Micros 3700 / IDN printer help 2

[OlSmokie]

I was recruited to help out a friend who just remodelled his restaurant.
I normally just look after the company computers and internet, but since they had a falling out with Micros, it looks like I'm going to look after the Micros 3700 POS systems too.
When they stripped the restaurant they just unplugged everything and put it in boxes and after searching high and low for cables, I have managed to get the POS up and running.
The problem I am having is the remote kitchen printer. It is an Epson TM-U200B with an IDN interface.
Nobody knows where the cables went or how it was hooked up. From what I can see, I'm surprised that it worked in the first place. There is a cat5 cable joining an outlet box in the kitchen with an outlet box beside the POS in the dining room. The boxes both have RJ45 plugs but the kitchen printer has a smaller 6 wire RS-422 cable that is plugged into the 8 wire RJ45 jack. They swear that this worked before and I have to believe them because the kitchen did not get touched. The green LED on the IDN adaptor blinks steady and a printer test says everything is set up right but the loop back with test plug : fail. Dip switches all seem to be right too. The wiring in the dining room consists of an internet modem that has always been where it is and a Linksys router that has also stayed put. There is a cat5 cable running from the router to the Micros computer in the basement and a cat5 running from the router to the internet jack on the POS. This works fine and the system is up and running but whenever an order is punched in, an error comes up saying that there is no communication with the kitchen printer and it redirects it to the TM-T88 printer that is connected to the POS with a serial cable. The server has to then walk it to the kitchen. Everything looks fine in the configurator (the main computer never got unplugged), but when I do a confidence test, there is no communication with the kitchen printer. They think there was a wire from the cat5 box in the dining room to the router but that does not seem to work. Should there be a direct connection from the POS to the kitchen printer or does it go through the router? There is nothing plugged into either RS-422 port on the POS. These look like RJ45 jacks. If I knew what wires got lost I could just make new ones but I don't have any idea what I need. Any help you could give me would be greatly appreciated.

 

[pkuck]

You lost me in all the info there, but it should go something like router > Workstation > box > box > kitchen... I have two guesses: one you don't have a connection running from the workstation's IDN or something like that port to a junction box that runs to the kitchen or I was having a similar issue recently and (I think) discover it was that I simply didn't turn the printers off and on when I had made some changes. Restart the system, then turn the printers off then back on and give it a try.

The six wire in the RJ45 is ok.

 

[TobeThor]

RJ45's are fine you just need to know the pin-out to have an RJ45 to RJ12 connection. But if it were me... I'd remove the RJ45 (for ptr's) and just use RJ12's (6-pin conductor) and re-wire only using Pins 1,2,3,4 of the six available match the color schemes on both ends IE:
Pin 1-orange
Pin 2-orange/white
Pin 3-green
pin 4-green/white

Use a straight thru 6 conductor cable. (Do not use a phone cable). If you leave the RJ45 in place just use the PINS I described (1-4). There's no harm thou if you decide to wire "all" pins, just keep the color scheme the same.

If your software and hardware is set up and working it should take off. (assuming wiring is the issue). If it still doesn't work swap that IDN card with another ptr and see it starts working. Careful... If you plug a Micros IDN cable into the ptr's cash drawer kick on the printer that may damage the IDN card in the printer or possibly the ptr port on the work station.

 

[OlSmokie]

Bingo! I did as you said and made new cables. RJ45 on both ends, pin for pin connecting the POS with the box in the dining area and a RJ54/RJ12 adapter cable(eliminating the outer two wires) from the box in the kitchen to the printer and it works like a charm. Thanks for your help. You guys are the best.

 

[gbusb]

so I am in need of assistance as well I recently purchased a micros workstation that was carefully put away and is in perfect shape now that we have it hooked up the machine will only run in standalone mode and the server terminal in the office says "no communication with network will shut down in five minutes" each workstation displays off line but will function and my kitchen printers as well we plugged directly to the back the workstations and im getting a printer communication errror it then re routs to the thermal in the bar

 

[gbusb]

ok I have corrected all of my issues however I'm still getting a hot remote message and all kitchen orders are being re-directed to bar thermal printer

 

[pmegan]

If the hot printer isn't working when it's plugged directly into the workstation the dip switches may be set wrong. Take a look at the printer setup in the configurator and make sure the dip switches match the IDN number.

If the dip switches are correct and it still isn't working, try swapping the cable from a working printer. Try the other IDN port on the printer too.

If it still isn't working, try swapping the hot & cold printers (double check the dip switches again). At this point you'll have ruled out wiring, programming and dip switch settings, so all thats left is a bad workstation or printer. Does the problem follow the printer, or does it remain at the workstation controlling the hot remote? That will show you where the problem is coming from.

 

[gbusb]

Thank you so much!! are the remote printers similar to a to a plug and play device.I'm not sure if the printers and work stations were originaly set up this way we dont have the kitchen printers daisy chained we went directly from the bar workstation to the cold remote, and from workstation 2 to the hot remote am I going to have to tell the server where to look

 

[pmegan]

It's pretty standard to have check printers on the 2 workstations and daisy chain the remotes off these. Is that how you're set up?

The printers are plug and play in that you don't have to load any drivers. The devices do need to be set up in the configurator and the dip switched have to match the IDN device assigned there.

 

[gbusb]

I'm set up with no Daisy chain each remote is connected to a seperate work station I have a green blinking light on the hot remote by the idn and nothing on the other remote I don't think it was set this way before I see the idn under devices but it says com port 4 are my issues in programming? I checked all cables still communication error and redirect

 

[gbusb]

I think I have tried every possible cable combination as well as switching idn ports on the printers and still am being re-routed to thermal does the blinking light mean anything and i only have one printer with a green blinking light

 

[pmegan]

If you physically swap the hot and cold printers which printer(s) work?

 

[gbusb]

I have not had the system up and running yet, although every other function is up and running, so up to this point I have yet to see a remote printer spit out a chit