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Version: 5.6

Windows Printer Plug-in

note

Note: Windows Printers are not supported in Docker.

The Printer Plug-in allows you to create document templates in OPC Router that are dynamically populated with values at runtime and printed on a printer installed on the local computer or an available network printer. The following steps are required:

  • Create the document template in the plug-in configuration
  • Select the printer and populate the template variables with values in the connection configuration

Creating the Document Template​

  1. Open the Windows Printer plug-in in the "Print Templates" section under the "Plug-ins" menu
  2. Select “Add Document Template” or double-click an existing entry to edit a template.
  3. Assign a name to the print template.
  4. Create the template using the integrated designer (see section “Designer”).
  5. Close the editor using the “Close Window” button in the window title bar. Confirm the save prompt.

The document template is now available for configuring a connection.

Interactive Printers​

The OPC Router runs as a Windows service in the background of the server around the clock. Interaction with users is not intended. This means that printers requiring user input (e.g., PDF output, XPS output with a “Save As…” dialog) cannot be used: In such cases, a user would have to enter the necessary information for every print job initiated by the router.

Depending on the Windows version, printer status indicators (ink/toner levels) may also respond differently when addressed by a service. Therefore, test your configuration carefully. If necessary, allow interaction between the service and the desktop in the Services management to enable user input. This is expressly recommended only for testing purposes, not for production use:

  1. Open the Services management via “Control Panel – Administrative Tools – Services.”
  2. Open the OPCRouterService by double-clicking it.
  3. On the “Log On” tab, enable the “Allow data exchange between service and desktop” property.
  4. Confirm by clicking “OK.”
  5. Restart the service.

If you are testing your label design here, e.g., with the Windows XPS Writer, do not save the XPS file in the suggested directory; instead, select one directly on the root (e.g., C:\LabelTest) to avoid access issues.