PRTG Manual: Windows Print Queue Sensor
The Windows Print Queue sensor reads the print queue on the parent device and returns the number of jobs in the print queue. It can monitor queues for all printers that are locally installed.
You can use this sensor to monitor all print queues on your Windows print server and to retrieve information about all available jobs that are in the queue longer than defined.
Additionally, this sensor can change to a defined status if there is a printer problem. See section Sensor Settings for available parameters.
Windows Print Queue Sensor
For a detailed list and descriptions of the channels that this sensor can show, see section Channel List.
- Dutch: Windows Print Queue
- French: Windows file d'attente d'impression
- German: Windows Druckwarteschlange
- Japanese: Windows プリントキュー
- Portuguese: Fila de impressão Windows
- Russian: Очередь печати Windows
- Simplified Chinese: Windows 打印队列
- Spanish: Cola de impresión Windows
- This sensor has a high performance impact. We recommend that you use no more than 200 of this sensor on each probe.
- This sensor requires that the Print Spooler Windows service runs on the target device and the probe system.
- This sensor requires .NET 4.7.2 or later from Microsoft on the probe system. If the sensor shows the error PE087, additionally install .NET 3.5 on the probe system.
- We recommend Windows Server 2012 R2 on the probe system for best performance of this sensor.
- This sensor requires credentials for Windows systems in the settings of the parent device.
- This sensor supports IPv6.
You can add a change trigger to this sensor to get a notification when the number of jobs in the queue changes.
You cannot add this sensor to the hosted probe of a PRTG Hosted Monitor instance. If you want to use this sensor, add it to a remote probe device.
Requirement |
Description |
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This sensor requires the Print Spooler Windows service to be started on the target system and the probe system. To enable the service, log in to the respective system and open the services manager (for example, via services.msc). In the list, find the respective service and set its Start Type to Automatic. |
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This sensor requires .NET 4.7.2 or later to be installed on the probe system (on every cluster node, if on a cluster probe).
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This sensor requires credentials for Windows systems in the settings of the parent device. We recommend that you use Windows domain credentials.
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Basic Sensor Settings
Setting |
Description |
|---|---|
Sensor Name |
Enter a name to identify the sensor. By default, PRTG shows this name in the device tree, as well as in alarms, logs, notifications, reports, maps, libraries, and tickets.
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Parent Tags |
The tags that the sensor inherits from its parent device, parent group, and parent probe.
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Tags |
Enter one or more tags. Confirm each tag with the Spacebar key, a comma, or the Enter key. You can use tags to group objects and use tag-filtered views later on. Tags are not case-sensitive. Tags are automatically inherited.
The sensor has the following default tags that are automatically predefined in the sensor's settings when you add the sensor:
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Priority |
Select a priority for the sensor. This setting determines the position of the sensor in lists. The highest priority is at the top of a list. Choose from the lowest priority ( |
Sensor Settings
Setting |
Description |
|---|---|
Print Queue |
Select the print queues that you want to monitor. PRTG creates one sensor for each print queue that you select.
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Advanced Status Options |
You can optionally define specific sensor states for several return messages of the printer that this sensor monitors. Choose between:
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Door Open |
This setting is only available if you select the Define sensor states for specific return messages above. For each problem that the printer reports, you can define the status that the sensor shows. Choose between:
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Manual Feed Required |
This setting is only available if you select the Define sensor states for specific return messages above. For each problem that the printer reports, you can define the status that the sensor shows. Choose between:
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Needs User Intervention |
This setting is only available if you select the Define sensor states for specific return messages above. For each problem that the printer reports, you can define the status that the sensor shows. Choose between:
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Offline |
This setting is only available if you select the Define sensor states for specific return messages above. For each problem that the printer reports, you can define the status that the sensor shows. Choose between:
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Out of Memory |
This setting is only available if you select the Define sensor states for specific return messages above. For each problem that the printer reports, you can define the status that the sensor shows. Choose between:
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Out of Paper |
This setting is only available if you select the Define sensor states for specific return messages above. For each problem that the printer reports, you can define the status that the sensor shows. Choose between:
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Paper Jammed |
This setting is only available if you select the Define sensor states for specific return messages above. For each problem that the printer reports, you can define the status that the sensor shows. Choose between:
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Paper Problem |
This setting is only available if you select the Define sensor states for specific return messages above. For each problem that the printer reports, you can define the status that the sensor shows. Choose between:
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Paused |
This setting is only available if you select the Define sensor states for specific return messages above. For each problem that the printer reports, you can define the status that the sensor shows. Choose between:
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Printer Error |
This setting is only available if you select the Define sensor states for specific return messages above. For each problem that the printer reports, you can define the status that the sensor shows. Choose between:
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Printer Not Available |
This setting is only available if you select the Define sensor states for specific return messages above. For each problem that the printer reports, you can define the status that the sensor shows. Choose between:
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Toner Low |
This setting is only available if you select the Define sensor states for specific return messages above. For each problem that the printer reports, you can define the status that the sensor shows. Choose between:
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Toner Out |
This setting is only available if you select the Define sensor states for specific return messages above. For each problem that the printer reports, you can define the status that the sensor shows. Choose between:
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Minimum Print Job Age (Sec.) |
Optionally define the age of the print job in seconds. If you define a minimum print job age, the sensor does not regard jobs that are younger than this value. If you leave this field empty, the sensor does not check for the print job age. Enter an integer or leave the field empty. |
Debug Options
Setting |
Description |
|---|---|
Result Handling |
Define what PRTG does with the sensor result:
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Sensor Display
Setting |
Description |
|---|---|
Primary Channel |
Select a channel from the list to define it as the primary channel. In the device tree, the last value of the primary channel is always displayed below the sensor's name. The available options depend on what channels are available for this sensor.
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Graph Type |
Define how different channels are shown for this sensor:
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Stack Unit |
This setting is only visible if you enable Stack channels on top of each other as Graph Type. Select a unit from the list. All channels with this unit are stacked on top of each other. By default, you cannot exclude single channels from stacking if they use the selected unit. However, there is an advanced procedure to do so. |
By default, all of these settings are inherited from objects that are higher in the hierarchy. We recommend that you change them centrally in the root group settings if necessary. To change a setting for this object only, click 
under the corresponding setting name to disable the inheritance and to display its options.
For more information, see section Inheritance of Settings.
Scanning Interval
For more information, see section Root Group Settings, section Scanning Interval.
Schedules, Dependencies, and Maintenance Window
You cannot interrupt the inheritance for schedules, dependencies, and maintenance windows. The corresponding settings from the parent objects are always active. However, you can define additional schedules, dependencies, and maintenance windows. They are active at the same time as the parent objects' settings.
Schedules, Dependencies, and Maintenance Window
For more information, see section Root Group Settings, section Schedules, Dependencies, and Maintenance Window.
Access Rights
For more information, see section Root Group Settings, section Access Rights.
Which channels the sensor actually shows might depend on the target device, the available components, and the sensor setup.
Channel |
Description |
|---|---|
Downtime |
In the channel table on the Overview tab, this channel never shows any values. PRTG uses this channel in graphs and reports to show the amount of time in which the sensor was in the Down status |
Execution Time |
The execution time |
Jobs |
The number of jobs in the queue
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KNOWLEDGE BASE
Which .NET version does PRTG require?
What security features does PRTG include?
