Documentation

1. 01
   Open the dashboard

   Choose Start Designing, then create a new design. Projects are saved in this browser without an account.

2. 02
   Add a shape

   Choose a primitive from the Shapes panel and place it on the workplane. Start with a Box or Cylinder.

3. 03
   Size and position it

   Select the object. Drag the resize and rotation handles, or enter exact dimensions in the inspector.

4. 04
   Build the model

   Duplicate solids, turn shapes into holes, and Group the selection to subtract cutters from solids.

5. 05
   Export

   Open Export and choose STL for 3D printing, OBJ for a mesh workflow, STEP for compatible solid geometry, SVG for a top view, or SKF to keep the project editable.

SketchForge is local-first. In the standard web app, project records and generated thumbnails stay in the current browser profile. There is no required account and no remote project-storage service.

• Create, rename, open, and organize projects from the dashboard.
• Use search, sorting, and grid or list views to find a design.
• Editor changes are saved back to the local project automatically.
• Browser data belongs to that browser profile; private browsing, site-data cleanup, or changing devices can remove access to it.
• Export an SKF file for an editable backup you can move between browsers or computers.

Workspace Settings includes Shape defaults. Use it to choose the starting dimensions and special parameters for each new shape without changing objects already in the scene.

• Move objects on the active workplane, or raise and lower them along the workplane normal.
• Resize with handles or type exact width, depth, and height values in the inspector.
• Rotate with the on-canvas rings, or press R for 45 degrees and Shift+R for 22.5 degrees around the active workplane.
• Duplicate creates the copy at exactly the same position in v1.0.8, ready for an intentional move or edit.
• Use Drop to workplane, Snap, Align, and Mirror for repeatable placement.
• Lock objects to protect them from edits and hide objects to reduce visual clutter. Hidden objects can be shown again from the shortcut or object controls.

1. 01
   Create the operands

   Place two or more overlapping shapes and set each one to Solid or Hole.

2. 02
   Group for subtraction

   Select the operands and choose Group. Hole geometry is removed from the selected solids.

3. 03
   Use Intersection when needed

   Intersection keeps only the region where the selected solid and hole geometry overlap.

4. 04
   Continue editing

   Ungroup restores stored children. Separate Parts breaks a single object with disconnected islands into individual objects.

• Choose Chamfer or Fillet, then select one or more highlighted CAD edges on a supported object.
• Use tangent-chain selection when adjacent edges should be treated together.
• Adjust amount and quality while the preview updates, then press Enter or Apply.
• Chamfer also supports its angle control; Preserve edge size keeps the original outer measurements when possible.
• Applied edge treatments are recorded as features and can be removed from the object's feature history.
• Rotated analytic boxes preserve their edge topology for one-, two-, and three-axis rotations.

A profile must form a valid closed region before it can become a solid. Edit Sketch returns to the stored profile so the feature can be refined instead of rebuilt.

• Activate the Workplane tool and click a face or empty grid; hold Shift to reverse the plane direction.
• Shapes, nudges, elevation, Drop, and geometry rotation follow the active placement workplane.
• Choose Metric, Imperial, or Bricks display units and set numeric accuracy and display scale.
• Visible-grid snap options are Off, 0.1, 0.25, 0.5, 1, 2, or 5 mm, plus Brick.
• Workspace sizes range from 60 to 2000 mm, with presets and a custom grid-block size.
• Appearance controls include theme, grid color, shadows, zoom speed, movement dimensions, and select-before-moving behavior.
• History can keep 30, 50, 100, a custom number up to 5000, or unlimited editor states.

If objects are selected, a direct export uses the selected solid objects; otherwise it exports the scene. Hole-only selections cannot be exported as finished geometry.

An SKF file is a versioned ZIP archive with project.json plus deduplicated source, mesh, B-Rep, and image assets. Asset hashes are checked while opening the file, and imported content is normalized before it enters the editor.

Shortcuts are ignored while typing in an input, textarea, or select. In Sketch mode, undo and redo apply to sketch history; R rotates a closed sketch and L toggles a selected reference image lock.

• SketchForge does not require an account for the standard local editor.
• Project data stays in browser storage unless you explicitly import, export, download, or use a deployment with configured shared storage.
• Accessibility preferences include reduced motion, contrast and visual-focus adjustments, and interface sizing support.
• Dialogs and core controls provide keyboard focus handling and descriptive labels where available.
• Report a reproducible accessibility barrier through the public GitHub issue tracker, without attaching private project data.

SketchForge is an MIT-licensed Next.js, React, TypeScript, and Three.js project. Node.js 20 or newer is recommended for local development.

git clone https://github.com/Formsmith746/SketchForge-3D.git
cd SketchForge-3D
npm install
npm run dev

npm run typecheck
npm run test
npm run export

docker compose -f deploy/docker/compose.yaml up --build -d

• The app remains local-first when self-hosted: serving the application does not automatically create remote project storage.
• The static export is verified before deployment so the Worker asset manifest contains required application files.
• Use the GitHub repository for source, issues, releases, and contribution history.