15328: Printer Setup & Troubleshooting

From the Drake Tax home window, go to Setup > Printing > Printer Setup and complete the following steps:

1. Select the F8 "Edit Printer Settings" tab.
2. Select the printer and printer type from the drop down menus.
3. Click Update > Save.

Note: If your printer is a LaserJet, you may need to also check the Use PCL when printing tax forms box. See Common Issues below for indicators that the PCL print method may be needed. 

Common Issues

If you have any of the following issues when trying to print from Drake Tax, try toggling the Use PCL when printing tax forms option (shown above 2). 

• Line descriptions missing on printed form.
• Forms will not duplex. 
  • Only if the printer supports duplex printing. 
• Return will not print.
  • Ensure that the printer functions outside of Drake first. 
• Extra page printing with or without a "PCL XL error warning."
• Having to click the Start button on the printer before a print job will process (may show as resume or manual feed on certain printers). 
  • Note that you may need to select No Tray Codes as the Tray on the F5 and F6 tabs as well. 
• Page or Form is printing blank, or partially printing, but without all data. May also appear as strange characters printing.
  • Install Fonts (see KB 10856 in Related Links below). 
  • If the issue seems to be limited to vouchers and extension forms, see KB 16105. 
• Bottom of Form/Return Cutoff 
  • This is a limitation of the printer itself. Since margin adjust does not work, you will have to adjust printer properties and change the paper to “legal” size instead of “letter” size, but leave the 8 ½ X 11 paper in the tray. This will trick the printer into thinking it has more room to print.
  • Steps for adjusting printer properties may vary depending on your operating system and printer. 
• Blank Pages Printing between Printed Pages. 
  • Your printer may lack duplex printing capabilities. Confirm the printer's duplex capabilities in the printer user manual or at the vendor web site. If the printer cannot print duplex, make sure the Duplex option is not selected on the (F5) General Setup and (F6) ‘Sets’ Setup tabs.
    
  • Go to Setup > Printing > Printer Setup > F8 > select your printer in the Select Printer drop list. Under Printer Type, select Laserjet and then check the box Use PCL when printing tax forms option. Click Update and Save. 
    
  • Run the print job again to see if the blank pages are eliminated.
  • Important: some states require a blank page to be printed after a single page document to prevent a form from being incorrectly grouped with an unrelated form when duplexing a group of forms. This is by design and may occur with a variety of states, including Colorado (for example, Form 8454).
    

Note: If you have not resolved a printer issue after exhausting printer settings and Drake Tax settings, install the latest printer driver available for your operating system. Review your printer instruction manual or your vendor website for more information.