Spock – Set phasers on STUN !


Tektronix Phaser printers are powerful network capable devices but they can also be a pain in the behind to get information regarding their error message. While working on an 8200 I managed to locate some further info that may be of use to others.

So here goes to deciphering the cryptic XX,XXX,XX: messages !

Fault Codes for 8200

Error codes indicate the following:

The failing system (XX,yyy.zz)

The failing subsystem (xx,YYY.zz)

The type of problem (xx,yyy.ZZ).

The print engine copy count (xx,yyy.zz:123) when the error occurred.

Program faults indicated by a 6 in the tenths place of the fault code (xx,yyy.6z). Unfortunately, there are too many program faults to enumerate them all
and most program faults will not mean anything unless you are intimately familiar with the code base.

In customer mode, program faults cause the printer to automatically reboot and no message is displayed on the Front Panel. The fault codes are saved into non-volatile memory and can be retrieved from the fault history. CPU exceptions are indicated by a 7 in the tenths place of the fault code (xx,yyy.7x). The error code indicates both the PowerPC exception number and the region of firmware that was executing when the exception occurred; Engine, PostScript, Network, or Operating System.

The PowerPC 603e processor, used in the Phaser 850 and 860, can detect a number of exceptions that occur as a result of external signals on the Print Engine Controller
Board, other errors or unusual conditions during the execution of instructions. A CPU exception can either be caused by hardware or firmware error.