Get Up and Running with the PR Plus in Brady Workstation
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Print Labels to the PR Plus From Brady Workstation - Full Setup Guide
This guide is designed to assist first-time or existing PR Plus users with with installation, license recovery, activation and operation of their PR Plus and Brady Workstation software.
The License ID can only be used to activate a specific suite, so it's important to confirm this information. The majority of PR Plus users will use the Product Wire and Identification suite. Installing the wrong suite for your license will result in the "invalid license" error.
If you already have your license and password or you're using the Basic Design Suite, you can skip this step.
These links will provide the installation files for each respective suite of apps. Even if your software came on a disk, we recommend installing using the links below which provide the latest bug fixes and features. These installations will launch as an unactivated 30 trial until you enter your license information. Make sure to download the correct suite that corresponds with the license information you located in the first step. If you're not sure which suite you should buy, see: Brady Workstation - SFID vs. PWID vs. Basic Design Suite - What's the Difference?
If you've installed any software in Windows 10 before, this setup will be straightforward. If you'd like step-by-step video instructions, see the next section.
Once Workstation is installed, simply launch any of the paid apps in your suite (for example, Custom Designer) and enter your license information. Activating a single app activates all paid apps in the suite. For detailed instructions see: How to Activate Your Brady Workstation Suite License
The PR Plus requires a driver for use with Brady Workstation. The PR Plus can be connected to Brady Workstation via USB, ethernet or WiFi connectivity options (WiFi requires purchasing an accessory USB dongle). See driver download and installation instructions here: How to Install the PR Series Driver
USB - When prompted during the driver install, connect the square end of the USB cable into the square USB type-B port on the printer. Then connect the rectangular USB type-A end of the USB cable directly to your PC. Don't connect the printer to a docking station or USB splitter, connect it to a part directly on the PC.
Network - Ethernet
If you are not an authorized network administrator for your company, we do not recommend attempting to setup a device on your network without contacting your IT. Brady Technical Support cannot add devices to your corporate network. Reference this article to configure the PR Plus for a network connection in Brady Workstation: How to Network the PR Plus Series Printer
The PR Plus is a thermal transfer (THT) printer, this means it requires label material and a corresponding thermal ribbon. The PR Plus takes THT materials formed around 3" cardboard cores.
In this step we'll create a very basic label and print it to the PR Plus. This simple test will confirm the printer is loaded correctly, and has a good connection to the PC. More advanced label creation topics are covered elsewhere in this knowledge base, or see the resources sectionat the end of this article.
1. Launch Workstation if it is not already open. This is what the icon will look like on your desktop.
2. Launch the Custom Designer app.
3. Select the PR Plus from the dropdown list. PR Plus printers listed under "Printers Found" indicate Brady Workstation has found an installed Windows driver on your system. The PR Plus is not a Smart Printer with bidirectional USB communication, so Brady Workstation will not know if the printer is disconnected - only if the driver is installed. It is possible to install multiple drivers for the PR Plus in Windows, so make sure the correct printer is selected.
4. Search for and select the appropriate part number that corresponds with the label materials loaded in your printer. Selecting the wrong part number will cause errors and calibration issues.
Note: The label part displayed on your physical label may not exactly match the part listed in software search results. The software only needs to know the dimensions (die size) of the label, which are indicated by the middle portion of the part name. For this reason, the end of the part name is often omitted (for THT-155-492-3 the die size would be 155, so any part number with THT-155 can be used). For more examples see: Naming Conventions for Brady Label Media
5. Make sure Label is selected from the dropdown, click Create.
This knowledge base contains thousands of articles to address error messages, how-to processes and workarounds for your PR Plus and Brady Workstation. Use the links below to get started.
Everything you need to operate your PR Plus: PR300-600 - General Information Brady Workstation Tutorials and How-to Articles:
Q: What if I need more people to create labels, do I need to purchase more licenses? A: Licenses can be active on one PC at a time, however Brady Workstation's functionality is versatile and some options exist for free/trial use. See this article to determine if additional licensing is the best option for your needs: Brady Workstation - Pricing and Licensing Multiple PCs
Q: What if someone leaves and I need to recover or re-register my license? A: The software self-service portal provides license holders the option to manage their own license information without contact Brady Technical Support. See this article for all functionality available in the self-service portal: Managing Your Licenses in the Brady Software Self-Service Portal
This covers only a few of the most common problems new users face, use the search functionality of this knowledge base if you're experience a specific error message or symptom.
I clicked print and nothing happened
Check the printer first - does it have any error messages? Can it feed labels? Then work your way back to the PC checking each component - USB/network connection, selecting the right printer in the software. See this article for detailed troubleshooting: Unable to Print from Software - Troubleshooting Driver Communication Issues
Workstation says "Warning, unknown part"
This error occurs when the software cannot establish bidirectional communication with the printer. The PR Plus does not support bidirectional communication, so this error can be ignored. Bidirectional communication is not required to print labels, but it can be an indicator of communication issues: Troubleshooting Bidirectional Communication Issues
When I try to launch the driver or software nothing happens or I get a prompt for login credentials
