Print a label - ION Manual

Barcode Label

The Barcode Label dialog lets you pick a barcode template, choose a printer, set the number of copies, preview the rendered label, and submit the print job. ION prints over one of two paths, set once for the org; see print paths. The dialog shows the printer picker for whichever path is configured.

Prerequisites

Before you print a label, make sure you have:

• Permission to print labels for the entity type you’re working with.
• A printer reachable from the printing mode your org uses.
• At least one barcode template configured for the entity type. An admin can add templates in Settings > Organization > Barcode Labels.

Print a label

The Barcode Label dialog opens from the entity you want a label for. A part inventory record has a Print Barcode action, and a kit has a Print kit label action. On a run, a run step, or a run’s created part inventory, the label printer opens on the Print label tab of a QR-code dialog, covered in Print and share labels from a run. The dialog shows these controls and a preview:

• Barcode Template picks the barcode format and field layout. Templates are scoped to the entity type, so only valid templates appear.
• Printer picks which printer to send to. The picker varies based on org print mode.
• Number of Label Copies sets the number of duplicate labels to print (minimum 1).
• The preview has a QR Code tab and a Full Label tab so you can verify the encoding and the rendered label before submitting.

To print a label:

1. Set Number of Label Copies. The default is 1. Use copies when you need multiple identical labels, such as one per kit container or one per face of a packaged unit.
2. Open the Barcode Template dropdown and select the format you want. ION pre-selects the first available template. Adjust it if your downstream process expects a different one.
3. Open the Printer picker and choose the destination printer. The picker pulls printers from the active mode (browser or print server). If no printers appear, see Troubleshooting.
4. Check the preview. The Full Label tab renders the label as the printer produces it, and the QR Code tab shows the encoded barcode. Confirm that the barcode and any human-readable fields look right.
5. Click Print. The button is disabled until a template with content, a printer, and at least one copy are all selected.

On success, ION shows a Print job successful toast. If a print is sent over Zebra Browser Print but the printer doesn’t report its status (common over USB), ION shows a Sent to printer (print not confirmed) warning instead.

Set Number of Label Copies to 1 for a verification print, then reopen the dialog and print the full quantity. This saves wasted stock when a template is wrong.

Print and share labels from a run

A run, a run step, and a run’s created part inventory each have a QR-code button. Click it to open a dialog with a QR code tab and a Print label tab.

• On the QR code tab, scan or copy the value. On a run or run step, the QR code links to the run or run step so a phone camera opens it in the browser. On a created part inventory, the QR code holds the serial number, and the copy control reads Copy serial number. When the part has no serial number, the code falls back to the lot number, then the part number.
• On the Print label tab, print a barcode label the same way as the Barcode Label dialog. A run or run step prints a Runs label, and a created part inventory prints an Inventory label. An admin configures these templates in Settings > Organization > Barcode Labels.

Barcode formats

Each template encodes a specific format. If your scanners need a specific encoding, have an admin configure a template that produces it rather than reformatting it by hand. See Create label templates.

When an admin adds a new template, scan a printed label with the scanner the floor uses. Encoding compatibility isn’t always obvious from the preview.

Troubleshooting

Failed to reach printer

If the Printer picker is disabled and shows Failed to reach printer, follow the steps for your print mode:

• Browser mode: Confirm Zebra Browser Print is running on the workstation. Click the Check the status link next to the picker, which opens https://localhost:9101/available in a new tab, to verify the local print service is responding. If the page errors, restart Zebra Browser Print and reload ION.
• Print server mode: Confirm the print server is reachable and the printer is registered with the print server. On persistent failure, escalate to an admin to verify print server health.

Labels print but barcodes won't scan

This is most often a template mismatch, where the template encoding doesn’t match what your scanner expects. Try a different template. If no template scans correctly, request a template change from your admin.

Print started but nothing prints

If ION shows Sent to printer (print not confirmed), check that the printer is powered on and connected. In print server mode, check the print server’s job queue to see whether the job is queued, printing, or errored.

Print one entity at a time. To print across many parts in bulk, ask an admin to configure a print queue or batch flow.