will be applied to the unadjusted value of the last set fan speed.

RESET_FAN_SCALING

• Clears all existing fan scaling factors.

Filament

LOAD_FILAMENT / UNLOAD_FILAMENT

Loads or unloads filament to the nozzle.

• LENGTH (default: variable_load_length) - The length of filament to load or unload.
• SPEED (default: variable_load_speed) - Speed (in mm/m) to feed the filament.
• MINIMUM (default: min_extrude_temp + 5) - Ensures the extruder is heated to at least the specified temperature.

Marlin Compatibility

• The M701 and M702 commands are implemented with a default filament length of variable_load_length.

Heaters

Adds scaling parameters that can alter the behavior of the specified heater. Once set, these parameters apply to any temperature target on that heater until the scalaing parameters are cleared. A zero target temperature will turn the heater off regardless of scaling parameters.

SET_HEATER_SCALING

Sets scaling parameters for the specified heater. If run without any arguments any currently scaled heaters and thier scaling parameters will be listed.

• HEATER - The name of the heater to scale.
• BOOST (default: 0.0) - Added to a non-zero target temperature.
• SCALE (default: 1.0) - Multiplied with the boosted target temperature.
• MAXIMUM (default: max_temp) - The target temperature is clamped to no larger than MAXIMUM. This value must be between min_temp and min_temp, inclusive.
• MINIMUM (default: min_temp) - A non-zero target temperature is clamped to no less than MINIMUM. This value must be between min_temp and min_temp, inclusive.
• TARGET (optional) - This specifies a new target temperature, otherwise any new adjustments will be applied to the unadjusted value of the last set target temperature.

Note: a zero target temperature will turn the heater off regardless of scaling parameters.

RESET_HEATER_SCALING

Clears current heater scaling.

• HEATER (optional) - The name of the heater to reset.

Note: if no HEATER argument is specified scaling parameters will be reset for all heaters.

SET_HEATER_TEMPERATURE_SCALED

The scaled version of Klipper's SET_HEATER_TEMPERATURE. All arguments are the same and the function is identical, except that scaling values are applied.

TEMPERATURE_WAIT_SCALED

The scaled version of Klipper's TEMPERATURE_WAIT. All arguments are the same and the function is identical, except that scaling values are applied.

Marlin Compatibility

• The chamber heating commands M141 and M191 are implemented if a corresponding [heater_generic chamber] section is defined in the config.
• The R temperature parameter from Marlin is implemented for the M109 and M190 commands. This parameter will cause a wait until the target temperature stabilizes (i.e. the normal Klipper behavior for S).
• The S parameter for the M109 and M190 commands is altered to behave as it does in Marlin. Rather than causing a wait until the temperature stabilizes, the wait will complete as soon as the temperature target is exceeded.
• The M109, M190, M191, M104, M140, and M141 are all overridden to implement the heater scaling described above.

Note: Both SET_HEATER_TEMPERATURE and TEMPERATURE_WAIT are not overriden and will not scale values. This means that heater scaling adjustments made in clients like Mainsail and Fluidd will not be scaled (because that seemed like the clearest behavior). The custom LCD menus will also replace the temperature controls with non-scaling versions. If you use the stock menus you'll get scaled values.

Kinematics

G28

Extends the G28 command to add lazy homing by not re-homing already homed axes when the O argument is included (equivalent to the same argument in Marlin). See Klipper G28 documentation for general information and detail on the other arguments.

• O - Omits axes from the homing procedure if they are already homed.

Layer Triggers

Provides the capability to run user-specified g-code commands at arbitrary layer changes.

GCODE_AT_LAYER

Runs abritrary, user-provided g-code commands at the user-specified layer or height. If no arguments are specified it will display all currently scheduled g-code commands along with their associated layer or height.

• HEIGHT - Z height (in mm) to run the command. Exactly one of HEIGHT or LAYER must be specified.
• LAYER - Layer number (zero indexed) to run the command. Exactly one of HEIGHT or LAYER must be specified. The special value next may be specified run the command at the next layer change.
• COMMAND - The command to run at layer change. Take care to properly quote spaces and escape any special characters.
• BEFORE (default: 0) - Set to 1 run the command before the layer change (i.e. immediately following completion of the previous layer). By default commands run after the layer change (i.e. immediately preceding the next layer). In most cases this distinction here doesn't matter, but it can be important when dealing with toolchangers or other multi-material printing.

CANCEL_ALL_LAYER_GCODE

Cancels all g-code commands previously scheduled at any layer or height.

Convenient Layer Change Macros

• PAUSE_NEXT_LAYER ...
  • Schedules the current print to pause at the next layer change. See PAUSE macro for additional arguments.
• PAUSE_AT_LAYER { HEIGHT=<pos> | LAYER=<layer> } ...
  • Schedules the current print to pause at the specified layer change. See PAUSE for additional arguments.
• SPEED_AT_LAYER { HEIGHT=<pos> | LAYER=<layer> } SPEED=<percentage>
  • Schedules a feedrate adjustment at the specified layer change. (SPEED parameter behaves the same as the M220 S parameter.)
• FLOW_AT_LAYER { HEIGHT=<pos> | LAYER=<layer> } FLOW=<percentage>
  • Schedules a flow-rate adjustment at the specified layer change. (FLOW parameter behaves the same as the M221 S parameter.)
• FAN_AT_LAYER { HEIGHT=<pos> | LAYER=<layer> } ...
  • Schedules a fan adjustment at the specified layer change. See SET_FAN_SCALING for additional arguments.
• HEATER_AT_LAYER { HEIGHT=<pos> | LAYER=<layer> } ...
  • Schedules a heater adjustment at the specified layer change. See SET_HEATER_SCALING for additional arguments.

