Configuring Barcode Printers
CONFIGURING NEWER BARCODE PRINTERS (Intermec PC43t)
Last revised 5/3/2021
1. Open up Windows Explorer and copy the entire O:\AMM\Barcode\Setup folder to your desktop. (If you’ve copied this folder to your desktop before, overwrite it.)
2. Open up the Setup folder on your desktop (it won’t run correctly if launched directly from the O drive), right-click on the setup (or setup.bat) icon, and choose Run as Administrator. Click Yes to grant permissions if/when prompted.
3. (IMPORTANT NOTE: Only run this step if you’ve never printed to an Intermec PC43t from this computer before. If you’re simply switching to a new printer or updating the existing printer’s IP address, SKIP THIS STEP.) Choose option 1 from the menu, and install the program without changing any of the default settings. (You may, however, uncheck “Create a desktop icon” if you want to… you’ll never actually run the program it’s installing, as it works in the background.) Click Yes to approve the firewall changes when asked. Once completed, the Setup window will close. You will be asked to run the setup icon again in the next step.
4. Right-click on the setup icon and choose Run as Administrator, then choose the letter corresponding to the printer you’ll be printing from. (For example, press “i” to install the configuration file for the NWH printer.)
5. The COM port driver will try to start on its own, which takes a few seconds (the setup program will tell you that). The program will then tell you that you can try to print a barcode, but the COM port activation will probably fail because in most cases you have to reboot your PC before it can become active. So reboot your PC.
6. Once the PC starts up again, run barcode.exe (a shortcut has been placed on your Windows desktop for you by the installation process) and print a test label.
NOTE: If you need to change which printer you’ll be printing from, re-run steps 4 through 6.
CONFIGURING OLDER BARCODE PRINTERS (Intermec PC41, EasyCoder 7421)
Last revised 4/19/2018
[Note: this is copied from a Help Desk article at https://partnershealthcare.service-now.com/kb_view.do?sysparm_article=KB0030104 ]
1. If you’ve never printed barcodes on this PC before, or if the PC is new, start here. If you have been able to print barcodes from this PC before using the stand-alone barcode printing program (o:\amm\barcode.exe), skip to Step 2 below.
1a. Run L:\dbemain\printers\np.exe
1b. Press Next until you reach the final installation screen (labeled “Completing the NPort Windows Driver Manager Setup Wizard”), leave the checkbox checked, and click Finish. If, during the process, the installer asks to overwrite any files, click Yes.
1c. If Windows pops up a Security Alert about blocking a port, click “Unblock”.
1d. The NPort Windows Driver Manager program will launch, along with a second window that says “Add NPort.” If the second window does not open automatically, click the “Add” button in the toolbar. Then, in the Add NPort window, click on the “Search” button to automatically search the LAN for barcode printers in your area.
1e. After a short pause, one server should come up. (If more than one comes up, choose the one closest to your location by checking the Name field in the list of printers.) Click Next.
NOTE: If the installer is unable to find any printers, you’ll be taken back to the main Add NPort window — in this case, click on the radio button marked “Input Manually” and enter one of the following IP addresses into the “NPort IP Address” field from the following list (depending on which printer you’d like to print to):
BWH_PBB-008_BARCODE: 170.23.205.70 (was 170.223.144.13)
BWH_CWN-L2_BARCODE: 170.223.126.58
BWH_AMORY-OR_BARCODE: 170.23.166.216
MGH_ELL-328_BARCODE: 132.183.50.82
MGH_RSH-020_BARCODE: 172.16.51.34
MGH_RSH-060_BARCODE: 172.16.51.40
MGH_LUNDER-LL045_BARCODE: 172.31.11.104
MGH_COX_BARCODE: 172.16.78.133
1f. Click OK, then click Yes when it asks you if you want to activate the port now.
1g. There should now be a single entry in the main NPort Windows Driver Manager window. Double-click on that entry, then in the popup window that opens, change the COM Number pulldown to COM8 and click OK. Finally, click the Exit button in the toolbar to quit the Driver Manager and click Yes when it asks you to save.
NOTE: If you only plan to print barcodes using the stand-alone barcode.exe program, stop here. If you also want to be able to print barcodes directly from TMS using its barcode reports (not typically done at MGH; sometimes done at other facilities), please continue with the remaining steps.
TROUBLESHOOTING NOTE: If you try to run barcode.exe and get an error message about either a missing file or reference (usually either COMDLG32.OCX or TABCTL32.OCX, but sometimes NTLCC.DLL or XYMODNT.DLL), do the following: open up a new Windows Explorer window and navigate to O:\AMM\barcode\Dependencies. First copy the 4 files in that directory to your desktop, and then move them from your desktop into the folder C:\Windows\SysWOW64 (you may see a popup asking for administrative access; just press Yes). Next, click on the magnifying glass in the Windows Start menu and type cmd. When the option for a Command Prompt appears, right-click on it and choose “Run as Administrator.” Finally, in the command prompt window, issue the following two commands in this order:
regsvr32 c:\windows\syswow64\comdlg32.ocx
regsvr32 c:\windows\syswow64\tabctl32.ocx
Once the two files have been registered, you can close the Command Prompt window and relaunch barcode.exe. You should now be able to print barcodes successfully.
If you still get an error — usually at this point it’s either involving NTLCC.DLL or XYMODNT.DLL — create a shortcut to O:\AMM\barcode.exe on your desktop, right-click on the shortcut, choose Properties, change the “Start in:” value to “C:\Windows\SysWOW64” (including the quotes), and click OK. Then double-click on the shortcut to launch barcode.exe and try printing again.
TO PRINT BARCODES DIRECTLY FROM TMS USING BARCODE REPORTS (not typically done at MGH):
2. Run L:\dbemain\printers\intermec.exe and go through the installation process, accepting all the default settings. It’ll prompt you to check for updates to the driver at the end of the installation process; do so, and install any available updates.
3. In the Install or Remove Drivers screen, choose “Install Printer Drivers” and press Next.
4. At the Connect Printers screen, choose “Serial” and press Next.
5. At the Specify Printer Model screen, choose “EasyCoder 7421” and press Next.
6. At the Specify Port screen, press the “Create Port” button, then select Local Port and press New Port. For the port name, type COM8, and press OK. Then press Close. Click on your new COM8 port in the list, then press Next.
7. At the Specify Printer Name screen, leave everything as-is and press Next.
8. At the summary screen, press Finish. Then when the installation is complete, press Next to exit the wizard.
9. At the Configure Generic/Text-Only screen, leave the checkbox unchecked and press Next.
10. At the Installation Complete screen, click the Configure Settings button. Then click the Edit on the Page Setup tab. Change the Label Size width to 2″ and the Label Size height to 1″. Leave the Liner Width settings alone. Press OK.
11. Press the Manage button, then New. Rename the new setting from “New Preset” to “Intermec” and press OK. Press OK again to exit the configuration screen.
12. Use the “Test Page” button to print a test barcode.
You should now be able to print barcodes directly from TMS (when you do, make sure you select the “EasyCoder 7421” printer as your print destination). You will also be able to use the stand-alone barcode printing program at o:\amm\barcode.exe.