If you are having a problems with printing to an HP Designjet 500 / 800 after a Windows 10 update.

I have had several calls about HP Designjet 500 and 800 and one 510 that stopped printing about a month ago.  The drivers seem correctly installed and even after reinstalling the driver either the print never arrives at the printer or the computer's spooler stops working and kicks up an error.  I found an article about this problem at a great website called Printerstop.com.  

https://printerstop.com/hp-designjet-500-plotter-not-printing-with-windows-10/

The article lists several things that can be done to correct a faulty windows 10 update that may be stopping certain HP wide formats from printing.  

I hope this information helps you.  

Check out my new website at https://myplotterisbroken.com/

Thanks,

Johnny C.

This is a quick refresher on the restoration of the hard drive used in the Dell OptiPlex controller connected to various types of Xerox wide format printers

OptiPlex Controller Restoration.

Warning! Read this entire post as there is important information at the end that may affect your decision as to whether or not you should complete a hard drive restoration.  

I noticed there are quite a few Xerox trained independent dealer technicians who have had this hard disk restoration process demonstrated to them at some point but have forgotten the exact process.  I have done it for about 10 years now so I am familiar with it.   

I would like to say up front that this post is intended as a refresher for those who have been trained by Xerox to carry out the OptiPlex controller hard disk restoration. It's not meant to teach someone how to do it that has never done it before. 

Warning!, If you have not been trained by Xerox do not attempt this hard drive restoration! 

If you don't have the Xerox wide format training and you read this post it may seem rather vague.  Well, I wrote it in a vague manner so as to try and dissuade people from doing it if they aren't trained on this controller. 

If you don’t get to practice this restoration on a regular basis you can forget this process.  If you have forgotten how to do it hopefully this post will help to jog your memory.  This process is in the OptiPlex controller service manual that Xerox provides to trained technicians.   Remember this restoration process only works with OptiPlex controllers that were used on the Xerox 8825, 8830, 510, 6204 and other wide formats.   

WARNING! RESTORATION DISKS WILL ERASE YOUR HARD DRIVE. DON’T EVER INSERT THE RESTORATION DISK NOTED IN THIS POST INTO YOUR WORK COMPUTER OR LAPTOP OR YOU RUN THE RISK OF ACCIDENTALLY FORMATTING YOUR HARD DRIVE,  PERMANENTLY,  ERASING ALL OF YOUR FILES.

The symptoms of a failed OptiPlex controller are pretty easy to spot.

1.) The printer display is either blank or showing erroneous information.  The printer portion is quiet even though the printer is plugged in and the power switch is on.  

2.) The OptiPlex computer power button LED light is on and is not blinking. 

3.) The OptiPlex computer itself is restarting and is continuously repeating the startup operation at about 30-second intervals.  

When these symptoms are present the OptiPlex controller hard drive will most likely require reformatting and restoration.  The need to replace the hard drive is a judgment call based on its age and condition.  If it is only a couple of years old and the machine has just experienced a power outage or spike that condition may have only corrupted the software on the hard drive.  In that case, try the restoration only.  If the hard drive is much older than a couple of years you may want to replace it just to be on the safe side.    

The items that are required to complete a restoration:

 A new hard drive if the old one is bad.  You will need a cross over network cable and the restore disk. (Note: The Xerox Corporation will only provide the restoration disks to dealers who are qualified to repair the OptiPlex controller).  FYI: The printers that the OptiPlex controllers are found on are reliable but they are also complex so get your initial training from Xerox if it is available otherwise look for a trained technician to do this repair.  Try to use the latest version of the restore disk.    You will also find it makes the job a lot easier to have a computer monitor and a USB keyboard is available as well. 

When I have to do a restoration on the hard disk of the OptiPlex controller I usually start by removing the controller from the Printer unit and locating it near the monitor.  Install the hard drive if one is required then connect the monitor and keyboard to the OptiPlex controller and power up the monitor.  Next, you should power up the OptiPlex controller.  When the controller is powered on open the DVD drive and insert the restoration disk.

WARNING! RESTORATION DISKS WILL ERASE YOUR HARD DRIVE. DON’T EVER INSERT THE RESTORATION DISK NOTED IN THIS POST INTO YOUR WORK COMPUTER OR LAPTOP OR YOU RUN THE RISK OF ACCIDENTALLY FORMATTING YOUR HARD DRIVE,  PERMANENTLY,  ERASING ALL OF YOUR FILES.

Next power down the controller and then restart it so that the DVD can begin loading the software onto the hard drive.  You may need to enter the OptiPlex setup to force the OptiPlex controller to boot from the DVD but most of the time that is not necessary and it will boot from the DVD automatically.  Once the controller is booting from the restoration disk in the DVD you should see a warning about the software’s ability to format your hard drive and a password to enter if you want to proceed.  Take that warning seriously because there is no undo’s on the choice that you make.

