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
Consider the following remarks and requirements for this sensor:
Remark |
Description |
|---|---|
Performance impact |
This sensor has a high performance impact. We recommend that you use no more than 200 of this sensor on each probe. |
Print Spooler Windows service |
This sensor requires that the Print Spooler Windows service runs on the target device and the probe system.
|
.NET 4.7.2 or later |
This sensor requires .NET 4.7.2 or later from Microsoft on the probe system. In a cluster, install it on every cluster node. If the sensor shows the error PE087, additionally install .NET 3.5 on the probe system.
|
Windows Server |
We recommend Windows Server 2016 on the probe system for best performance of this sensor. |
Credentials |
This sensor requires credentials for Windows systems.
Otherwise, the sensor cannot correctly connect. |
IPv6 |
This sensor supports IPv6. |
Hosted probe |
|
You can add a change trigger to this sensor to get a notification when the number of jobs in the queue changes.
Basic Sensor Settings
The sensor has the following default tags that are automatically predefined in the sensor's settings when you add the sensor:
- ptfsensor
For more information about basic sensor settings, see section Sensor Settings.
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.
|
Advanced Status Options |
Optionally define specific sensor states for several return messages of the printer that this sensor monitors:
|
Door Open |
This setting is only visible if you select Define sensor states for specific return messages above. For each problem that the printer reports, define the status that the sensor shows:
|
Manual Feed Required |
This setting is only visible if you select Define sensor states for specific return messages above. For each problem that the printer reports, define the status that the sensor shows:
|
Needs User Intervention |
This setting is only visible if you select Define sensor states for specific return messages above. For each problem that the printer reports, define the status that the sensor shows:
|
Offline |
This setting is only visible if you select Define sensor states for specific return messages above. For each problem that the printer reports, define the status that the sensor shows:
|
Out of Memory |
This setting is only visible if you select Define sensor states for specific return messages above. For each problem that the printer reports, define the status that the sensor shows:
|
Out of Paper |
This setting is only visible if you select Define sensor states for specific return messages above. For each problem that the printer reports, define the status that the sensor shows:
|
Paper Jammed |
This setting is only visible if you select Define sensor states for specific return messages above. For each problem that the printer reports, define the status that the sensor shows:
|
Paper Problem |
This setting is only visible if you select Define sensor states for specific return messages above. For each problem that the printer reports, define the status that the sensor shows:
|
Paused |
This setting is only visible if you select Define sensor states for specific return messages above. For each problem that the printer reports, define the status that the sensor shows:
|
Printer Error |
This setting is only visible if you select Define sensor states for specific return messages above. For each problem that the printer reports, define the status that the sensor shows:
|
Printer Not Available |
This setting is only visible if you select Define sensor states for specific return messages above. For each problem that the printer reports, define the status that the sensor shows:
|
Toner Low |
This setting is only visible if you select Define sensor states for specific return messages above. For each problem that the printer reports, define the status that the sensor shows:
|
Toner Out |
This setting is only visible if you select Define sensor states for specific return messages above. For each problem that the printer reports, define the status that the sensor shows:
|
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:
|
Sensor Display
Setting |
Description |
|---|---|
Primary Channel |
Select a channel from the list to define it as the primary channel. In the device tree, PRTG displays the last value of the primary channel below the sensor's name. The available options depend on what channels are available for this sensor.
|
Graph Type |
Define how this sensor shows different channels:
|
Stack Unit |
This setting is only visible if you select Stack channels on top of each other above. Select a unit from the list. PRTG stacks all channels with this unit 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.
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
|
KNOWLEDGE BASE
Which .NET version does PRTG require?
What security features does PRTG include?
