3D Printing / CAD Flatpak Stack — Mithril (Dell Precision 7750)

Date: 2026-07-18 GPU: NVIDIA Quadro RTX 5000 Mobile (hybrid PRIME offload, driver 580.173.02) OS: Pop!_OS 24.04 LTS, Wayland (COSMIC compositor) Kernel: 7.0.11-76070011-generic Printer: Creality Ender 3 (CH340 USB-serial, idVendor=1a86, idProduct=7523) Device: /dev/ttyUSB0 (USB-A port via adapter, bus 1 port 3)

Status

Printer connected and executing a print via USB from Cura 5.13 flatpak. STL: Pokemon Go Revive crystal (revive.stl, 3.6K) Sliced and sent to printer via /dev/ttyUSB0.

Installed Applications

Application	Flatpak ID	Version	Purpose
UltiMaker Cura	`com.ultimaker.cura`	5.13.0	Slicer, print preparation
PrusaSlicer	`com.prusa3d.PrusaSlicer`	latest	Slicer, broad printer support
Blender	`org.blender.Blender`	latest	Mesh modeling, STL repair, sculpting
FreeCAD	`org.freecad.FreeCAD`	latest	Parametric CAD
OpenSCAD	`org.openscad.OpenSCAD`	latest	Programmatic/code-based CAD

Installation Commands

flatpak install --user --assumeyes --noninteractive flathub com.ultimaker.cura
flatpak install --user --assumeyes --noninteractive flathub com.prusa3d.PrusaSlicer org.freecad.FreeCAD org.blender.Blender org.openscad.OpenSCAD

NVIDIA Flatpak GL Runtime

The flatpak nvidia GL runtime must match the host kernel driver version exactly.

Host driver: 580.173.02 Installed runtime: org.freedesktop.Platform.GL.nvidia-580-173-02

flatpak install --user --assumeyes --noninteractive flathub org.freedesktop.Platform.GL.nvidia-580-173-02

Stale runtimes to clean up:

flatpak uninstall --user org.freedesktop.Platform.GL.nvidia-580-159-03 org.freedesktop.Platform.GL.nvidia-580-82-07 org.freedesktop.Platform.GL.nvidia-580-82-09

Flatpak Overrides — NVIDIA PRIME Offload

All 3D applications are configured to render on the discrete NVIDIA GPU via PRIME offload environment variables, with --device=all for USB printer access.

# Apply to all 3D apps
for app in com.ultimaker.cura com.prusa3d.PrusaSlicer org.blender.Blender org.freecad.FreeCAD org.openscad.OpenSCAD; do
  flatpak override --user \
    --device=all \
    --env=__NV_PRIME_RENDER_OFFLOAD=1 \
    --env=__VK_LAYER_NV_optimus=NVIDIA_only \
    --env=__GLX_VENDOR_LIBRARY_NAME=nvidia \
    "$app"
done

App-Specific Overrides

Cura — Force X11 backend (OpenGL viewport fails on Wayland with nvidia):

flatpak override --user --env=QT_QPA_PLATFORM=xcb com.ultimaker.cura

PrusaSlicer — Disable Wayland socket (hangs at startup with nvidia PRIME on Wayland):

flatpak override --user --nosocket=wayland com.prusa3d.PrusaSlicer

Verify Overrides

flatpak override --user --show com.ultimaker.cura
flatpak override --user --show com.prusa3d.PrusaSlicer
flatpak override --user --show org.blender.Blender
flatpak override --user --show org.freecad.FreeCAD
flatpak override --user --show org.openscad.OpenSCAD

Current Override State

# com.ultimaker.cura
[Context]
devices=all;

[Environment]
__VK_LAYER_NV_optimus=NVIDIA_only
__GLX_VENDOR_LIBRARY_NAME=nvidia
__NV_PRIME_RENDER_OFFLOAD=1
QT_QPA_PLATFORM=xcb

# com.prusa3d.PrusaSlicer
[Context]
devices=all;
sockets=!wayland;

[Environment]
__VK_LAYER_NV_optimus=NVIDIA_only
__GLX_VENDOR_LIBRARY_NAME=nvidia
__NV_PRIME_RENDER_OFFLOAD=1

