V-Smart software notes
English pointers from the local cncu.co.za mirror (T:\U\C\V-Smart-Vinyl-Cutting-Plotter). No pricing. Software installers / ZIPs / firmware binaries are not copied into this KB (URL + local path only). Copied English manuals live under sources/manuals/vsmart/ (plugins/, software/, calibration/). Controller firmware is in drivers/vsmart-firmware-index.md (3 primary packages + Plus 7.64; prefer 7.68). Newer wins.
Which package by machine year
| Era | Local folder | Software / driver | Notes |
|---|---|---|---|
| 2013-2014 | 2013-2014 Model Adobe Illustrator Plugin\ + ...\CorelDRAW Plugin\ + ...\AutoCAD Sender\ + ...\FTDI USB Driver\ |
CutterPro AI/CDR plugins + FTDI VCP | English plugin manuals + FTDI USB install PDF copied. AutoCAD Sender has no English PDF. |
| 2013-2018 | 2013-2018 Model Scale Setting Calculator\ |
Scale Calculator v5 | Generation-specific scale manual copied. Prefer 2019+ calculator on later machines. |
| 2015+ | 2015+ Model Adobe Illustrator Plug-ins\ + ...\CorelDRAW Plugin\ + ...\USB 2.0 Printer Driver\ + ...\AutoCAD Sender 2.0\ |
CutterPro + USB printer driver | Prefer these over 2013-2014 on 2015+ hardware. English CorelDRAW _manual_en.pdf copied (Chinese SETUP PDF skipped). USB driver: run InstallPrinter.exe as Administrator. |
| 2019+ | 2019+ Model Scale Setting Calculator\ |
Scale Calculator | Prefer this over 2013-2018 on 2019+ machines. Manual copied. |
| 2021+ | 2021+ Model CorelDRAW Plugin\ |
CorelDRAW plugin (EN/CH folders) | Chinese-only plugin PDF skipped. Bilingual readme.txt copied (run setup.exe). |
| 2022+ | 2022+ Model CorelDRAW Plugin\ |
CutterProCdr manual-install package | No English PDF in tree. |
| FlexiSTARTER current | SAi FlexiSTARTER Ver_21 AM.CO.ZA Edition Installation\ |
FlexiSTARTER 21 | Prefer Ver_21. English install/activation + Production Suite 21 Readme + Cloud reseller doc already staged under manuals/dtf-textile/ (not re-copied). Huge EXE/ZIP installers pointer-only. |
| FlexiSTARTER 19 | SAi FlexiSTARTER Ver_19 AM.CO.ZA Edition Installation\ (+ Cloud twin) |
FlexiSTARTER 19 | Older; prefer 21. Duplicate cloud docs skipped. |
| FlexiSTARTER 10.5-12 | SAi FlexiSTARTER Ver_10.5 Dongle Edition Installation\ etc. |
Dongle / Cloud 10.5-12 | English Flexi Help book + Contour Cutting Guide + QRC copied from 10.5 ReadmeFiles\ (not present in 19/21 trees). Non-English FlexiHelp skipped. |
| FlexiSign extras | Cloud/Dongle manufacture DB + USB key patch + USB driver update | OutputDrivers .csm/.enc/pmcutter.dll |
Readmes + dongle USB-key troubleshooting PDF copied. Public FlexiSign manual pointer: https://am.co.za/plotter/flexi/manual |
| VinylCut | AM.CO.ZA VinylCut Craft Design and Vinyl Cutting Software\ |
VinylCut 4/5 | Newest local installer 5.028 (pointer only). readme.txt copied (upgrade/deactivate notes). Training: softwaretraining.co.za VinylCut topic. |
| SignMaster | SignMaster CUT+ARMS Sign and Vinyl Cutting Software\ |
SignMaster CUT+ARMS | Automatic contour (Plus/V-Auto) + manual contour (V-Smart) English PDFs copied. |
| Plus laser / ARMS | V-Smart Plus Laser Calibration\ |
Laser/ARMS calibration | English Instruction.pdf + auto-mark sheets + Plus firmware-upgrade instruction copied. Plus FW 7.64 (see firmware index). |
FlexiSTARTER / FlexiSign (current path)
- Prefer FlexiSTARTER Ver_21 AM.CO.ZA Edition. Installers not copied (hundreds of MB to 1.3 GB). English install/activation already under
manuals/dtf-textile/SAi-FlexiPRINT-Installation-Activation-Guide.pdf(same Ver_21 file). - Driver selection screenshot copied:
SAi-Driver-Selection-USB-Printer-for-V-Smart-Contour-Cutting.png(use USB_Printer driver for contour). - Activation stuck:
SAi-Software-Activation-Issue-Solutions.txt(license folder +cidraregistry cleanup, then LicenseManager as admin). - Manufacture database: close Flexi, copy
AM.CO.ZA.csm,AM.CO.ZA.enc,pmcutter.dllintoC:\Program Files\FlexiSTARTER\OutputDrivers(or similar), then pick the cutter in Production Manager. Cloud readme targets Flexi 11/12; dongle readme targets Flexi 10/10.5. - Production Manager crash: FlexiSign USB driver update patch (readme copied; binaries pointer-only).
- Older English Flexi Help (~9.05 MB) + Contour Cutting Guide + QRC kept for 10-year history (10.5 tree). Newer 19/21 trees do not include FlexiHelp.pdf.
VinylCut / SignMaster
- VinylCut: Windows 7+ / macOS 10.12+. Same-major upgrade overwrites. Deactivate / 4-to-5 upgrade notes in copied readme. Feature videos not mirrored (no YouTube crawl).
- SignMaster automatic contour is for V-Smart Plus and V-Auto; manual contour PDF is for V-Smart (no ARMS).
Plugins, scale, USB
- Keep generation-specific plugin manuals (2013-2014 and 2015+ are different hardware). Prefer 2015+ manuals on 2015+ machines.
- Scale calculator: 2013-2018 vs 2019+ manuals both copied (near-identical; use the matching era).
- 2013-2014 USB: FTDI VCP (
FTDI-USB-Driver-Installation.pdf; extra drivers at ftdichip.com VCP page). - 2015+ USB:
InstallPrinter.exeas Administrator (2015+ Model USB 2.0 Printer Driver\).
Firmware / calibration (docs only)
English Instructions-for-updating-firmware.pdf (from 7.68 package) + V-Smart-Firmware-Manual.docx copied. Plus: V-Smart-Plus-Firmware-Upgrade-Instruction.pdf + laser calibration instruction + auto-mark sheets. Binaries stay URL-only. Prefer TH_FU_A_V3+_7.68. Wrong-family flash risk -- only when support directs. Support WhatsApp +27 60 600 7000.
Skipped this pass
- Chinese-only firmware companions and 2021+ CorelDRAW plugin PDF
- Vinyl Cutter Specs Comparison and Pricelist.pdf
- Huge media (contour-alignment MP4 ~147 MB; scale-adjustment MP4 ~60.6 MB; User Manual how-to MP4s)
- Software EXE/ZIP/pkg installers and firmware
update.dss/update_fw_2.2.exe - Flexi 21 install/activation PDFs already staged under DTF textile (duplicate)
- FlexiPRINT 43.4 MB quality sample; Mimaki/X-Rite util PDFs; non-English Flexi cloud docs
- Old plugin
_old version backup\manuals - YouTube / buythis (not this pass)