An ophthalmic surgical system includes a chassis comprising a laser source. The system includes a gantry coupled to the chassis. The position of the gantry is adjustable. The system includes a reference interface coupled to the gantry. The reference interface comprises an attachment interface at a distal portion of the reference interface, configured to couple to a patient interface for docking with an eye. The reference interface is configured to move to a first plate position proximal to the chassis and a second plate position distal from the chassis. The system further includes an optical head unit coupled to the reference interface. The optical head unit comprises a laser scanner and a beam splitter. The optical head unit is configured to move to a first head unit position near a proximal end of the reference interface and a second head unit position which is a lockable surgical position near a distal end of the reference interface.