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Appendix A: Endpoint Troubleshooting

When you're troubleshooting ScrewDrivers Endpoint, you'll find that most issues fall into predictable patterns. This reference provides systematic approaches to the most common problems you'll encounter, from printers that won't build to output quality issues. Whether you're debugging session agent problems or client-side issues, these procedures will help you isolate the root cause and resolve it quickly.

Overview​

The troubleshooting process for ScrewDrivers Endpoint centers on isolating which component is causing the problem. You're working with three key functional areas: the application printing the job, the ScrewDrivers Endpoint Session Agent and client, and the client spooler with its native print driver. The most common issues you'll face include printers not building for users, printers not being deleted after logoff, output problems with fonts or graphics, missing features, slow server spooling, duplicate printers appearing, users seeing other users' printers, and incorrect default printer assignment.

The recommended approach eliminates possible causes systematically. Start by testing the Session Agent with multiple clients. If you see the same negative results across multiple clients, the problem likely resides on the server rather than individual clients. Once you've isolated whether the issue is server-side or client-side, you can focus your troubleshooting efforts accordingly.

General Troubleshooting Strategy​

Before diving into specific issues, you should understand the systematic approach that works best. Test the ScrewDrivers Endpoint Session Agent with multiple clients to determine if the problem is consistent. If the same negative results occur across multiple clients, the issue almost certainly resides on the server. After you've isolated the problem to either the server or client, review the specific troubleshooting recommendations in the sections below.

If you can't resolve the issue using these recommendations, contact support@tricerat.com for additional assistance. Support will need the detailed information you've gathered during your troubleshooting process.

Session Agent Troubleshooting​

The following sections address common Session Agent issues. These are server-side problems that typically affect multiple users rather than individual workstations.

Printers Not Building for Any User​

When no users can build printers, you're typically dealing with one of two root causes: incorrectly configured licensing (which should trigger a licensing error message during the session) or the ScrewDrivers Notification Service hasn't started. If the service hasn't started, simply start or restart the service and verify that printers become available upon the next remote connection.

Important: You should carry out the following verification procedures only when no users are logged into the ScrewDrivers Endpoint Session Agent.

Verifying the ScrewDrivers Driver​

The first diagnostic step is confirming that the ScrewDrivers driver is properly registered. Open the Devices and Printers control panel, select any printer to make the Print Server Properties option available at the top, then select Print Server Properties. In the Print Server Properties dialog box, open the Drivers tab and verify that the ScrewDrivers driver appears in the list.

If the ScrewDrivers driver is listed on the Drivers tab, contact support@tricerat.com for additional assistance. If the driver isn't listed, you'll need to reinstall it using the procedure below.

Reinstalling the ScrewDrivers Driver​

This procedure depends on the existence of two critical files: ScrewDriversDrv.dll and ScrewDriversUI.dll. Navigate to C:\Windows\System32\spool\drivers\x64\3 and check whether these files exist.

If the files exist, rename them with an .old extension, restart the Windows Print Spooler service, then delete the two "old" files. If the files don't exist, you can skip directly to the reinstallation step.

Navigate to C:\Tricerat\ScrewDrivers Endpoint Session Agent and run the following executables in order: first install_driver.exe (which installs the print driver), then install_port.exe (which installs the printer port). You might see an error message indicating that the ports have already been installed—you can safely ignore this message and click OK to continue.

After completing these steps, your users should be able to log into new sessions and have their printers built successfully.

Printers Not Deleted When User Logs Off​

When some printers remain after users log off, you can resolve this by clearing the spool directory. This procedure should only be performed when no users are logged into the ScrewDrivers Endpoint Session Agent.

Open the Services dialog box through Control Panel > Administrative Tools > Services. Stop the Windows Print Spooler service, then navigate to Windows\System32\Spool\Printers and delete all files in that directory. Start the Windows Print Spooler service again, then under Printers and Faxes on the server, delete any printers that aren't installed directly on the server.

Output Issues with Fonts and Graphics​

When fonts aren't formatting correctly or when fonts and graphics aren't scaling properly, you have two options: upgrade the print driver on the ScrewDrivers Endpoint client or enable Print-As-Image. You should attempt the driver upgrade first, as it's less resource-intensive.

Upgrading the Print Driver​

Upgrade the local print driver to the latest version on the ScrewDrivers Endpoint client, with PCL drivers preferred over PostScript (PS). After upgrading, carry out a query on the ScrewDrivers Endpoint client (see the General Settings tab section in the Session Agent chapter), then perform a test print. If the issue persists, proceed to enable Print-As-Image.

Enabling Print-As-Image​

You can enable Print-As-Image either mid-session for immediate testing or as the default setting for a client printer. The mid-session approach is useful for quick diagnostics, while setting it as the default works better for permanent configuration.

