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Printers

Avero prints receipts and kitchen tickets on Star and Epson printers that connect over the internet. The printer checks in with Avero every few seconds and collects anything waiting for it, so it only needs internet access — no cables to a till. The list is at /admin/printers (see Settings); this guide covers adding a printer at /admin/printers/new and each printer's own page at /admin/printers/:id.

Who can use it​

All four printer permissions are held by Manager and Admin.

  • printers.read — see the list and a printer's page.
  • printers.create — Add printer.
  • printers.update — change settings, send test prints, move or retry tickets, and see the connection details. Without it the page says View only and the Connection tab shows "Connection details are hidden".
  • printers.delete — Remove printer.

Before you start​

  • A Star printer that supports Star CloudPRNT (for example the mC-Print3), or an Epson printer that supports Epson Server Direct Print (for example the TM-m30III). No other makes are supported.
  • The printer on your network with internet access, and a computer on the same network to open the printer's own settings page.
  • At least one seating area at the location. A printer prints for seating areas, so a location with none cannot have a printer yet — see Seating areas.

Add a printer​

Choose Add printer on the Printers page, or Add a printer here on a location's Devices tab. The page is titled Add a printer and has four steps.

  1. What it is — choose Star or Epson (the brand is on the front of the printer) and give it a Name staff will recognise. For Epson, also enter a Device key: a short name using letters, numbers, hyphens and underscores, such as "kitchen-01". Each Epson printer needs its own.
  2. Where it prints — pick the Location, optionally say Where to find it (for example "Under the till"), switch on Receipts, Kitchen tickets, or both, and pick at least one seating area under For these seating areas. Choose Add printer.
  3. Connect — the printer now exists in Avero and the page shows its setup steps with this printer's own values, each with a copy button. Follow them at the printer (summarised below). The page updates by itself; when it shows Avero heard from it, choose Next.
  4. Test — choose Print a test page, then answer Did a page come out? with Yes or No. No shows a list of things to check. Choose Done to open the printer's page.
The password is shown once

If the printer has a username and password, the password appears in the Connect step and, if you leave, one more time on the printer's Connection tab. Enter it on the printer then. If it is lost, make new ones under Sign-in — the printer stops printing until they are entered.

Not at the printer? Choose Finish later. The printer is saved, and tickets wait until it connects. Once a printer is added, its make and device key cannot be changed; remove it and add it again instead.

At the printer — Star CloudPRNT​

  1. Connect the printer with an Ethernet cable and turn it on. Hold FEED for 5 seconds to print a slip with its IP address.
  2. On a computer on the same network, open that IP address in a browser and sign in to the printer's settings page.
  3. Open CloudPRNT, set CloudPRNT Service to Enable, paste the Server address from Avero, and set polling to 5 seconds. Avero tells you whether to leave Username and Password blank or enter the ones shown.
  4. Under HTTPS Client Settings, set the trust level to Accept all. "Without it the printer never connects, and shows no error."
  5. Save and restart the printer. It reconnects in about 30 seconds.

At the printer — Epson Server Direct Print​

  1. On a computer on the same network, open the printer's WebConfig page.
  2. Under TM Intelligent › Device Admin › Printer, set the Device ID to the value Avero shows, mapped to 127.0.0.1.
  3. Under Server Access › Server Direct Print, enter the Server Direct Print URL and Name from Avero, interval 5 seconds, URL Encode Enabled, and the sign-in Avero shows.
  4. Under Server Access › Status Notification, enter the Status address the same way. This is how Avero learns about paper and the cover.
  5. Leave the request version at 1.00 unless the printer asks for 3.00.

The full steps, with your printer's exact values, stay on the printer's Connection tab under Setup guide.

Choose what prints where​

Open a printer and use its Settings tab. Changes save as you go.

  • What it prints — switch Receipts and Kitchen tickets on or off. With both off, "It prints nothing until one is on."
  • For these seating areas — choose the areas whose tickets come out here. At least one must stay selected.
  • Where it is — rename it, update Where to find it, or change its Location. Moving a printer asks you to pick the areas it prints for at the new location, then Move printer or Keep it here.
  • Turned on — switch off a printer you are not using. "Off: nothing is sent to it, and it isn't counted as down."
  • Logo on receipts (Epson only) — prints a logo already stored in the printer. Enter its Key code as set in Epson TM Utility; Avero does not upload the logo for you.

A seating area with no kitchen printer cannot fire orders to the kitchen, and its page says so. Without a receipt printer, receipts can go by email or text instead.

Test a printer​

In the header of a printer that is turned on:

  • Print a test page — checks the path from Avero to paper.
  • Test receipt — prints a sample receipt.

The Right now panel confirms the test was queued; the printer picks it up on its next check. The same panel shows the printer's state, Last heard, Paper, Cover, today's printed and failed counts, and how many tickets are Waiting.

When a printer stops printing​

Start with the status chip in the header and the advice under it in Right now.

StatusWhat to do
Never connectedIt has not reached Avero yet. Follow the Setup guide on its Connection tab.
OfflineCheck it is on and connected to the internet.
Cover openClose the paper cover. Waiting tickets print as soon as it closes.
Out of paperLoad a new roll.
Paper lowSwap the roll before the next rush.
ErrorTurn it off and on again. If it stays, copy the diagnostics for support.
Turned offNothing is sent to it until Turned on is switched back on.

Tickets are held, not lost, while a printer is in trouble. On the Tickets tab:

  • When tickets are waiting, a notice at the top offers to move them: pick another printer of the same make that is turned on and choose the Move … waiting tickets button. "Only tickets the printer hasn't picked up move. Ones already sent to it stay."
  • Retry a ticket marked Failed or Sent to printer. View shows what was on it.
  • Filter by All, Failed, Waiting, Sent to printer, or Printed; Show test prints includes test pages. The tab lists the latest 20 tickets.

The Connection tab has a Quick check list, the addresses the printer uses, and It isn't connecting or printing with the common causes for that make. Copy diagnostics in Right now copies a summary to paste into a message to Avero support.

Remove a printer​

On the Settings tab, Remove this printer → Remove printer, then confirm or choose Keep it.

Removing cannot be undone

Waiting tickets will not print and are marked failed. The printer's ticket history is kept. If you may use the printer again, switch off Turned on instead.

Troubleshooting​

  • "You can't add printers" — adding needs the "Create printers" permission. Ask an admin.
  • The location "has no seating areas, and a printer needs at least one." — choose Add one on the location, then come back.
  • "Another Epson printer already uses this device key." — choose a different device key.
  • "Avero hasn't heard from the printer yet." — finish the steps at the printer and wait a moment. For Star, the usual cause is the HTTPS trust level not being Accept all.
  • A Star printer connects but asks for a password — a printer with no username needs Username and Password left blank on its CloudPRNT page; one with a username needs both entered exactly.
  • An Epson printer checks in but nothing prints — the Device ID does not match, or its local host mapping is not 127.0.0.1.
  • "Keep at least one seating area, or tickets have nowhere to come from." — select another area before clearing the last one.
  • "No other Star printer is turned on to take its … waiting tickets." (or Epson) — tickets can only move to a printer of the same make.
  • It checks in but tickets do not print, or it cuts early — choose Copy diagnostics and send it to Avero support.