Alex SaagiVantage now prints receipts to Star thermal receipt printers through Star CloudPRNT. The printer checks in with Vantage over a secure outbound connection, collects any receipt waiting for it, and prints it within a few seconds. Cloud-hosted payment counters get the fast, one-step receipt cashiers expect, and your network stays closed to traffic coming in from the internet.
How it works
Traditional receipt printing pushes each job from the server to the printer. That works well when both sit in the same building. When the server is in the cloud, pushing a receipt to the counter means opening a port in your firewall so outside traffic can reach the printer.
CloudPRNT reverses the direction. Every few seconds the printer asks Vantage, over HTTPS, whether a receipt is waiting for it. If one is, the printer downloads it, prints it, and reports back. It works the same way a phone checks for new email.
- Outbound only. The printer starts every connection, so your firewall can stay closed to inbound traffic.
- A credential for each printer. Every printer is registered in Vantage with its own username and password, so only that printer can collect its receipts.
- Receipts wait their turn. If the printer is switched off or the internet drops, receipts stay in the queue and print as soon as the printer reconnects.
- Confirmed by the printer. A receipt is marked Printed only when the printer reports that it printed. The CloudPRNT Print Queue screen shows the status of every job and when each printer last checked in, so staff can see at a glance whether an issue is at the printer or on the network.
- Built to avoid duplicates. If a printer drops offline in the middle of a job, Vantage holds off on printing a receipt that may already be on paper. Cashiers reprint on demand, which keeps the till accurate.
What it means for your counter
On Vantage Cloud and printing receipts as PDFs
Many cloud sites moved to PDF receipts to keep their network locked down. You can now bring the thermal printer back. The receipt prints as soon as the payment is taken, with the PDF step out of the way, and a cash drawer connected to the printer works as it did before.
On Vantage Cloud and printing directly to the counter
Direct printing from the cloud depends on a port forwarded through your firewall to the printer. That rule is a standing opening into your network, and it is easy to break: a new router, a changed internet provider, or a printer that picks up a new local address can stop receipts until someone reconfigures it. With CloudPRNT, your IT team can close that port. The printer's local address can change freely, because the printer always finds Vantage, rather than the other way around.
On-prem and planning a move to the cloud
Receipt printing is one of the first questions in any cloud migration. CloudPRNT gives you a cloud-native answer, so counters keep fast thermal receipts after the move. The Star TSP143IV is ADG's recommended receipt printer, so if the cloud is on your horizon, even a few years out, choose it the next time you add or replace counter printers. Your counters will be ready for CloudPRNT on the day you move.
Evaluating Vantage
Moving finance and billing to cloud-hosted software keeps the counter experience intact. Cashiers take a payment, the receipt prints, and the drawer opens, while the system runs in the cloud. See the Vantage platform for how hosting and security work, and Fund Management for cash receipting.
What you need
- A Star TSP100IV printer, sold in North America as the TSP143IV, in the LAN (Ethernet) or Wi-Fi model. USB-only models can't use CloudPRNT. CloudPRNT is included with Vantage at no additional cost and is built into the printer's firmware, so a compatible printer is the only purchase.
- A current Vantage release.
- A network connection with internet access for the printer. It doesn't need to sit next to the cashier's computer, only near power and the network.
- About 30 minutes for the first printer and about ten for each one after that. Printers are set up in System Manager under Printers & Jobs.
Your existing printers keep working exactly as they do today. CloudPRNT is turned on printer by printer, so you can move one counter at a time and switch back if you need to. A step-by-step setup guide, with screenshots and troubleshooting, is available to customers in the ADG Support Portal, and ADG Support can help plan the switch.