Skip to content

Getting Started

Getting your ProxyBox up and running takes about five minutes. Plug it in, connect to your network, and you’re ready to start printing.

  1. Plug the power adapter into a power source and connect the USB-C end to the ProxyBox.
  2. Connect the ProxyBox to your router with an Ethernet cable.
  3. Press the power button to turn it on.
  4. Wait about 5 minutes for the initial boot process to complete.
  5. From another device on the same network, open a browser and navigate to https://pbx-ABCD.pbxz.io (replace ABCD with the 4-character ID on the sticker on your device).

You’ll see a password prompt. The default password is setup- followed by your device ID:

  • Password: setup-ABCD (replace ABCD with the 4-character ID on your device’s sticker — e.g. setup-D8A4)

Login credentials prompt.

Type your new password in the Change Password field and press Save Password.

Change password input (light).

The web server will restart and you’ll be prompted to refresh. You’ll know the update succeeded when the login prompt accepts your new password.

After login you’ll land on the admin page, which shows all available modules — printers, tags, proxy URLs, settings, and extensions.

ProxyBox admin page.

ProxyBox admin header.

The header displays:

Field Description
Release Version The release version currently running on the device.
IP Address The device’s local IP address.
Hostname The device’s hostname.
Uptime Time since the last reboot.

The header also provides a Logout button and a Reboot button. Rebooting will show a confirmation dialog first.

Navigate to https://test.pbxz.io to run a quick test against your device.

Test site connection screen.

You’ll be asked for two values:

  1. ProxyBox ID — the same 4-character ID from the setup steps above.
  2. API Key — found on the admin page under Settings > API Key.

API Key location in settings.

Enter both values and connect. The test page lets you view device status, see discovered printers, and send test prints — confirming everything is working before you integrate with your applications.

ProxyBox test page.

Everything the test page does, your applications do through the REST API. Grab your API key from Settings > API Key and try it from a terminal (each ProxyBox ships with its own key — the value below is an example):

Terminal window
# Device status
curl https://pbx-ABCD.pbxz.io/api/v1/status \
-H 'X-API-Key: ULA9WHXMFCHF'
# List discovered printers
curl https://pbx-ABCD.pbxz.io/api/v1/printers \
-H 'X-API-Key: ULA9WHXMFCHF'

Pick a printer from the response — its path field is the print target — and send a test print:

Terminal window
curl -X POST https://pbx-ABCD.pbxz.io/api/v1/print/tcp_192-168-86-250_9100/test \
-H 'X-API-Key: ULA9WHXMFCHF'

That’s the whole integration surface: your application makes the same HTTP calls, whether it runs on the local network or anywhere on the internet.

  • Tags — print to a role like tag_LABELS instead of a hardware path, so you can swap printers without changing code. Worth adopting from day one.
  • Printer Guides — format requirements and tips for Zebra, Brother, Epson, and office printers.
  • API Reference — the full print API: content types, print options, job tracking.

ProxyBox Docs v1.0.6