Tags

Tags let you decouple your software from specific printer hardware. Instead of printing to a device’s physical path (like tcp_192-168-86-250_9100), you assign a tag name and print to that instead. When hardware changes, you move the tag — your code stays the same.

Why Tags Matter

In a typical setup, your application sends print jobs to a specific printer path — an IP address, USB serial number, or network endpoint. If that printer is replaced, moved, or reassigned, every application that references it needs to be updated.

Tags eliminate this problem. Your application prints to a tag like tag_UPSLABELS, and ProxyBox routes the job to whatever printer currently has that tag. If the hardware changes, you update the tag assignment in the ProxyBox dashboard — not in your code.

Assigning Tags

1. Open the Printers module in the admin dashboard.
2. Find the printer you want to tag.
3. Type a tag name in the Add tag field and press Enter.

A printer can have multiple tags. Multiple printers can share the same tag — when you print to a shared tag, all printers with that tag receive the job.

Printing to a Tag

Use the tag name prefixed with tag_ as the target in any print API call:

POST /api/v1/print/tag_UPSLABELS
Content-Type: application/octet-stream
X-API-Key: YOUR_API_KEY

^XA^FO50,50^A0N,50,50^FDHello World^FS^XZ

This works identically to printing to a device path — the same request body options (raw binary or JSON with URL) apply.

Example: Replacing a Printer

Your USB Zebra printer fails. You replace it with a newer networked model.

Without tags: Update the print target in every application, workstation, and integration that referenced the old printer’s path.

With tags:

1. Remove the UPSLABELS tag from the old printer (or delete it).
2. Add the new printer to ProxyBox (it auto-discovers or you add it manually).
3. Assign the UPSLABELS tag to the new printer.

Your applications keep sending to /api/v1/print/tag_UPSLABELS and ProxyBox routes to the new hardware automatically.

Tip

If you’ve ever had to reconfigure a dozen workstations because a printer IP changed, you understand why this matters. Adopt tags from day one — even if you only have one printer.

Tag Naming Conventions

Tags can be any string. Some common patterns:

Tag	Use Case
UPSLABELS	Shipping label printer at the UPS station
DOCKZEBRA	Zebra printer on the loading dock
OFFICECOLOR	Color printer in the main office
RECEIPTS	Receipt printer at the front counter

Choose names that describe the role or location, not the hardware model — that way the tag stays meaningful even after a device swap.