WARNING!  RESTORATION DISKS WILL ERASE YOUR HARD DRIVE. DON’T EVER INSERT THE RESTORATION DISK NOTED IN THIS POST INTO YOUR WORK COMPUTER OR LAPTOP OR YOU RUN THE RISK OF ACCIDENTALLY FORMATTING YOUR HARD DRIVE, PERMANENTLY,  ERASING ALL OF YOUR FILES.

Once the OptiPlex controller has begun to load the software from the DVD drive the monitor operation will be cut off and you will only be able to note the progress by the activity LEDs on the DVD and controller. You will have to watch and wait about 15 -20 minutes at which point the DVD will open indicating that loading of the software onto the hard drive is complete and the OptiPlex controller is about to restart.  Remove the restoration disk from the DVD when it opens and allow the OptiPlex to restart. At this point, the software will be automatically extracted and installed onto the hard drive which will take about 30 minutes. I usually wait about 45 minutes to be sure everything is complete and then shut the controller down and reinstall it on the printer.

When you have the OptiPlex controller reinstalled on the printer then power everything up and connect the crossover cable to the network connection on the OptiPlex controller.   You will need to mirror your computer’s network adapter to the default IP address of the controller which is noted in the OptiPlex controller restoration instructions provided in your printer's controller service manual.

Once you have the controller connected to your laptop network adaptor you should be able to browse to its web page using the default IP address. 

At this point, you should download the firmware for the particular printer from Xerox.com and drop it in the file upload tab.  It will take about 20 more minutes for the firmware to complete the connection to the printer which will be indicated by messages on the display.  When the firmware has been correctly installed the only items that remain are to reinstall the feature keys from the Xerox feature coupon redemption website and last of all set the IP address to the customer’s normal IP address and check for normal operation.  About the only problem I ever have with disk restorations is not waiting long enough for things to happen so be patient. 

PS. You cannot install the feature keys on the OptiPlex controller unless the controller is attached to its designated printer so attach it first.  Then upload the feature keys. Also, I cannot provide the restoration disks as those are only provided to Xerox trained technicians that have an account with Xerox.  You will have to request those from Xerox directly.  One more thing store the restoration disks in a safe place where no one can accidentally put them in a computer and damage it. 

I hope this refresher will help you if you need to complete a hard drive restoration on one of these rather elderly printers. 

How I install Windows 7 drivers on Window 8 (or Windows 10) computers

The recent demise of the Windows XP operating system has led a good many of my customers to migrate to windows computers in their offices.  I thought I would explain a tip I found on the internet that has helped me when I am installing Xerox drivers that were originally intended  for Windows 7 on to Windows 8 computers. 

Below I have pasted  the few lines of instructions  a friend passed along to me.  The instructions show how to set up Windows 8 for  unsigned Windows 7 64 bit Drivers:
__________________________________________________________________

Install unsigned drivers in windows 8 this way

I had a problems installing unsigned drivers in Windows 8 and the steps below worked for me.

Windows Key + R

Enter shutdown.exe /r /o /f /t 00

Click the "OK" button

System will restart to a "Choose an option" screen

Select "Troubleshoot" from "Choose an option" screen

Select "Advanced options" from "Troubleshoot" screen

Select "Windows Startup Settings" from "Advanced options" screen

Click "Restart" button

System will restart to "Advanced Boot Options" screen

Select "Disable Driver Signature Enforcement"

Once the system starts, install the drivers as you would on Windows 7

_________________________________________________________________________

The only problem I have with these instructions is that most people including myself have a problem with the 2nd line.  You don't need to type in Enter in front of Shutdown.   In fact I have never been able to type the instructions in the 2nd line without some syntax error occurring so I usually just cut and past everything after Enter.  The rest of the instructions are pretty clear so I don't think I need to explain them. 

As far as Xerox wide formats go I have been able to run everything from a 12 year old 8825 with the original controller to the latest 6204 in Windows 8 with no problems.  

Also I recommend for my customers who don't like being without the start screen in Windows 8 that they go to stardock.com where they can purchase the windows 7 start screen app for windows 8.

The Stardock screen costs about 5 dollars but it has saved me much more than that in time saved  teaching and re teaching customers and new Windows 8 users how to find the printers in Windows 8.  

I believe the Window 8.1 OS will have a start button and desktop screen as an option but I have not seen it for my self.  


Windows 8 is a good OS and Older Xerox wide formats can be made compatible with it. I tell my customers not to push their old Xerox 8830, 510 or 6204 out the door and into the scrap bin till they have tried this.   Many of the new KIP, OCE , and Ricoh owners who I tell about this tip literally cry out in agony when they discover they could have continued with the rock solid Xerox equipment that has been in their offices for as much as a decade.  

