Viewing or modifying a printer's status

You must be an operator or user of a print server that services a printer to be able to see the printer's status.

Use the following procedure to view a printer's status.

1. From the Available Options menu, select Printers.

   The ``Printers'' window appears with a list of active printers.

2. Select the desired printer from the list.

   The ``Printer name Configuration'' window appears.

3. Choose ``Printer Status: (See Form)''.

   A ``Status'' window appears showing the various status elements for printers.

4. Modify the printer's status as needed.

   Here are the status fields shown in the ``Status'' window:

   • Status shows the current status of this port driver and printer. Possible statuses include the following:

     Not connected Waiting for form Out of paper Printing job Paused Stopped Off-line Private Waiting for job Running Ready to go down

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     NOTE: The port driver (NPRINTER) status for a defined but unattached serial printer is ``Waiting for job'' even though the printer is not attached, and the printer status is ``Running''. If a print job is put into the queue for this printer, the port driver status changes to ``Printing job'' but the printer status changes to ``Offline''. Defined but unattached parallel printers show a status of ``Not connected''.

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   • Printer control introduces a window with the following options:

     • Pause printer places the current print job on hold. Only a print queue operator can perform this action. The printer will remain idle until it receives a ``Start printer'' command.

     • Stop printer stops the printer and returns the print job to the print queue. The printer will remain idle until it receives a ``Start printer'' command.

     • Start printer changes the status of this print job from ``On hold'' to ``Active'', which will start printing again if the correct form is mounted and the printer is active.

     • Form feed causes the printer to advance to the top of the next page.

     • Mark top of form causes a line of asterisks ``*'' to be printed across the page. This option is useful when you are trying to align the page on a printer.

     • Abort print job allows you to cancel this print job and immediately stop printing.

     • Rewind printer pauses the printer and sets the print job to start printing at the beginning after you start the printer.

   • Service mode determines how forms needed for print jobs affect the order in which the print server processes those jobs. Selecting this field displays the list of modes from which you can select.

     Printer forms include information about the length and width of different types of paper used in your printer. You can designate printer forms to prevent your print jobs from printing on the wrong paper. The print server operator is notified when a form change is needed. Printer forms are configured in PRINTDEF.

     When a print job requests a printer form other than the form currently mounted in the printer, the print server does not service the job until a print server operator reports that the new form is mounted. A print server operator can use PCONSOLE, PSC, or NetWare Administrator to mount the new form.

     The following service mode options determine how often the print server requires you to change printer forms:

     • Change forms as needed

       The priority of each print queue and the order of print jobs in the print queue determine which print job to service next. You might have to change forms often.

     • Minimize form changes within print queues

       The print server requires you to mount a new form for a print job before servicing print jobs with the currently mounted form in a print queue with a lower priority.

     • Minimize form changes across print queues

       The print server services all print jobs requiring the currently mounted form before requesting a form change. Print jobs in lower priority print queues that require the mounted form are serviced before print jobs in a high priority print queue that require a different form.

     • Service only currently mounted form

       The print server never requests a form change. If no print job requiring the current form is available, nothing is printed.

   • Mounted form

     shows the number of the form that is currently mounted in the printer. Only print jobs that specify this printer form number can be printed until a new printer form is mounted with the Mount Form button.

   The remaining fields include information about the print job currently being printed on this printer. Most of this information can only be changed by going to the print queue and selecting this print job from the list of jobs.

   • NetWare server indicates the server on which the print queue holding the job resides.

   • Print queue indicates the print queue from which this print job is being serviced.

   • Description indicates the name of the file being printed unless a different name was assigned to the job.

   • Print job number is the print job ID.

   • Form shows which printer form this print job is using. This print job cannot be printed unless this form matches the ``Mounted Form'' field above the ``Current Job Information''.

   • Copies requested indicates the number of copies of this print job that the User who submitted it requested to be printed.

   • Finished indicates how many bytes of this copy have been printed.

   • Size of one copy indicates the size of each copy of this print job.

   • Percent complete indicates how much of this print job is completed, which is determined both by the size of one copy and the number of copies requested for this print job.