Mid-Session Print-As-Image: In any application on the ScrewDrivers Endpoint Session Agent, click Print to open a Print dialog box. Select the correct ScrewDrivers Endpoint printer from the list, then click Preference to open the Printing Preferences dialog box. On the Extended Options tab, select "Send print job as an image" and set the appropriate DPI value, then click OK.

Default Print-As-Image for a Client Printer: Open the ScrewDrivers Endpoint Client application and open the Printers tab. In the list of Available Printers, select the appropriate printer. In the Extended Options - Print Job Rendering Options panel, enable Print-As-Image and set the DPI value, then click Apply.

For detailed information about Print-As-Image, including recommended DPI settings for the Session Agent, see the Printer UI tab section in the Managing ScrewDrivers Endpoint Printers chapter. For client-side Print-As-Image settings, see the Printers Tab section in the Session Agent chapter.

Users Seeing Duplicate Printers​

By default, auto-creation is enabled for Citrix (ICA protocol) or Terminal Services (RDP protocol). When auto-creation is enabled through Citrix or Terminal Services, users might see duplicate printers after the ScrewDrivers Endpoint Session Agent and client are installed. Tricerat recommends disabling auto-creation in your ScrewDrivers Endpoint environment. This eliminates the appearance of duplicate printers and mitigates known issues associated with auto-creation, such as print driver problems and output (font and graphics) problems.

Users Seeing Other Users' Printers​

When users see printers that belong to other users, this isn't a ScrewDrivers Endpoint issue—it's a known third-party problem. Contact support@tricerat.com for assistance with this specific scenario.

Client Troubleshooting​

The following sections address common client-side issues. These problems typically affect individual workstations rather than all users.

ScrewDrivers Endpoint Not Building During Session​

When ScrewDrivers Endpoint fails to build during a session, you're generally dealing with one of two root causes: client updates or an incompatible ScrewDrivers Endpoint client version.

Client Updates​

If the client has recently been updated, try re-registering the Citrix Plugin for the client. You can do this through the About tab of the ScrewDrivers Endpoint Client application (see the Session Agent chapter for details).

Incompatible Client Version​

The version of ScrewDrivers Endpoint client currently installed on a workstation appears on the About tab of the ScrewDrivers Endpoint Client application. If the installed client isn't the most current version, you can download the latest version from the Tricerat website at https://www.tricerat.com/support-center/downloads/printing-clients and manually update the client version.

If updating doesn't resolve the issue, the final troubleshooting step is a complete client reinstall. Uninstall the current ScrewDrivers Endpoint client through Add/Remove Programs, restart the client workstation, then install the latest version of the ScrewDrivers Endpoint client.

Output Issues with Fonts and Graphics (Client-Side)​

When you're troubleshooting output issues from the client side, you have the same two options as with server-side troubleshooting: upgrade the print driver or enable Print-As-Image. You should attempt the driver upgrade first.

Upgrading the Print Driver​

Upgrade the local print driver to the latest version on the ScrewDrivers Endpoint client, with PCL drivers preferred over PostScript (PS). Carry out a query on the ScrewDrivers Endpoint client (see the General Settings tab section), then perform a test print. If the issue persists, proceed to enable Print-As-Image.

Enabling Print-As-Image​

You can enable Print-As-Image either mid-session or as the default for a client printer. If needed, you can also set Print-As-Image to Force on the ScrewDrivers Endpoint Session Agent, which applies the setting to all client printers in a single step.

Mid-Session Print-As-Image: In any application on the ScrewDrivers Endpoint client, click Print to open a Print dialog box. Select the correct ScrewDrivers Endpoint printer, then click Preference to open the Printing Preferences dialog box. On the Extended Options tab, select "Send print job as an image" and set the DPI value, then click OK.

Default Print-As-Image for a Client Printer: Open the ScrewDrivers Endpoint Client application and open the Printers tab. In the list of Available Printers, select the appropriate printer. In the Extended Options - Print Job Rendering Options panel, enable Print-As-Image and set the DPI, then click Apply.

Default Printer Not Being Set Correctly​

Windows printer information is stored in the HKEY_CURRENT_USER registry hive. When a user logs into ScrewDrivers Endpoint with the same username from multiple different locations, all these logins modify the same registry hive. Because Windows can only have one default printer, the printers don't get assigned correctly for any session other than the most recent one.

To resolve this issue, first disable Windows printer mapping. If the problem persists and multiple users are experiencing this issue, verify whether these users are using the same username to log into the same ScrewDrivers Endpoint environment. If they're not using the same username, check whether each user is logging into different client computers with the same username while remaining logged into the original session.

  • How-To Guide: See the troubleshooting guides in the How-To Guides section for task-oriented procedures
  • Explanation: See the printing capabilities explanation for conceptual information
  • Troubleshooting: See the main troubleshooting section for additional diagnostic approaches