HP LaserJet 4100 Printer series - Troubleshooting flowchart

138 Chapter 4 - Problem solving

EN

2

Can you print a configuration page (see

“Configuration page” on page 152)?

YES

➜

Go to step

3

.

NO

A configuration page does
not print.

A blank page prints.

A message other than

READY

or

PRINTING

CONFIGURATION

is displayed.

• Check that all trays are properly

loaded, adjusted, and installed
in the printer.

• From the computer, check the

print queue or print spooler to
see if the printer has been
paused. If there are problems
with the current print job, or if
the printer is paused, a
configuration page will not print.
(Press

C

ANCEL

J

OB

and try step

2 again.)

• Check that the sealing

tape is not still in the
toner cartridge. (See the
getting started guide or
the instructions that
came with the toner
cartridge.)

• The toner cartridge

might be empty. Install a
new toner cartridge.

• Go to “Understanding printer

messages” on page 111.

➜

EN

Determining printer problems 139

3

Can you print from a software application?

YES

➜

Go to step

4

.

NO

The job will not print.

A PS error page or list of
commands prints

• If the job will not print, and a message is displayed

on the control panel, see “Understanding printer
messages” on page 111.

• From the computer, check to see if the printer has

been paused.

• If the printer is on a network, check that you are

printing to the correct printer. To verify that it is not
a network problem, connect the computer directly to
the printer with a parallel cable, change the port to
LPT1, and try to print.

• Check the interface cable connections. Disconnect

and reconnect the cable at the computer and the
printer.

• Test the cable by trying it on another computer.
• If you are using a parallel connection, make sure the

cable is IEEE-1284 compliant.

• If the printer is on a network, print a configuration

page (see “Configuration page” on page 152) and
verify in the Protocol Information that server and
node name match the names in the printer driver.

• To verify that it is not a computer problem, print from

another computer (if possible).

• Make sure the print job is being sent to the correct

port (LPT1, or network printer port, for example).

• Check that you are using the proper printer driver

(see “Choose the right printer driver for your needs”
on page 37).

• Reinstall the printer driver (see the getting started

guide).

• Check that the port is configured and working

properly. (Try connecting another printer to that port
and printing.)

• If printing with the PS driver, from the Configuration

Menu in the printer control panel, set

PRINT PS

ERRORS=ON

, then print the job again (see “

PRINT PS

ERRORS= OFF

” on page 221. If an error page prints,

see the instructions in the next column.

• From the Configuration Menu in the printer control

panel, make sure that

PERSONALITY=AUTO

(see

“

PERSONALITY= AUTO

” on page 221).

• You might be missing a printer message that could

help you solve the problem. From the Configuration
Menu in the printer control panel, temporarily turn
the Clearable Warnings and Auto Continue settings
off (see “

CLEARABLE WARNINGS=JOB

” on page 220

and “

AUTO CONTINUE= ON

” on page 220) and then

print the job again.

• The printer might have received a

nonstandard PS code. From the
Configuration Menu in the printer
control panel, set

PERSONALITY

to

PS

for this print job only. After

the job has printed, return the
setting to

AUTO

(see

“

PERSONALITY= AUTO

” on

page 221).

• Make sure the print job is a PS

job, and that you are using the PS
driver.

• The printer might have received

PS code when it is set to PCL.
From the Configuration Menu, set

PERSONALITY

to

AUTO

(see

“

PERSONALITY= AUTO

” on

page 221).

➜

140 Chapter 4 - Problem solving

EN

4

Does the job print as expected? (Continued on the following page.)

NO

Print is garbled or only a
portion of the page prints

Printing
stops in the
middle of
the job.

Print speed is
slower than
expected.

A control
panel setting
is not taking
effect.

• Check that you are using the

proper printer driver (see
“Choose the right printer driver for
your needs” on page 37).

• The data file sent to the printer

might be corrupt. To test, try
printing it on another printer (if
possible), or try a different file.

• Check the interface cable

connections. Test the cable by
trying it on another computer (if
possible).

