Ultimaker Cura Linux Install Guide

Ever Google something and get only stupid answers, yeah me too. Here is a very short guide to running Ultimaker Cura on Linux. The packaged version of Cura, while available on Ubuntu is pretty ancient so not really worth it. apt get cura works but the version is 2 years old so this guide is if you want to use the latest binary.

Step 1: Download

Download the software from Ultimaker

Remember where you downloaded it because you need that for step two.

Step 2: Change the permissions

Change the permissions on the AppImage file. Open a terminal and navigate to the directory you downloaded the file to. Then run the below command modifying it to use the version you downloaded (I downloaded 4.12.1)

$ chmod +x Ultimaker_Cura-4.12.1.AppImage

Step 3: Run Cura

From the same terminal:

$ ./Ultimaker_Cura-4.12.1.AppImage

Optional Step 4: Add a shortcut to Ubuntu Gnome

Something I did which may be useful to you if you are using Gnome or base Ubuntu.

Create a file for the application shortcut by opening the file /usr/share/applications/cura.desktop as root and insert the following. If you want to do it without root open ~/.local/share/applications/cura.desktop instead.

[Desktop Entry]
Name=Ultimaker Cura
GenericName=3D Printing Software
Comment=Cura converts 3D models into paths for a 3D printer. It prepares your print for maximum accuracy, minimum printing time and good reliability with many extra features that make your print come out great.
Exec=/opt/Ultimaker_Cura-4.12.1.AppImage %F
TryExec=/opt/Ultimaker_Cura-4.12.1.AppImage
Icon=cura-icon
Terminal=false
Type=Application
MimeType=model/stl;application/vnd.ms-3mfdocument;application/prs.wavefront-obj;image/bmp;image/gif;image/jpeg;image/png;text/x-gcode;application/x-amf;application/x-ply;application/x-ctm;model/vnd.collada+xml;model/gltf-binary;model/gltf+json;model/vnd.collada+xml+zip;
Categories=Graphics;Education;Development;Science;
Keywords=3D;Printing;Slicer;
StartupWMClass=cura.real

Write the replacing /opt/Ultimaker_Cura-4.12.1.AppImage with wherever your file is, /opt isn’t a bad place to put it.

Run desktop-file-validate to make sure everything is happy.

$ desktop-file-validate /usr/share/applications/cura.desktop

Now everything should be set up and you should be able to access Cura from the menu and have filetype associations in Gnome file managers.