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HP Designjet 500, 510, and 800 Series Printers - Unable to Print to the USB Port VIA a USB Host Controller

Issue:
Some versions of the VIA USB host controller are incompatible with HP Designjet USB printers. The printer driver software installs correctly, but when attempting to print, an error message is displayed, such as the ones below:
  • "There was an error writing to USB/Designjet printer serial # for the printer (HP Designjet printer): Your file waiting to be printed was deleted."
  • "There was an error writing to USB/Designjet printer serial # for the printer (HP Designjet Printer): The printer is not ready. Make sure that it is turned on and online. To continue printing, click Retry. Windows will automatically retry in 5 seconds."
The errors may be intermittent or may occur on every print job.
Cause
The PC may have an incompatible VIA USB host controller
WORKAROUND: Determine if the PS has a VIA host controller by looking at the system properties and following these steps:
  1. Click Start from the taskbar, go to Settings, then select Control Panel.
  2. In the Control Panel window, double-click the System icon.
  3. Click the Device Manager tab and scroll down until locating the Universal Serial Bus Controller.
    A VIA controller that does not work with the HP Designjet USB interface may be similar to this: VIAVT 83C572NT 82C586 PCI to USB Universal Host Controller.
    Figure 1 below shows a Windows 98 system with an NEC host controller. Note that the NEC host controller is compatible with the HP Designjet USB interface.
    Figure : Universal Serial Bus controller settings
SOLUTION: If you have a computer with a VIA chip set, obtain the full functionality of your HP Designjet printer by connecting to the computer through the parallel port.
Or, to continue using a USB connection, VIA provides a patch for its host controller, which is available on VIA’s Web site at: www.via.com.tw. The file to download is labeled USB Filter Driver.
Technical support for the VIA patch is available on the VIA Web site through the electronic bulletin board. HP Customer Care Centers will not be able to help you with the VIA patch.
Summary
VIA offers the patch on its Web site. If it is not possible to download it from the network, or more assistance is needed with the patch, contact the computer manufacturer or builder of the PC.

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