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Frequently Asked Questions: Prevent jobs being released when a printer is in error

This page applies to:

Instead of letting users release print jobs to printers reporting an error, you can configure your Find-Me and Secure Print Release environment to provide users with a consistent alert instead. This allows them to choose to either release to an alternative MFD in a Find-Me environment, resolve the printer error, or simply come back later.

Will this work on all operating systems?
Of course!
Does this work on all Release Stations?

Yes…well, nearly all of them. This feature is supported on all types of Release Stations, except for Fast Release terminals. However, by default, it is disabled. You can easily enable this feature in just a few quick steps. The way in which you do this depends on the type of Release Station you have. For more information, see:

Can I activate this feature for selected MFD Release Stations?

Yes you can!

In PaperCut MF, you have the flexibility to switch this feature on per supported device.

How will users know if their print jobs have not been released?
If a printer has reported an error, the Release Station at which the user attempted to release the job will display a message stating why the print job has not been released. It will contain enough information so they can resolve simple issues themselves, such as a paper jam, or open printer door.
How does an MFD Release Station know that a device is in error?
For MFD Release Stations, PaperCut MF checks the SNMP error status every 5 seconds while the user is logged onto the device.
How does a web-based or Standard Release Station know that a printer is in error?

For errors that users can usually fix themselves, such as a paper jam or open door, PaperCut MF web-based and Standard Release Stations check the error status every 10 seconds. For errors that usually require a technician’s assistance, such as offline, PaperCut MF gradually reduces the frequency of resolution checks until once a minute. The reasoning behind this is to find a balance between providing users with the best possible experience at the device, and also minimizing the amount of load on the server in large environments. A user will have to wait 10 seconds at most after they fix a common error, before they can release their print job.

Any print jobs that were released before the printer went into error, are printed when the error is resolved.

What happens if the printer in error cannot be fixed?
If the printer in error cannot be fixed, the user can release the print job at any other printer in a Find-Me environment.
Will all jobs in the print queue be held as soon as the printer goes into error?
Any job that is released after a printer reports an error will be held. Any job that was released before the printer reported an error will not be held. For example, if a user releases two jobs and the printer reports an error during the first job, both jobs will print after the printer error is fixed, because they were both released before the printer error was reported.
Can I customize the printer errors that will prevent a job from being released?

Yes you can! By default, PaperCut MF prevents jobs from being released when one or more errors from a predefined error list occurs, however, you can customize this error list to suit your own needs. For more information, see:

Is this feature supported on all MFD Release Stations?
For information about which device types support the prevention of jobs being released on an MFD Release Station, see Prevent jobs being released from an MFD Release Station when a device is in error
Is this feature supported for all printers on web-based and Standard Release Stations?

All printer brands are supported, however, these Release Stations rely on the print queue status, as reported by the Operating System (e.g. Windows). This means that the experience might vary depending on the printer and driver in use. Not all printers report all errors. For example, a common error that a few printers do not report, is Out of Paper.

If your printer does not report any errors at all, check that SNMP error reporting is configured on the printer and try a different driver. Some Sharp models will require additional configuration by a Sharp technician.

For more information, contact PaperCut MF Support.

Why can’t I select the “Automatically release jobs upon login” check box as well as the “Block the release of jobs when this device is in error” check box?
If you automatically release a job on login, there is not enough time for the device to poll the SNMP error status, which means the job will always be released due to the 5 second polling interval. The alternative was to hold release of the job on login until the SNMP error status has been polled, causing delays in the release of every job. We decided to provide the best user experience by not causing delays to the release of every error.

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