Labels print too slow or do not print [Solution]

When printing from the techShip Web Client, if labels show in status Printed but print too slow or do not physically print, you could be having issues with the printer software or hardware.

To troubleshoot this kind of issue, it is important to understand the following, which will be described in two separate sections of this article:

• How the technical printing process works 
• What possible hardware or software issues could be involved
• How to fix them  

Techdinamics can only see if the Techdinamics Print Client operates properly, it downloads labels and successfully runs the Windows API method to ask windows to schedule printing. If you do not get a physical label label, it could be because of issues with windows spooler, hardware issues with the printer, or issues physical connection (USB or network) issues.

HOW THE TECHNICAL PRINTING PROCESS WORKS

The process the Techdinamics Print Client follows to retrieve the labels and send them to the printer is the following:

1. The Print Client pings the techSHIP web server every 2 seconds to verify if there are any new labels to print

2. It downloads the labels from the web server

3. After successfully downloading, the print client confirms order(s) on Techship as printed

4. After downloading, it sends the PDF file(s) or ZPL code to Windows API to print. Windows API itself will route document to the printer or printer spooler driver depending on how it's set up

HARDWARE OR SOFTWARE ISSUES AND HOW TO FIX THEM

The issues and solutions described below handle hardware issues first, since these could be the more obvious or easier to fix, to then review software configurations. Since these software issues will not be related to Techdinamics products from this point onwards, you might need to reach your Hardware or Software Provider sources and support accordingly. 

Treat this section as a troubleshooting checklist:

A) Check the techSHIP Audit Trail

The techSHIP Audit trail can provide information to confirm the labels were effectively processed and downloaded, discarding any issue on techSHIP's side. Follow the steps here: How to check an order's historical data activity (Audit Trail) [Step-by-Step guide]

Verify if the status of the order is Printed. If it is, techSHIP has processed, downloaded the labels, and sent them to the printer properly.

B) Make sure your printer is properly connected [HARDWARE ISSUE]

If you connected your Thermal Printer:

• Using WI-FI:
  • Examine your router logs to check if it was not in network when you attempted to print
  • It is connected with WI-FI to the same network
  • It doesn't have a weak WI-FI signal
• Using an Ethernet Cable:
  • Check the power and data cables are connected
  • Check the power and data cables are not damaged
  • Check the network is properly functioning

If everything seems all right, proceed with the following steps.

C) Windows not able to reach the printer

This often happens with network printers. In this case orders will stay in queue of the Windows spooler driver until the printer is back online. To check the printer queue and printer online/offline status you need to enable print logging: https://www.top-password.com/blog/enable-print-logging-in-windows/ and check appropriate event log records

To check the printer queue and spooler status you can:

• Check the queue in Windows as indicated here: https://support.microsoft.com/en-us/windows/view-printer-queue-in-windows-71505b3a-ba6b-14b2-b7f9-fd6204675ab5
  
• Check the events logged in the 'System' event log and 'Application and Services > Microsoft > Windows > PrintService > Operational' to verify if:
  
  • Print client was active
  • Print client successfully downloaded and confirmed order in Techship
  • If labels are delayed or any abnormal activity in the Printer Service 

If these don't display any issues, but the labels were not printed, then one of the following might have happened:

• The Thermal Printer was turned off (do not confuse with the Techdinamics Print Client application)
• The Thermal Printer was disconnected from network if it is network printer or from USB if it was connected with USB cable

If everything seems all right, proceed with the following steps.

D) Windows spooler driver not working

To print directly to the printer instead of queueing, you can disable the printer spooler on Advanced tab of printer properties in Windows Control Panel.

Set to Start printing immediately and press OK to confirm.