How do I find out what setup I'm using (dialect, post-processor, etc)?

tommylight wrote:

In general, there is never a good reason to update/upgrade if the machine is working properly and does what it is supposed to do without a fuss.
2.7 was the time when the trajectory planner got updated/upgraded with what i would sum as "better execution speed", so that might be the only reason to upgrade, or if you plan do upgrade the machine with more functionality.
I still have machines running 2.5 on Ubuntu 8.04 in daily use, no reason to upgrade as they work perfectly. The only reason for upgrading such old machines for me is lightning strike taking the PC out, this happens quite often here.

It's great to hear "if it ain't broke don't fix it" philosophy. I'd say there could be some offices running Win95 as a print server connected to some ancient dot matrix printer. I know from my experience designing frames & trusses for production that the "print server" was always the oldest.

I would also suggest, in a group situation, to keep the machine running Linuxcnc to doing just that. Have the CAD\CAM on a separate machine, less chance of things going FUBAR.

To clarify about my intentions, I'm trying to be able to use FreeCAD or other FOSS software on my personal computer to generate g-code that I can then load onto the computer that controls the CNC. This means not making any modifications to the computer running LinuxCNC.

The current situation is I have to reboot my laptop into Windows, design in VCarve, send the file to a computer at the makerspace, create the tool paths on that second computer, and then send the g-code to the computer that runs LinuxCNC. Due to licensing, I have to use that middleman computer to generate the tool paths and output g-code.

The shop manager said he wanted to add more capabilities to the CNC in the future (like automatic tool changer), but those plans have been postponed indefinitely since the original volunteers who worked on it are no longer around to help.