diff --git a/scripts/buildcommands.py b/scripts/buildcommands.py
index 2c18281fa..6b0e3a02a 100644
--- a/scripts/buildcommands.py
+++ b/scripts/buildcommands.py
@@ -7,9 +7,10 @@
 import sys, os, subprocess, optparse, logging, pathlib, shlex, socket, time
 import traceback, json, zlib
 
-sys.path.insert(0, str(pathlib.Path(__file__).parent.parent))
+# Directly import msgproto without needing the full klippy environment
+sys.path.insert(0, str(pathlib.Path(__file__).parent.parent / "klippy"))
 
-from klippy import msgproto
+import msgproto
 
 FILEHEADER = """
 /* DO NOT EDIT! This is an autogenerated file. See scripts/buildcommands.py. */