What is PrintNode printing?
By default, EasyScan generates a PDF and opens your browser's print dialog whenever you print. With PrintNode enabled, EasyScan sends that PDF directly to a physical printer instead, so nothing opens on screen and there is no dialog to click through. This is ideal for busy packing stations where every print is one extra click you do not need.
PrintNode works for all four EasyScan print outputs:
Barcode labels
Packing slips
Pick lists
Address labels
PrintNode is a bring-your-own-key integration. You own the PrintNode account and its billing. EasyScan simply routes print jobs to it.
Requirements
EasyScan Advanced or Pro plan
A PrintNode account (printnode.com)
The PrintNode desktop client installed on a computer that is connected to your printer(s) and switched on while you print
Setup
Create a PrintNode account and install the PrintNode desktop client on the computer connected to your printer. The client registers your printers with PrintNode.
In your PrintNode dashboard, create an API key and copy it.
In EasyScan, go to Settings > Labels and find the PrintNode printing section. You can also type "PrintNode" into the settings search.
Turn on PrintNode printing.
Paste your PrintNode API key and click Test connection. EasyScan checks the key and loads the printers registered to your account.
Choose your default printer from the dropdown.
Click Save at the top of the settings page.
Test connection only checks the key and loads your printers. Nothing is stored until you click Save. The key, the on/off state and your printer choice are saved together, and Discard leaves your previously saved setup untouched.
For security, the API key field is always empty when you reopen the settings page. This does not mean the key is missing. Your key is stored encrypted on EasyScan's servers and is never sent back to the browser. You only need to paste it again if you want to replace it.
What happens when you print
Once PrintNode is on and a default printer is selected, printing a barcode label, packing slip, pick list or address label sends the job straight to that printer. No PDF tab opens and no print dialog appears.
Everything that normally happens after a print still happens. Orders are still tagged, the printed state is still recorded, and the scan-to-pack packing slip flow still shows the faulty order check and returns you to the orders page.
The Download button on the order page always downloads the PDF through the browser, even when PrintNode is on.
One default printer
This version sends every job to a single default printer. If you use a separate label printer and document printer, pick the one you use most. Per-document printer routing (for example labels to one printer, packing slips to another) is planned for a future release.
Fallback to browser printing
If PrintNode is turned off, has no key or printer saved, or PrintNode rejects the job before accepting it, EasyScan falls back to the normal browser PDF flow automatically. Nothing is lost and you can print as before.
Two situations do not trigger the fallback, to avoid printing the same document twice:
Your desktop client or printer is offline. PrintNode still accepts and queues the job, then prints it when the printer comes back. Check your PrintNode dashboard if a job does not appear.
The request to PrintNode times out. EasyScan shows a "delivery unknown" warning because PrintNode may already have accepted the job. Check the PrintNode dashboard before reprinting.
Troubleshooting
Test connection fails: check the API key was copied in full and that it is still active in your PrintNode dashboard.
Printer dropdown is empty: make sure the PrintNode desktop client is running on the computer connected to the printer and that the printer shows as online in PrintNode.
Nothing prints but no error appears: the job is likely queued in PrintNode. Open the PrintNode dashboard and check the printer state and job queue.
PrintNode section is greyed out: PrintNode printing requires the Advanced or Pro plan.
Very large batch prints fail: a single batch must stay under roughly 15 MB as a PDF. Split very large batches into smaller runs.
Turning PrintNode off
Go to Settings > Labels, switch off PrintNode printing and click Save. All printing returns to the browser print dialog immediately.