Hope someone finds this information useful.

How I Re-install Xerox Freeflow Acxess client tools on a Windows 7 64bit computer

Assuming the computer on which I or my customer needs to install Acxess client tools has the Window 7 64 bit OS installed,  I usually go to the page below and look for the FREEFLOW ACXESS CLIENT TOOLS AND ACCOUNT MANAGEMENT TOOL FOR WINDOW, VERSION 14.01.12.

 http://www.support.xerox.com/support/xerox-6204/downloads/enus.html?operatingSystem=win7x64

Dell Optiplex controller used on most Xerox
Wide format scanner and printer systems

NOTE: This version of Acxess client tools runs on a desk top or laptop computer.  If I see a black computer next to my customers Xerox wide format system  that resembles the Dell Optiplex controller noted in the photo that can be seen on  this page then I know  this version of Acxess client tools will probably work on my customers computer. I never attempt to load the Acxess Client tools onto the Dell Optiplex controllers.  The Dell Optiplex controllers run the proprietary software that Xerox printers and scanner use to operate.  Acxess Client tools is only meant to be installed on the customers desktop PC or Laptop where they intend to retrieve the scanned files!!!

Here is the process I use to install Acxess client tools on to a Windows 7 64 bit desktop or laptop personal computer:

I Download Acxess client tools from the website above and it will automatically install itself when I open it. During the install I am carefull not to select the password protected account as this will install accounting software.   I then need to go to the DEVICE MANAGER tab on the upper right.  There is an icon on the left side of the DEVICE MANAGER page that when you cursor over it will read "create a new device".  Once I click on create a new device I can see the device name and IP address boxes open on the bottom of the DEVICE MANAGER page. I then enter the name and IP address of the Xerox 6204 or the type of system I will be using..  I then hit enter.  I will then see the new device in the list on the screen.  I then check on the boxes marked default printer and default scanner

Next I need to go to the DOCUMENT RETRIEVE tab at the top of the page.   On the DOCUMENT RETRIEVE page the Mailbox name will most likely be defaulted to" images" (lower case) but it can be any of the mail box names that I or my customer has entered at the Xerox scan page on the copier or scanner system. The file prefix can be anything I or my customer choose or I can leave it defaulted to MYSCAN.  The retrieval directory will be  the location I or my customer want the files to wind up in when they are retrieved from the copier. I usually close and reopen the AXCESS CLIENT TOOLS once.  When I close it on some systems a question will come up and read " save changes?"   I do not want to save changes.  When I  reopen it windows may give me an error telling me that the program wasn't installed correctly.  Just choose to re-install the program with the recommended setting and it will quickly correct the install and reopen.  

This should do it if the controller is an Acxess unit.

 If there is no controller to be seen or it is mounted on the back of your printer you will need to look at either How I install Xerox scan assistant  or the page for How I install Acxess client tools on machines that have Non Dell controllers installed.  I will be putting these pages up for you shortly.  

How I print a configuration page for a KIP 7100

Sometimes I or my customer may want to print out the KIP 7100 configuration print. The configuration print will provide the user with a hard copy containing a wealth of information about the machine which you can store away in case of a hardware failure.  In this blog I will demonstrate how I print the configuration page for the KIP 7100.  The operation is similar for all KIP products which have a touch screen like the one shown in this blog.   Proceed to step 1....

Step 1

The touch display should be displaying the KIP home screen as noted below.  If the screen is black I tap anywhere and the display should power up and return to the home screen. If I find the KIP is not on the home screen but instead on some other screen I simply tap the little house icon at the lower right of the display and return to home.   Once powered up and at the home screen the display should show the printer online button with a green circle just under the big help question mark.  From here I proceed to step 2.  

Step 2
In this step I tap the ? HELP  button under the KIP logo one time then I can then proceed to step 3.

Step 3
In this step I am able to see the screen has changed to the information screen.    In order to see all of the information about the KIP 7100 I will need to tap the SHOW VERSION button at the bottom of the screen one time.  Now I can proceed to step 4.

Step 4

Now I am able to see all of the important information regarding the configuration of the KIP 7100.  If I only wanted to see the information and did not need a hard copy I could stop here.  For this example though  I do need to print a hard copy so I tap on the PRINT THIS SCREEN button one time. You should hear the configuration sheet being printed now. After a few minutes the screen will return to the home screen.  The screen will automatically go back to the home screen so  I now proceed to my last step.  

Step 6
I remove the configuration print from the KIP 7100 print stacker and I should have a configuration print that looks similar to the one below. We will cover what all the information on the configuration print means in a future blog.

