Keywords supported for printer file device type of *AFPDS.

Beginning with OS/400® V3R1, the Advanced Function Printing (AFP) subsystem was a separately orderable feature of the IBM® i operating system, called Print Services Facility (PSF).

There are two separate subsystems in the IBM i operating system. The original IBM i printing subsystem continues to support line printers, ASCII printers, and a subset of IBM Intelligent Printer Data Stream (IPDS) printers and print functions. Full support for all IPDS printers is provided by the integrated AFP printing subsystem. The printing subsystem used to process application output is determined by the device description of the target printer. Only printers defined as DEVTYPE(*IPDS) and AFP(*YES) (both specified in the printer device description) are controlled by the AFP printing subsystem.

In order to print based on the values specified for certain keywords, PSF is required. For example, some spooled files generated with DEVTYPE(*AFPDS) can only be printed by PSF. Most can also be printed on a printer configured to use Host Print Transform.

Here is a list of DDS keywords that are valid for printer files that have the printer device type (DEVTYPE) parameter value specified as *AFPDS. Restrictions on DDS keywords are contained in this list as well.
  • AFPRSC
  • ALIAS
  • BARCODE
  • BOX
  • CDEFNT
  • CHRID (Only applies to output printed using a printer resident font. If a coded font (CDEFNT) or a font character set and code page combination (FNTCHRSET) is specified, the CHRID keyword is ignored and a message issued.)
  • CHRSIZ
  • COLOR (Color is ignored if your printer does not support color printing.)
  • CVTDTA
  • DATE
  • DATFMT
  • DATSEP
  • DFT
  • DLTEDT
  • DOCIDXTAG
  • DRAWER
  • DTASTMCMD
  • DUPLEX
  • EDTCDE
  • EDTWORD
  • ENDPAGE
  • ENDPAGGRP
  • FLTFIXDEC
  • FLTPCN
  • FONT
  • FORCE
  • FNTCHRSET
  • GDF (only supported for printing by PSF)
  • HIGHLIGHT (Only applies to output printed using a printer resident font. If a coded font (CDEFNT) or a font character set and code page combination (FNTCHRSET) is specified, the HIGHLIGHT keyword is ignored and a message issued.)
  • IGCCDEFNT
  • INDARA
  • INDTXT
  • INVMMAP
  • LINE
  • MSGCON
  • OVERLAY
  • OUTBIN
  • PAGNBR
  • PAGRTT
  • PAGSEG
  • POSITION
  • PRTQLTY
  • REF
  • REFFLD
  • SKIPA (Not allowed at the file level in a spooled file with printer device type *AFPDS.)
  • SKIPB (Not allowed at the file level in a spooled file with printer device type *AFPDS.)
  • STAPLE (only supported for printing by PSF)
  • STRPAGGRP
  • TEXT
  • TIME
  • TIMFMT
  • TIMSEP
  • TXTRTT
  • UNDERLINE (When you create an AFPDS spooled file to be distributed to the IBM System z® platform, do not use the DDS UNDERLINE keyword because it does not print correctly.)
  • UNISCRIPT
  • ZFOLD (only supported for printing by PSF)