Basic printing

IBM® i products have powerful printing and display functions. You can present information using overlays, bar codes, graphics, images, and more. IBM i products support a variety of commercial printing and presentation solutions.

This topic illustrates some of the core i printing functions, and helps you plan for and configure these functions.

What's new for IBM i 7.1
Read about new or significantly changed information for the Basic printing topic collection.
PDF file for Basic printing
You can view and print a PDF file of this information.
Printing concepts
Read this section for an overview of the printing function and related concepts.
Planning printing
System i® products offer a wide range of printing solutions. They range from high-function IPDS printers that support bar-codes and complex document formatting on high performance printers to simple document printing that uses a directly attached printer.
Configuring printing
Configuring System i printing requires that all the hardware components, network configuration settings, and software involved in the connection work together effectively. You can avoid many potential problems with this process by verifying that your printer is fully compatible with the printing protocol that you are using.
Managing printing
Administering your company's printing solution after the initial setup and configuration involves dealing with changing user and application requirements and handling any upgrades or performance considerations as your system grows.
Examples: Using DDS and printer files
Here are some examples of using data description specifications and printer files.
Troubleshooting printing
If your printer is not printing, check this list of common reasons.
Reference information
Here are additional reference materials related to printing.
Related information for Basic printing
Product manuals, IBM Redbooks® publications, Web sites, and other information center topic collections contain information that relates to the Basic printing topic collection. You can view or print any of the PDF files.