Applies to Zebra printers that use ZPL or EPL.
Symptoms
- You send a label request and the printer does not respond
- The print job leaves the print queue but nothing is printed
- The Data LED on the printer is flashing but the printer is not printing
- No labels feed when a print job is sent from the host
Cause
You cannot send a plain text file to the printer and expect a label. Zebra printers require label requests in the correct programming format. The two main languages on desktop and tabletop models are ZPL and EPL. If the printer does not receive the correct language (wrong commands or the wrong driver), it will not print.
ZPL example:
^XA ^FO20,20^A0N,40,40^FDTest Text^FS ^XZ
Resolution
| Problem | What to check |
|---|---|
| ZPL printer is not responding | Confirm you are sending ZPL. Use hex dump to inspect received data. Check that the format prefix (default caret ^, hex 5E) matches the configuration label. Set Zebra Protocol to NONE unless you need Ack-Nak. |
| EPL printer is not responding | End each line with a carriage return / line feed (CR/LF). EPL structure is specific; verify commands against the EPL manual. Confirm you are not sending ZPL to an EPL printer (or the reverse). |
Diagnostic mode
A communication diagnostic (hex dump) prints a literal ASCII hex representation of the data the printer receives. Use labels large enough to read the dump. This is the fastest way to see whether the host is sending the language the printer expects. Many models enter dump during a self test; see the self-test articles for LP/TLP, ZP450, and QL.