If the Printer Will Not Print

If the printer connected to your HP X station fails to print, your system could have a bad connection or, in the case of a serial printer using XON/XOFF handshaking, the printer may have developed a handshaking problem. Refer to:

• If You Suspect a Bad Connection
• Host-Side Sockets
• If the Printer Fails with an XOFF Pending...

If You Suspect a Bad Connection

If the printer connected to your X station is configured to match the configuration of the X station but does not print data, the printer may have a bad connection. Refer to:

• Test the X Station-to-Printer Connection
• Test the Computer-to-Printer Connection.

Test the X Station-to-Printer Connection

1. Press and hold [F12] to access the configuration screens.

2. Click on [Terminal].

3. Click on the [Print Test] button.

4. Choose one of:
   • Serial 1
   • Serial 2
   • Parallel.
   Your printer should print your X station's configuration data.

5. If your printer does not print, check the cable, the serial port's flow control settings, and the printer for problems.

Test the Computer-to-Printer Connection

To test the computer-to-printer connection, do the following:

1. Invoke the administration scripts, as described in Running the X Station Administration Scripts.

2. Choose Printers, plotters from the main menu.

3. Choose Check operation of a printer or plotter.

This script uses ping to verify that the X station is connected to the LAN, then send a test file to the printer. This test bypasses the print spooler.

Host-Side Sockets

The HP X station's serial port connects to the host-side socket with the port number 9100. If you have a second serial port on your X station, it connects to the host-side socket with the port number 9102.

The HP X station's parallel port connects to the host-side socket with the port number 9101.

If the Printer Fails with an XOFF Pending...

If your printer uses XON/XOFF handshaking, it is possible to have the printer fail while the X station's serial port is locked with an XOFF. When the printer is ready to print again, it should send an XON signal. If it does not, you can cause the X station to cancel the XOFF it has stored by doing the following:

1. Press and hold [F12] to access the configuration screens.

2. Click on [Terminal].

3. Change the Serial Port pacing from [XON/XOFF] to [None].

4. Click on [OK].

5. Press [F12] to return to the configuration screens.

6. Change the Serial Port pacing from [None] back to [XON/XOFF].

7. Click on [OK].