• Replace the interface cable with

a high-quality cable (see
“Ordering information” on
page 22).

• Reduce the job’s complexity, print

at a lower resolution (see the
description of “

RESOLUTION=

FASTRES 1200

” on page 217), or

install more printer memory (see
“Printer memory and expansion”
on page 229).

• You might be missing a printer

message that could help you
solve the problem. From the
Configuration Menu in the printer
control panel, temporarily turn the
Clearable Warnings and Auto
Continue settings off (see
“

CLEARABLE WARNINGS=JOB

” on

page 220 and “

AUTO CONTINUE=

ON

” on page 220) and then print

the job again.

•

C

ANCEL

J

OB

might have been
pressed.

• Check that the

power supplied
to the printer is
steady, and
meets printer
specifications
(see “Electrical
specifications”
on page 201).

• Simplify the print

job.

• Add more

memory to the
printer (see
“Printer memory
and expansion”
on page 229).

• Turn banner

pages off. (See
your network
administrator.)

• Note that slower

speeds should
be expected if
you are printing
narrow paper,
printing from
tray 1, using
HIGH 2 fuser
mode, or have
small paper
speed set to
slow.

• Check settings

in the printer
driver or
software
application.
(Printer driver
and software
commands
override control
panel settings.)

➜

EN

Determining printer problems 141

Does the job print as expected? (continued)

YES

➜

Go to step

5.

NO

The print job is not formatted
correctly.

Pages are not fed correctly
or are damaged.

There are print
quality problems.

• Check that you are using the

proper printer driver (see
“Choose the right printer driver for
your needs” on page 37).

• Check the software settings. (See

the software help.)

• Try a different font.
• Downloaded resources might

have been lost. You might need to
download them again.

• Make sure paper is loaded

correctly and that the guides are
not too tight or too loose against
the paper stack.

• If you are having problems

printing custom-size paper, see
“Guidelines for printing custom-
size paper” on page 63.

• If pages are wrinkled or curled,

or if the image is skewed on the
page, see “Correcting output
quality problems” on page 128.

• Adjust the print

resolution (see
“

RESOLUTION=

FASTRES 1200

” on

page 217).

• Check that REt is on

(see “

RET=MEDIUM

” on

page 217.

• Go to “Correcting

output quality
problems” on
page 128.

➜

142 Chapter 4 - Problem solving

EN

5

Does the printer select the proper trays,

output locations, and paper handling
accessories?

YES

➜

For other problems,
check the Contents,
the Index, or the
printer software help.

NO

The printer pulls paper from the
wrong tray.

An optional accessory is not
working properly.

A message other than

READY

is displayed.

• See “Customizing what tray is

used for printing” on page 68.

• Make sure paper trays are

correctly configured for paper
size and type (see “Loading
trays 2, 3, and 4” on page 47).
Print a configuration page to see
current tray settings (see
“Configuration page” on
page 152).

• Make sure the tray selection (or

paper type) in the printer driver
or software application is set
correctly. (The printer driver and
software application settings
override the printer control panel
settings.)

• If you do not want to print from

tray 1, remove any paper loaded
in the tray or change the

TRAY 1

MODE

setting to

CASSETTE

(see

“Customizing tray 1 operation”
on page 69). By default, paper
loaded in tray 1 will be printed
first.

• If you want to print from tray 1,

but cannot select the tray from a
software application, see
“Customizing tray 1 operation”
on page 69.

• Print a configuration page to

verify that the accessory is
installed properly and is
functional (see “Configuration
page” on page 152).

• Configure the printer driver for

the installed accessories (see
the software help).

• Turn the printer off, and then

turn the printer on.

• Verify that you are using the

correct optional accessory for
the printer.

• If the optional duplexer will not

duplex, check that the rear
output bin is closed.

• If the optional duplexer will not

duplex, you might need to
install more memory (see
“Printer memory and
expansion” on page 229).

• Go to “Understanding

printer messages” on
page 111.

➜