# org.blender.Blender, org.freecad.FreeCAD, org.openscad.OpenSCAD
[Context]
devices=all;

[Environment]
__VK_LAYER_NV_optimus=NVIDIA_only
__GLX_VENDOR_LIBRARY_NAME=nvidia
__NV_PRIME_RENDER_OFFLOAD=1

USB 3D Printer Access

Verified Hardware

usb 1-3: New USB device found, idVendor=1a86, idProduct=7523, bcdDevice= 2.64
usb 1-3: Product: USB Serial
ch341 1-3:1.0: ch341-uart converter detected
usb 1-3: ch341-uart converter now attached to ttyUSB0

Permissions after udev rules applied:

crw-rw-rw- 1 root dialout 188, 0 Jul 18 16:24 /dev/ttyUSB0

User Group

sudo usermod -aG dialout usrbinkat
# Requires logout/login or reboot to take effect
# Verified active: groups output includes 'dialout'

udev Rules

File: /etc/udev/rules.d/99-3dprinter.rules

# 3D Printer USB serial device access rules
# Grants read/write to dialout group for common printer USB-serial chips

# Prusa printers (Prusa Research)
SUBSYSTEM=="tty", ATTRS{idVendor}=="2c99", MODE="0666", GROUP="dialout"

# CH340/CH341 USB-serial (Creality, Ender, many Chinese boards)
SUBSYSTEM=="tty", ATTRS{idVendor}=="1a86", MODE="0666", GROUP="dialout"

# FTDI USB-serial (many printers, CNC controllers)
SUBSYSTEM=="tty", ATTRS{idVendor}=="0403", MODE="0666", GROUP="dialout"

# Arduino/Genuino (Marlin firmware boards)
SUBSYSTEM=="tty", ATTRS{idVendor}=="2341", MODE="0666", GROUP="dialout"
SUBSYSTEM=="tty", ATTRS{idVendor}=="2a03", MODE="0666", GROUP="dialout"

# STMicroelectronics (SKR, BTT boards with STM32)
SUBSYSTEM=="tty", ATTRS{idVendor}=="0483", MODE="0666", GROUP="dialout"

# Silicon Labs CP210x (some printer boards, Smoothieboard)
SUBSYSTEM=="tty", ATTRS{idVendor}=="10c4", MODE="0666", GROUP="dialout"

# Digi International (XBee, some wireless print servers)
SUBSYSTEM=="tty", ATTRS{idVendor}=="1d6b", MODE="0666", GROUP="dialout"

# WCH CH9102 (newer Creality boards)
SUBSYSTEM=="tty", ATTRS{idVendor}=="4348", MODE="0666", GROUP="dialout"

# Prolific PL2303 (some older printer cables)
SUBSYSTEM=="tty", ATTRS{idVendor}=="067b", MODE="0666", GROUP="dialout"

# MicroPython/CircuitPython boards (Klipper MCUs)
SUBSYSTEM=="tty", ATTRS{idVendor}=="239a", MODE="0666", GROUP="dialout"
SUBSYSTEM=="tty", ATTRS{idVendor}=="303a", MODE="0666", GROUP="dialout"

# Raspberry Pi Pico (Klipper MCU)
SUBSYSTEM=="tty", ATTRS{idVendor}=="2e8a", MODE="0666", GROUP="dialout"

# OpenMoko (some CAN bus adapters for Klipper)
SUBSYSTEM=="tty", ATTRS{idVendor}=="1d50", MODE="0666", GROUP="dialout"

# BigTreeTech USB devices
SUBSYSTEM=="tty", ATTRS{idVendor}=="1eaf", MODE="0666", GROUP="dialout"

Reload after install:

sudo udevadm control --reload-rules
sudo udevadm trigger

Ender 3 USB Connection

Board	Chip	Device Path
Creality 4.2.2 (8-bit)	CH340	`/dev/ttyUSB0`
Creality 4.2.7 (32-bit)	CH340	`/dev/ttyUSB0`
BTT SKR / STM32 boards	CDC ACM	`/dev/ttyACM0`

Note: USB-A port via USB-C adapter on bus 1 port 3 is the working connection. USB-C ports directly did not enumerate the device.