Note: If any triggers cause an exception the current print will abort. The convenience macros above validate their arguments as much as is possible to reduce the chances of an aborted print, but they cannot entirely eliminate the risk of a macro doig something that aborts the print.

Park

Implements toolhead parking.

PARK

Parks the toolhead.

• P (default: 2) - Parking mode
  • P=0 - If current Z-pos is lower than Z-park then the nozzle will be raised to reach Z-park height
  • P=1 - No matter the current Z-pos, the nozzle will be raised/lowered to reach Z-park height.
  • P=2 - The nozzle height will be raised by Z-park amount but never going over the machine’s Z height limit.
• X (default: variable_park_x) - Absolute X parking coordinate.
• Y (default: variable_park_y) - Absolute Y parking coordinate.
• Z (default: variable_park_z) - Z parking coordinate applied according to the P parameter.
• LAZY (default: 1) - Will home any unhomed axes if needed and will not move any axis if already homed and parked (even if P=2).

Note: If a print is in progress the larger of the tallest printed layer or the current Z position will be used as the current Z position, to avoid collisions with already printed objects during a sequential print.

Marlin Compatibility

• The G27 command is implemented with a default P0 argument.

Pause, Resume, Cancel

PAUSE

Pauses the current print.

• X (default: variable_park_x) - Absolute X parking coordinate.
• Y (default: variable_park_y) - Absolute Y parking coordinate.
• Z (default: variable_park_z) - Relative Z parking coordinate
• E (default: 5) - Retraction length to prevent ooze.
• B (default: 10) - Number of beeps to emit (if M300 is enabled).

RESUME

• E (default: 5) - Retraction length to prevent ooze.

CANCEL_PRINT

Cancels the print and performs all the same functions as PRINT_END.

Marlin Compatibility

• The M24, M25, M600, M601, and M602 commands are all implemented by wrapping the above commands.

Print Start and End

PRINT_START

Sets up the printer prior to strating a print (called from the slicer's print start g-code). A target CHAMBER temperature may be provided if a [heater_generic chamber] section is present in the klipper config. If MESH_MIN and MESH_MAX are provided, then BED_MESH_CALIBRATE will probe only the area within the specified rectangle, and will scale the number of probes to the appropriate density (this can dramatically reduce probe times for smaller prints).

• BED - Bed heater starting temperature.
• EXTRUDER - Extruder heater starting temperature.
• CHAMBER (optional) - Chamber heater starting temperature.
• MESH_MIN (optional) - Minimum x,y coordinate of the first layer.
• MESH_MAX (optional) - Maximum x,y coordinate of the first layer.
• LAYERS (optional) - Total number of layers in the print.

PRINT_END

Parks the printhead, shuts down heaters, fans, etc, and performs general state housekeeping at the end of the print (called from the slicer's print end g-code).

Velocity

These are some basic wrappers for Klipper's analogs to some of Marlin's velocity related commands, such as accelleration, jerk, and linear advance.

Marlin Compatibility

• The M201, M203, M204, and M205 commands are implemented by calling Klipper's SET_VELOCITY_LIMIT command. For calls that set the ACCEL parameter, the ACCEL_TO_DECEL parameter is also set and scaled by variable_velocity_decel_scale (default: 0.5).
• The M900 command is implemented by calling Klipper's SET_PRESSURE_ADVANCE command. The K factor is scaled by variable_pressure_advance_scale (default: -1.0). If the scaling value is negative the M900 command has no effect.

Optional Configs

Bed Mesh

BED_MESH_CALIBRATE and G20

Overrides the default BED_MESH_CALIBRATE to use BED_MESH_CALIBRATE_FAST instead, and adds the G20 command.

Configuration:

[include klipper-macros/optional/bed_mesh.cfg]

Requirements: A properly configured bed_mesh section.

LCD Menus

Adds relevant menu items to an LCD display and improves some existing functionality. See the customization section above for more information on how to configure specific behaviors.

• Confirmation added for cancelling the print or disabling steppers during a print.
• Several temperature menu changes:
  • Up to 10 filaments and their corresponding temperatures can be set via variable_menu_temperature.
  • Per filament chamber temperature controls are available if a [heater_generic chamber] section is configured.
  • The cooldown commands are moved to the top level temperature menu.
• The filament loading commands are replaced with macros that use the lengths and speeds specified in variable_load_length and variable_load_speed, which includes a priming phase at the end of the load (controlled via variable_load_priming_length and variable_load_priming_speed).
• Bed surface management is integrated into the setup and tuning menus.
• The SD card menu has been streamlined for printing and non-printing modes.
• The setup menu includes host shutdown, host restart, speed, and flow controls.
• You can hide the Octoprint or SD card menus if you don't use them (via variable_menu_show_octoprint and variable_menu_show_sdcard, respectively).

Configuration:

[include klipper-macros/optional/lcd_menus.cfg]

Requirements: A properly configured display section.