How do I setup a USB connected Zebra label printer?

Setting up a USB connected Zebra label printer on Mac

Below you will find a quick easy setup guide on how to setup a Zebra label printer that is USB connected on your Mac. You will need to have the Peninsula Zebra Thermal Utility installed and activated.

To download the Zebra Thermal Utility Driver, go to the website linked below. You will be taken directly to the Thermal driver webpage and can find a download link there for a demo or to purchase the full Thermal Driver.

https://www.peninsula-group.com/mac-thermal-printer-driver/

Step 1 - Installing the Printer

A)

First of all switch your Zebra label printer on and make sure the green status light is showing, then you can start the installation process.
Begin by opening up the Zebra Thermal Printer Driver software. Upon opening it should look like the image above. Ensure you are in the Install tab.
To Begin the installation process simply click the "Next" Button.

B)


After clicking "next" the first page to show on the dialog will ask what connection your printer is using. In this setup we are showing you how to set up your USB connected Zebra label printer.
Therefore click the "USB connected printer" option from the drop down menu.
When the correct connection type is selected click "next" to continue onto the next step.

C)


The next step is to select the printer that you are using from the drop down list. As this is a Thermal utility for Zebra label printers you should have a Zebra label printer selected. Once you have ensured you have selected the correct Zebra label printer from the list click "next" to continue onto the next step.


D)


The next page will ask which printer model you are using. If you do not know which printer model you are using it will say somewhere on the printer itself, often at the front. For this example we used a ZP450 zebra label printer. Find your own printer model from the drop down list and select it. Ensure you have selected the correct model.
Then click "next" to continue.

E)



This step requires you to choose what sort of labels you will be using in your Zebra label printer. In our example we are using the Die cut standard labels, these labels are the most common labels to use in your Zebra thermal label printer. You will know what labels you use however so select the correct label and click "next" to continue.

F)


The next step asks you what you will be printing on the labels you print from your Zebra thermal label printer. Will you be printing simply barcodes and text or images with more than one colour. Most commonly you will be printing barcodes and text. In our example thats what we have selected to print from the Zebra label printer we are using. So select which option you are using and click "next" to continue.

G)


This step is asking for a name for your printer, this is so you know which printer it is and what setup you have installed it with on the thermal utility. Here we have simply named it the Zebra 450 as it is the name and model of printer we are using. You can choose to name your printer or leave it as the default name set. Remember to give your printer a sensible name but don't use any special characters. You might want to give this setup a different name as you can set up multiple virtual printer setups for different setups you may need it for. After you have typed a name or left it as default whichever you prefer, click "next" to continue.

H)


The next step is optional it is to type in a physical location for where your printer is stored for if you want one. This is an optional step and you don't need to enter a location name if you don't not wish to have one. For our example we have entered "office" as this is where we store the printer. If you choose to enter a location name ensure you enter it correctly and click "next" to continue.

I)



The next step is about the label/page sizes you will be using. You can add more than one size to the list, ensure you select the correct size labels that you will be using in your Zebra label printer. To add your label sizes, select which sizes you want from the list and click "add'. your label sizes should pop up in the left hand side box. the left hand size box shows which label sizes you have added.


To add a custom label size for if you don't see the label size you want in the drop down menu, simply click on the "add other size label" button. From there the dialog will change. The new dialog will look like the one in the image below. There are new text boxes prompting you to enter the dimensions you have for your own label sizes. Ensure you enter the correct dimensions and click the "add" button.  Then When you have ensured you have added your correct label sizes click "next" to move onto the next step.


J)


The Next step in the installation process is to pick what application you are printing from, this is important so ensure you choose correctly. You should know what application you will be printing from but ensure you click the correct option. Click "next" to continue onto the next step.

K)


The next step is really easy, simply click on the "install printer" button and it will begin installing using the setup you have selected.

L)


After clicking the previous "install printer" button this first dialog will pop up click "ok" and a second dialog will pop up saying we will calibrate the printer. Click "ok" and the installation process will continue. Listen for your printer to calibrate.


M)

The next dialog to show will ask if a test label was printed, and did the test label have text on it. If your test label had text on it click "yes" to move onto the next step.

N)


If the above dialog shows your installation is now complete, You can now print from any application.

If you encounter any problems with this setup or have any other questions or queries do not hesitate to contact out technical support team.

 Email them at tech@peninsula-group.com

If you want to know more about the Thermal printer driver software check out the Peninsula product webpage. 

https://www.peninsula-group.com/mac-thermal-printer-driver/

Sharing printers from Windows PC to Apple Mac

Accessing your Windows PC printer on a Mac

A quick and easy to follow guide on how to share your printer on PC windows so you can access it on your Apple Mac. 

