Incorrect characters or fonts in print output?

Installing hotfixes

Switching off automatic font substitution

Replacing fonts

Installing all fonts on the print server

Embedding fonts in documents

Changing the font management

Using universal font IDs (UFIs)

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Incorrect characters or fonts in print output?

When printing over networks, it's possible that even though the user has selected the correct font in the application, the print output appears with a different font, or with incorrect or missing characters. The characters may also be set too far apart, run into each other, or even overlap.

This is due to the fact that the print jobs were not rendered where they originated. The following offers a guide for resolving such problems using Windows tools.

Updating ThinPrint to version 10

With ThinPrint 10 the font management of ThinPrint Output Gateway was redesigned completely. That’s why – as a first step – an update of older ThinPrint versions to ThinPrint 10 or later is recommended.

Updating printer drivers

Keep your printer drivers up to date. To do so, use Windows Update in the Printers folder of Windows 7 and 2008 R2.

Installing hotfixes

Windows 7, Vista, Server 2008 R2 or Server 2008

Microsoft hotfix KB2616332
Use this hotfix if when printing with the ThinPrint Client Service Windows a Windows system font is printed instead of the used non-Windows font, even if you have com­plied with all steps outlined here.

Microsoft hotfix KB2555392
Install this hotfix if incorrect characters appear even from a certain page.
support.microsoft.com/kb/2555392

With ThinPrint’s Driver Free Printing this hotfix is necessary on each (Windows) machine where the ThinPrint Client is installed (and the native printer drivers are used to render the print jobs). Restart the ThinPrint Client afterwards.
With V-Layer, this hotfix is necessary on the central print server(s) – with failover clusters on each cluster node. Restart the print spooler afterwards.

Microsoft hotfix KB2545698
Install this hotfix if text in some Windows core fonts appear blurred in Internet Explorer 9.
support.microsoft.com/kb/2545698

Microsoft Office Excel 2007, 2003, 2002, 2000 or 97

Microsoft hotfix KB168563
Install this hotfix in case of unexpected behavior when you use different print quality for sheets in Excel.
support.microsoft.com/kb/168563

Switching off automatic font substitution

Stemming from the time when printer resources were more limited, there is a func­tion that ensures that original fonts are not sent to the printer, but are instead replaced with substitutes by the printer, or even by the printer driver (with those sup­plied by the firmware). Thus, for example, instead of the font "Times New Roman", often the font "Times" is printed, and instead of "Arial", the somewhat finer "Helvetica".

Although the fonts are not completely identical, in most cases the substitution is not really noticeable. Nonetheless, since the introduction of Unicode fonts with Win­dows 2000 the character sets no longer match (Unicode fonts are recognizable by the capital O in the font icon instead of the double T). As a result, spe­cial characters may be lost. In addition, new versions of Windows always come with new fonts.

Therefore, you should always turn off font substitution when printing in networks. However, depending on the manufacturer, this function can have very different names. Most often, you will find this description: Substitute with Device Font. Instead choose Download as Softfont. However, this function may be named com­pletely differently. Therefore the following illustrations show examples for switching off font substitution for a variety of drivers.

1. Select this setting on the print server in each printer's properties, in the menu Advanced→ Printing Defaults.

2. Then check this setting in General→ Printing Preferences to ensure your setting.

PS Driver for Universal Print from Ricoh: select Detailed Settings→ PS Options→ Download as Softfont

Lexmark T644: disable More Options→ Fonts→ Substitute printer fonts for TrueType fonts

Lexmark T630: disable Screen Font Substitution

Lexmark T630 PS3: disable Use Substitution Table

Ricoh Aficio CL 3000 PCL 5c: disable Use Printer Fonts

Replacing fonts

When printing an .rtf document with text content using TrueType or OpenType fonts from a Windows XP client, it may happen that individual letters are missing and replaced with a square.

missing letters in a printed document using the example of Arial

The same document when printed from a Windows 7 or 8 desktop is, however, entirely correctly represented. A direct comparison of the character map in Windows XP and Windows 7 or 8 shows that for some characters different letters are defined. 

view of the different Arial character sets in Windows XP and Windows 8

An easy way to solve the problem is to transmit the Arial font files from a Windows 8 computer to all affected Windows XP desktops.

Installing all fonts on the print server

Install all the fonts required by your users, not only on the computers, but also on all the involved print servers.
Get a clear picture of which computers send print output over a print server – for example terminal servers, virtual desktops or workstations - and which fonts are installed there. It is important that all styles of a font are installed – for Arial for exam­ple, that means "Arial (Regular)", as well as Arial italic, Arial bold and Arial bold italic.

Arial: font files (= font styles)

Embedding fonts in documents

Your users may wish to print documents that have not originated within your firm. It is possible that these documents will provide the information as to which font was used in the relevant application, but the font itself may not have been included, (e. g. by embedding in the document). If the font from one of those documents is already installed on the print server on which print output is to be rendered then there is generally no problem.

Conversely, it is possible to embed fonts in files which are, for example, to be sent to other firms, so that the recipient can print it out as it is meant to be printed. Later you can easily check the PDF file in Adobe Reader, to see if the font was successfully embedded: select File→ Properties→ Fonts in Adobe Reader.

fonts used in a PDF: Arial (not embedded), Calibri (only those characters used are embedded) and HelveticaNeue (fully embedded)

In the above example, even though "Arial" was used in the original document, it is not embedded in the PDF. Of the "Calibri" font, only those characters actually used in the document are embedded (Embedded Subset), and all the characters of the font "Hel­veticaNeue-ThinCond" are embedded (Embedded).

Changing the font management

Using universal font IDs (UFIs)

With ThinPrint you can use the modern font management with universal font IDs (UFIs):

• Create the registry value DisableUFIs – either on the ThinPrint Client machine (with the print mode Driver Free Printing) or on the central print server (with the V-Layer print mode) in:
  hkey_local_machine\software\ThinPrint\TpView
• Choose the DWORD (reg_dword) type for DisableUFIs and set it to 0.
• Finally, restart the ThinPrint Client or the print spooler respectively.