Proxy detection troubleshooting for PaperCut Hive and Pocket

PaperCut Hive and Pocket functions seamlessly with proxies in many customer environments. Automatic proxy detection is built into the product.

Here are some key details to consider when migrating from one proxy solution to another, or when troubleshooting deployment issues where clients appear as offline in the Admin Dashboard or printing isn’t functioning as expected.

During installation, the Hive Edgenode software attempts to detect and record any proxies that are currently in use. However, the Edgenode service runs in the system context, whereas some proxies are only started upon user login. This can cause connectivity issues and failures if the service cannot detect a proxy at startup due to this context mismatch. This issue can also occur in the event of a shift from a system-level proxy to a user-level proxy.

Proxy checks continue to happen on service startup or restarts, but any user and system context mismatch will still prevent the service from detecting the user-level proxy, which results in a loss of connectivity.

If you have a known proxy in your environment that isn’t being detected, there are two primary options at your disposal to restore and maintain connectivity. The first is ideal for a large-scale deployment, while the second is a quick fix for stubborn individual devices.

Manual configuration update and service restart

This is the most direct solution and can be tested on a single client device before deploying the change across the network. It involves updating the client’s configuration file and then restarting the service to apply the new settings. Below are the manual steps that can then be automated via your MDM or management solution (i.e. Intune or Jamf)

1. First, navigate to the Hive client’s installation directory and find the http-proxy.conf file, located here on each OS:

   • Windows:

     C:\Program Files\PaperCut Hive\http-proxy.conf
     

   • macOS

     /Library/PaperCut Hive/http-proxy.conf
     

2. Open the file with a text editor and update the proxy address to the correct new setting following the example below (hostname or IP address is accepted):

   my.proxy.org:1234
   

3. After saving the file, restart the PaperCut Hive Edgenode service:

   • Windows (PowerShell):

     restart-service pc-edgenode-service
     

   • macOS (terminal):

     sudo launchctl unload /Library/LaunchDaemons/pc-edgenode-service.plist; launchctl load /Library/LaunchDaemons/pc-edgenode-service.plist
     

Perform a fresh installation

The easiest fix for a single computer is to simply reinstall the Hive client while the user is logged in. During the installation, the software will detect the current proxy settings and save them correctly, ultimately restoring the connection.