The first thing you need to do once you are on your PC is to enable to the LDP print service using the steps below.

Step 1)

 Click start or the windows icon, and type Control Panel into the text box. You will see it pop up under best match, you will need to double click to open.

Step 2)

Your Control Panel will look similar to the image above. The settings we need to change are found under Programs. You will need to only double click into the Programs link and not "uninstall a program".

Step 3)

After you have clicked into programs the window will change and should now look like the above   image.  From here you will be looking for Programs and features.
Once you have located Programs and features you will want to also locate the turn windows features on or off link and double click into it. There is an annotated image below showing you where it should be located.

Step 4)

The above image shows the dialog that will open after you have clicked the "turn windows features on or off" link. From here you will need to locate the Print and document services folder.

When you have located the correct folder, you will see a small plus icon next to it. You will need to click on that icon to expand the folder. The image below shows you what will open when you click on the plus icon.

Once the files are expanded you will need to locate LDP print service and check the box so that it is turned on. once you have done that click "OK" to save it and move onto the next step.

Step 5)

The next step is to share the printer you wish to use on the network.

To begin sharing you have to click out of the windows features and control panel and go back to start or windows icon button. Type in the text box devices and printers and it should show up under best match. You will need to double click it to open.

Step 6)

After you have clicked into devices and printers a window will open showing you what Devices are shared. You need to locate the printer you wish to share.  In this example we will be sharing a Zebra printer. 

When you have located the printer you wish to share right click it to open the menu. In the menu locate printer properties and double click it. The image below is annotated to show you where it is located.

Step 7)

A new dialog will open after you click into printer properties it should look like the image above. 

The dialog will open up and be in the general tab. You need to be in the Sharing tab to share the printer, click over to it. It will be simply the next tab over from general. 

Step 8)

 

The above image shows what the sharing tab looks like. We need to do two things while in this tab, share the printer and give it a sharing name but this is optional. You can choose to leave the name as it is already set. Creating a new name can just help make it easier for you to find the certain printer. You will also need to remember or jot down the printer name you create for later in the installation process on the Mac.

To share the printer simply check the box next to it, so that it has a small tick inside it. The next thing you can do is type in a share name for your printer.  When you create a share name you need to ensure you use no spaces. An example shared name is Windows_Zebra_Printer. This name would be easy to remember and uses no spaces.  Then you can click apply and save.

Step 9)

Before moving over to the Apple Mac we need to find the Windows PC's IP address. 

To begin finding the Windows IP address we need to go back to main screen and yet again click on the start or windows icon button and type Control Panel into the text box. Control Panel should come up under the best match double click it to open. 

The Control Panel window will open up after you click into it, and you will need to locate the Network and internet settings. When you have located that, see there are two sub sections, click into  the firs top these sub sections. It will be called view network status and tasks. 

Step 10)

After you have clicked into view network status and tasks the window will change and the above image should show.  You will then need to locate the connections option.  We have annotated where it should be in the image below. Your connection option will either be ethernet or WiFi depending on how your Windows PC is connected. You will need to click that option.

Step 11)

After selected on whichever connection type you are using (Ethernet or WiFi) a new dialog will open, it will look like the image above. To find your IP address click into details. Once you have clicked into details a second dialog will open up like in the image below. It will show you all the network connection details but the only one you need to know about is the IPv4 address. You will need the IPv4 address for a later step so ensure you jot it down somewhere. 

You have finished the steps that need to be done using the Windows PC now. 

Step 12)

The next step you will need to be using your Apple Mac. 

Begin by first opening the correct Peninsula Thermal utility for the printer you will be using.  Enter any admin usernames and passwords when prompted to. Click next to being installing your Printer setup. 

After clicking next you will be taken to the first step in installing, you will need to select Network connected printer from the dropdown menu and click next. 

On the next page of the setup you will be asked to choose which network connection type you will be using. You will need to select TCP-IP LPR/LPD. 

The next item to attend to on this page is entering your IPv4 address that you jotted down earlier from your Windows PC.  Ensure you enter the correct details in their correct text boxes. 

And finally the last thing on this page is to enter the shared name you gave your printer if you use done. if not you may click next without doing anything further. You should have jotted that down earlier also. Remember there were no spaces allowed. When you have entered your Printers shared name click the box to the right on the text box and uncheck it. When entering a custom shared name we don't need the Use default option checked on. 

You can continue going through the rest of the installation process now like normal. If you need help setting up a network connected printer and want to follow a tutorial we have pages for this set up on our Peninsula support page. 

If you cannot get your shared printer to work we also have a Technical support team that will help in anyway possible. Just simply email them at tech@peninsula-group.com

Peninsula webpage : https://www.peninsula-group.com

Peninsula support page : https://www.peninsula-group.com/support/