Roland Finally Released Its Own Free Cut Line Software (And It Actually Works)

For as long as most of us have owned a Roland print and cut machine, adding contour cut lines has meant paying for extra, third party software just to get a line that VersaWorks could actually read.

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There are nearly half a dozen different cut line workflow options and I've covered most of them including Affinity, Silhouette Studio, CorelDraw, Flexi and Illustrator. All of them get the job done, but they all add either cost or added steps or both.

Finally....Roland has quietly released its own cut line tool called Designer, and it is free, browser-based, and built right into Roland DG Connect. And we all said...AMEN!!!

Ok so here's the deal - there is nothing to install and nothing to buy. Since it's browser based, Designer runs on both Mac and PC. It accepts PNG or SVG files and it exports a print-ready PDF with the cut line already on it directly into Versaworks 7.

What Roland Designer Actually Does

For years the honest answer to "what is the cheapest way to make Roland cut lines" still was not actually free. It was whichever paid program you happened to like the best and were willing to learn.

Now Roland is offering Roland BN and BN2 users a program that can create the needed cut lines for free.

To access you need to make sure your DG Connect is updated. Then log into your Roland DG Connect dashboard, find Designer under the Design and Rip Software section, upload your file, and use the Cut Contour tool to add your line.

If you're up to date, Designer will even sync with Versaworks 7 and you can directly send the file over to your print queue.

A Couple Things to Know Before You Start

The quick version above is enough to get a basic cut line, but there is a lot more the tool can do once you know where to look, including offset borders for a white edge, bleeds, perf cut lines, and handling different file types cleanly.

I walk through the entire thing start to finish (including how to update your software) and some of the advanced features and the full VersaWorks 7 workflow, in this month's Roland tutorial over on Silhouette U.

You can preview it for free before you join. Members get the complete Roland curriculum, with step-by-step tutorials on every part of Roland printing and cutting, plus personalized Roland help including same-day 1:1 chat support.

Note: This post may contain affiliate links. By clicking on them and purchasing products through my links, I receive a small commission. That's what helps fund Silhouette School so I can keep buying new Silhouette-related products to show you how to get the most out of your machine!

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