This troubleshooting document is to assist with issues related to ticket printers, including printers specifically designed for tickets, as well as printers repurposed for this, such as label printers.
If you simply would like to test if your ticket printer can print the ticket PDF file that our system produces, speak to our staff and we can send you a sample file for test printing.
Printing involves the following:
1) The software that is producing the file to be printed - this includes the system, the web browser you are using to access the system, and the PDF software on your computer that will render the PDF file that the system produces.
2) The printer driver software - this is from your printer manufacturer and may be built into your operating system in advance, or you may need to install it when you add your printer to your computer.
3) The printer itself - the hardware that receives the print file from the printer driver software to actually convert the information to a printout on paper.
4) Your computer and the operating system that is running on it.
When there is a problem, with these pieces in mind, we must take a very methodical approach to troubleshooting any issues related to printing, breaking it down one piece at a time to narrow the scope of the problem to find where the breakdown is occurring. So put on your sleuthing caps and follow the instructions below to help guide the troubleshooting process.
In this document, we will be specifically troubleshooting the printing of files produced by our system (tickets, receipts, gift certificates), intended for ticket printers. This involves the design tools found in Setup Ticket Design screen, referred to as "box office ticket", "header card", "box office receipt", and "box office gift certificate" only. However, you can easily extend these steps to apply to your office printer if you are having issues printing the regular 8.5x11 versions of these as well.
Checklist for troubleshooting:
1) Checking files
First, when you click to print a ticket, receipt or gift certificate out of the system, is the file coming up on your screen displayed correctly? You can see the ticket, the header card, the receipt, the gift certificate and the text and images that are supposed to appear are appearing?
- YES - then the system is producing the pdf file correctly, and your computer and software are rendering it correctly, ready for you to send to print. Proceed to the next section.
- NO - then you may have an issue with your pdf software, your web browser, or your operating system that is not allowing the pdf file to render and/or open correctly. Try updating your pdf software, your browser and your operating system to current versions. Try another web browser. Try another computer to narrow down where the issue lies and correct it.
2) Checking the computer, browser, pdf software
If the computer is rendering the pdf file correctly on screen, but when you send it to print either nothing prints, or something prints badly, it's possible there could be an issue with the pdf software, but it's likely an issue of the printer driver software or printer itself.
Let's try to narrow down where the problem is occurring:
Have you successfully printed similar tickets etc on this computer and printer before? If so, what has changed since then? If there was an update to the operating system or other software, this may require you now update the printer driver software to work with the new versions, or in some cases it may mean the upgrade you did may no longer be compatible with the printer hardware. Continue with this checklist, but this may inform the below.
a) Test printing on a different computer - if this corrects the issue, then you have narrowed down the problem to the specific computer that displays the issue. Try the following on the problem computer. If the problem replicates on all computers you're using, then it's likely a problem with the printer driver software or printer itself, or in combination with the operating system of your computers.
b) Test printing on another web browser - if this corrects the issue, then there may be preference settings in your browser that need to be adjusted, or the browser software may need to be updated. This may solve the problem, or you can simply use the other browser that works correctly. (See our list of Supported Web Browsers)
b) Test your pdf software - try printing other pdf files to your office printer, to the ticket printer, to see if you have better results. If the problem persists then you may need to check the settings in your pdf software, try restoring the default settings, try upgrading your pdf software to correct the problem. (The most common PDF software is Adobe Reader, but you may need to check in your browser settings to see what software is opening your PDF files within the browser.)
Did any of these correct the problem?
- YES - great, you may have a resolution
- NO - continue to the next section.
3) Checking the printer & updating the driver
If the above did not correct the problem, then it is likely an issue with either the printer driver software, or the printer itself.
Make sure you have a printer and driver that can work with your current operating system, and that are able to print a PDF file (this is our ticket file format). Older printers may not be able to handle a pdf file. If the printer has an older connection cable, such as serial or parallel cable, it likely cannot handle the speed of current file transfer.
Check for a more up to date printer driver for your specific printer and operating system. You can visit the website for the manufacturer of your printer and look for "support" and/or "download" areas to find an current printer driver. Make sure they match your exact printer model and your computer operating system. Download and follow their instructions to install.
If using a Boca thermal ticket printer, make sure the driver is set for "Concert Ticket" for the printout option. If this is not selected you may get overlapping printing and other oddities.
Did any of these correct the problem?
- YES - great, you may have a resolution
- NO - continue to the next section.
4) Contact the printer manufacturer for assistance
At this point we recommend you contact the manufacturer directly via phone or email to confirm these things: 1) the printer can accept and print a PDF file, 2) the printer and driver are compatible with your operating system, and 3) that the driver is configured correctly. It can be helpful to send their support technician a actual PDF file of your tickets as produce by our system so they can actually try print the file themselves. Just save-as when the tickets display on screen from printing, and then send them that file.
If it is found that the printer is not compatible with our ticket files, please talk to us about options. Visit these documents for some recommendations:
Boca Ticket Printers and Ticket Stock
See also - Troubleshooting - Ticket, Receipt, Gift Certificate printing hints