# Extrenal start button

**URL:** <https://forum.universal-robots.com/t/extrenal-start-button/39667>\
**Category:** Technical Questions\
**Created:** [April 30, 2025, 8:15am UTC](https://forum.universal-robots.com/t/extrenal-start-button/39667 "2025-04-30T08:15:19Z")\
**Posts on this page:** 4\
**Page:** 1

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**Author:** ![moly59871](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/m/ad7895/32.png) [@moly59871](https://forum.universal-robots.com/u/moly59871)\
**Post date:** [April 30, 2025, 8:15am UTC](https://forum.universal-robots.com/t/extrenal-start-button/39667/1 "2025-04-30T08:15:19Z")

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Hello, I’m working with a UR10e robot and would like to add external start and stop buttons, so I can run and stop the program without using the teach pendant. I’ve managed to get the start button to work in remote control mode, but in that mode, I can’t put the robot into freedrive to move it manually when needed.\*\*

\*\*Is it possible to make the external buttons work while the robot is in either manual or automatic mode? I’m using PolyScope version 5.21.3.

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**Author:** ![efn](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/e/35a633/32.png) [@efn](https://forum.universal-robots.com/u/efn)\
**Post date:** [April 30, 2025, 8:37am UTC](https://forum.universal-robots.com/t/extrenal-start-button/39667/2 "2025-04-30T08:37:44Z")

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I don’t think you can start the robot program with that feature without having the robot in Remote mode.  
Would it work for you to implement the start and stop as a part of your program and have your program run constantly instead? Then you can add a third button (or rotary switch) to enable freedrive within your program with a script.  
I’ve done this a few times and it works well. 🙂

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**Author:** ![eric.feldmann](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/e/94ad74/32.png) [@eric.feldmann](https://forum.universal-robots.com/u/eric.feldmann)\
**Post date:** [May 1, 2025, 1:05pm UTC](https://forum.universal-robots.com/t/extrenal-start-button/39667/3 "2025-05-01T13:05:28Z")

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I like the rotary switch for freedrive. I know you can’t use the IO freedrive input while in remote mode, but do you know if using the script command to turn it on works while in remote? That’d make for a pretty slick workaround.

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**Author:** ![efn](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/e/35a633/32.png) [@efn](https://forum.universal-robots.com/u/efn)\
**Post date:** [May 2, 2025, 8:01am UTC](https://forum.universal-robots.com/t/extrenal-start-button/39667/4 "2025-05-02T08:01:24Z")

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The freedrive script works in remote, yes. 🙂