Print queues
Print queues are used to collect messages that are to be printed. Print queues are specific to an OU and can be started or stopped. Attached to a print queue is the information about the printer device, the print options, how messages in this queue are to be formatted, the print priority, and the status of the print queue.
Each print queue is configured by means of a CO and implemented by a database table.
If a print queue is in status STARTED, each message in this queue is formatted according to the settings that were specified for the queue, and the generated output is sent to a printer or stored in a file depending on the configured print device type.
To group messages for bulk printing, specify an order size for a queue. Printing processing starts for a queue only after the queue contains the number of messages specified for its order size. You can specify a timeout to ensure that messages are printed in a timely manner even if the order size of the queue is not reached.
Another attribute of a print queue defines whether the printouts must be confirmed.
- STARTED
- The PrintService processes the messages in this queue.
- STOPPED
- The PrintService ignores this queue.
- Start and stop of print queues
- The print administrator starts and stops print queues.
Only messages in started print queues are printed. Messages in stopped
print queues are queued until the print queue is started. Commands
are used to start and stop the print queues. After a print queue was
started by the start command, the print
command service updates the database with the current
FTM SWIFT configuration data
and processes the messages. Note: Changes to the configuration data are only recognized if the queue is restarted.
- Delete messages from print queues
- The print administrator can delete single messages, complete
orders, or all messages in a print queue. This is done by issuing
the delete command. If parameter qname is used, all messages in the specified print queue and all orders
for this print queue are deleted. If parameter order is used,
all messages in the specified order are deleted. If parameter msg or msgid is used, the specified message is deleted.
Deletion of a messages does not mean to actually delete the message, but to set its status to DELETED. However, even if the status of a message is DELETED, there is a printout for this message, and a label "Message was deleted" indicates this fact. This behavior makes it easier to track the printouts.
When deleting messages the status of the associated order(s) is not changed.
- Display print queue status
- A print operator can use the status command to display the status of a print queue. However, only a print administrator is allowed to change the status.
- Printout confirmation
- If confirmation is configured for a print queue (that is, if attribute Confirmation is configured for the CO of type DnqPrintQueue), a print operator must confirm the printouts by issuing the confirm command. This can be done only for orders in status WAIT_CONF.
- Message reprinting
- As long as a message is not deleted or confirmed it can be reprinted. This is done by issuing the reprint command. If a message was reprinted, a print counter in the header of the printout reflects this.
- Releasing an order
- Basically, the print process does not start until the order size of an order is reached. To start the print process even if the order size is not yet reached a print operator can use the release command. This initiates printing of the order at once.
If a target queue and target queue manager are configured for the print queue, an output message in the same format as the original input message received by the DnqPrintInputAdapter node is generated and put into the specified target queue. This message contains message history information about the print processing.
If the print processing service is running on multiple servers, the printer device definition must be the same on all servers.