As noted in previous blogs we have only scratched the surface today regarding what you as the operator can do with your KIP 7100.   In a future blog we will also cover how to do this same operation on the HP wide format plotters.   Leave a comment if you like. If you have a problem with this operation and would like some help you can say that in the comments or you can email me from my profile. Thanks for coming by.

How I print a configuration page for the Xerox 510 and 8830 wide format printer systems

On occasion I or one of my customers who own a Xerox 510 and 8830/25 wide format copier and printer may want to print out the configuration print. The configuration print will provide a wealth of information about the machine that is just not easily visible on the display. I have provided photos below that demonstrate how I print the config page using the display and key pad on the Xerox 510 and 8830 systems. The procedure for the 8830 is the same only the buttons on the 8830 have symbols rather than names.   I always remember that if I get lost during the procedure I can return to the beginning by pressing the online button which will bring the machine back to the online ready state when the ONLINE LED is lit.   If am not sure where I am in the menu I push the online button and start over.  As I never want to accidentally change settings on mine or my customers Xerox  510 or 8830  I try to remember that if I become confused during the process I simply push the ONLINE button on the display and return to the beginning at Step 1 which is were we will start.

Step 1 

I always try to make sure my 510 or 8830  looks  like the photo below when I start this procedure.  The green online LED next to the ON LINE button should be lit and the 510 should show XEROX  510 WIDE FMT...IDLE in the display window.  Now I can go to the next step. 

Step 2

I Press the ONLINE button at which time I should see the green LED go out.  No I can go to the next step.

Step 3
My display should now read   XEROX  510 WIDE FMT....PAUSED.  Now I push the ENTER button once and I can go to the next step.

Step 4
My display should now read  XEROX  510 WIDE FMT SETUP MENU....(UTILITIES).  Now I press the ENTER button once and go to the next step.

Step 5
My display should now read UTILITIES... (TEST PRINT).  I press the enter button once and go to the next step.

Step 6
My display should now read TEST PRINT...(ALL).  I Press the NEXT button once and go to the next step.

Step 7
My display should now read TEST PRINT....(PRINTER CONFIGURATION)  I press the enter button once and go to the next step.

Step 7
My display should now read UTILITIES.....(TEST PRINT).  I Press the ONLINE button once.  At this point I should see the green LED light up and I should hear the printer begin to print the configuration print.

Step 8
My display should now indicate that it is printing an INTERNAL  HPGL while it is printing the configuration page.

Step 9
Once the configuration print has completed printing my display should return to XEROX 510 WIDE FMT....IDLE with the ONLINE LED lit.  The printer has now returned to it's normal ready state.

Step 10
I should now have printed a configuration print that looks similar to the one below.  I will cover what all the information on the configuration print means in a future blog.

We have just scratched the surface today regarding what you as the operator can do with your Xerox 510. In a future blog we will also cover how to do this same operation on the other Xerox printers as well as the KIP and HP wide format printers. Leave a comment if you like. If you have a problem with this operation and would like some help you can say that in the comments or you can email me from my profile. Thanks for coming by.

How to print a configuration print on the 6204

On occasion an owner or operator of a Xerox 6204 wide format copier and scanner may want to print out the configuration print.  The configuration print will provide a wealth of information about the machine that is just not easily visible on the display.  Before you start the steps below you need to determine if your 6204  a basic print server( BPS) or an Acxess print server (APS).  To find out which type 6204 your have look on the right end of the the printer,  if there is a small black Dell computer connected you have an APS 6204.  If you see no external Dell computer connected to you operational 6204 you have a BPS machine.   Sorry but BPS models cannot print a configuration print because they were designed to use the older Fuji embedded controller.  If you have an APS 6204 move on to step one.


Step 1.  When your 6204 says "Ready" on the display find the Machine status button on the key pad and press it.

Step 2  You should see the Machine status window now.  Find the configuration print icon and tap it once.

Step 3 You should now see the Configuration prints window now.  Find the Printer configuration icon and tap it once.

Step 4 You should now see the Printer configuration icon highlighted. Find the Print icon at the top right of the display and tap it once.

Step 5  You should now hear the Configuration print being printed.  Once it has printed find the Menu button at the bottom of the display and press it once to bring the display back to the start menu where you should see "Ready" again.

Step 6  You should have a configuration print that looks similar to the one below.  We will cover what all the information on the configuration print means in a future blog.

We are just scratching the surface today regarding what you as the operator can do with your Xerox 6204.  In a future blog we will also cover how to do this same operation on the other Xerox printers as well as the KIP and HP wide format printers.    Leave a comment if you like.  If you have a problem with this operation and would like some help you can say that in the comments or you can email me from my profile.  Thanks for coming by.