Cura Printer Profile

Printer added: Creality → Ender-3 Build volume: 220 × 220 × 250 mm Connection: USB /dev/ttyUSB0 at 115200 baud

Blender GPU Configuration

After first launch:

Edit → Preferences → System
Cycles Render Devices → select OptiX
Check "Quadro RTX 5000"
OptiX uses hardware RT cores on RTX — significantly faster than CUDA for ray tracing

Launch Commands

# Cura with STL file
flatpak run com.ultimaker.cura /path/to/model.stl

# Cura standalone
flatpak run com.ultimaker.cura

# PrusaSlicer
flatpak run com.prusa3d.PrusaSlicer

# Blender
flatpak run org.blender.Blender

# FreeCAD
flatpak run org.freecad.FreeCAD

# OpenSCAD
flatpak run org.openscad.OpenSCAD

Known Issues & Workarounds

Cura — OpenGL viewport blank on Wayland

Cause: NVIDIA proprietary driver EGL implementation incompatible with Qt's Wayland backend. Fix: QT_QPA_PLATFORM=xcb forces XWayland (already set via flatpak override). Reference: Ultimaker/Cura#18891

Cura — Slow/delayed file loading when printer connected

Cause: USB Printing plugin scans all /dev/tty* devices on startup, blocking UI thread. Fix: Disconnect printer USB before loading files, or disable USB Printing plugin in Cura → Marketplace → Installed → USB Printing (toggle off) when not actively printing. Reference: Ultimaker/Cura#15292

PrusaSlicer — Hangs at startup with nvidia PRIME

Cause: GTK3/OpenGL initialization deadlocks when __NV_PRIME_RENDER_OFFLOAD=1 is set under native Wayland. Fix: --nosocket=wayland forces XWayland rendering (already set via flatpak override). Reference: prusa3d/PrusaSlicer#13945

Blender — CUDA/OptiX not detected in flatpak

Cause: Missing nvidia GL runtime inside flatpak sandbox (version mismatch). Fix: Ensure org.freedesktop.Platform.GL.nvidia-580-173-02 is installed (matches host driver). Reference: https://community.osarch.org/discussion/1446/blender-how-to-use-nvidia-gpu-in-blender-flatpak-version-linux-gnu

FreeCAD — OpenSCAD integration path

Cause: Flatpak sandboxed paths differ from system installs. Fix: In FreeCAD preferences, set OpenSCAD executable to /app/bin/openscad (both must be flatpak). Reference: FreeCAD/FreeCAD#17889

USB printer not detected

Cause: User not in dialout group, or missing udev rules, or charge-only cable. Fix: sudo usermod -aG dialout usrbinkat + install udev rules + re-login. Note: USB-C ports on this laptop do not enumerate the CH340. Use USB-A (via adapter if needed). Reference: https://github.com/hroncok/3dprinter-udev-rules

ALSOFT PipeWire error (errno: 112)

Cause: Flatpak sandbox PipeWire socket timing race. Fix: Cosmetic — audio still initializes via fallback. No action needed.

First Print

Model: Pokemon Go Revive crystal (revive.stl) Source: Thingiverse #1688494 Size: 3.6K STL file Sliced in Cura 5.13, sent to Ender 3 via USB direct print. Status: Printing successfully.

Rollback

Remove all overrides for an app

flatpak override --user --reset com.ultimaker.cura

Uninstall apps

flatpak uninstall --user com.ultimaker.cura com.prusa3d.PrusaSlicer org.blender.Blender org.freecad.FreeCAD org.openscad.OpenSCAD

Remove udev rules

sudo rm /etc/udev/rules.d/99-3dprinter.rules
sudo udevadm control --reload-rules

Remove dialout group

sudo gpasswd -d usrbinkat dialout

Files Created

CREATED  /etc/udev/rules.d/99-3dprinter.rules
CREATED  ~/ultimaker.md

Flatpak override state stored in:

~/.local/share/flatpak/overrides/com.ultimaker.cura
~/.local/share/flatpak/overrides/com.prusa3d.PrusaSlicer
~/.local/share/flatpak/overrides/org.blender.Blender
~/.local/share/flatpak/overrides/org.freecad.FreeCAD
~/.local/share/flatpak/overrides/org.openscad.OpenSCAD

Packages Installed

gamemode (apt, for Minecraft FeralGamemode support)

usrbinkat/README.md

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