A method includes an accepting step of causing an information processing apparatus to accept a request for switching a contracted device from a first image forming apparatus to a second image forming apparatus, the contracted device being an image forming apparatus allowed to use contracted consumables accommodating printing materials based on a contract, an enablement-establishing step of causing the information processing apparatus to establish a first enabled state in which the second image forming apparatus is allowed to use a contracted consumables, in response to acceptance of the request, and an enablement-continuing step of causing the information processing apparatus to establish a second enabled state in which the first image forming apparatus is allowed to continuously use the contracted consumables that has been previously used in the first image forming apparatus for a predetermined period, in response to acceptance of the request.

A processing system includes a service provider, such as a printing device, that receives requests to process tasks or jobs from service requesters. At times, the service provider will not be available for processing and will generate deferral responses to the service requesters. The deferral responses include a condition to be met before processing requests can be resent from the service requesters. After the condition is met, the processing requests are resent to the service provider to be fulfilled.

A printer may include a memory configured to store remaining amount-related information related to a remaining amount of color material in a single-purpose color material cartridge mounted on the printer. The printer may send first printer information to a server in a case where the single-purpose color material cartridge is mounted on the printer, and send second printer information to the server in a case where the general-purpose color material cartridge is mounted on the printer. The server may determine whether, regardless of which of the first printer information and the second printer information has been received from the printer, the remaining amount-related information included in the received first printer information or the received second printer information satisfies a predetermined condition, and execute a shipping process for shipping a new single-purpose color material cartridge in a case where the predetermined condition is satisfied.

An information processing apparatus communicable with an image output apparatus, comprises: a storage unit configured to store first status information concerning whether it is possible to execute a function in the image output apparatus, which is acquired from the image output apparatus; and a display unit configured to display a list of image output apparatuses as management targets based on the first status information stored in the storage unit and second status information concerning a communication state between the information processing apparatus and the image output apparatus. If a condition based on the first status information and the second status information is satisfied, the display unit displays, as a candidate to be deleted from the management targets, an image output apparatus corresponding to the first status information and the second status information.

By using the present disclosure, for example, a notification of an error that has occurred in a device can be received even in cloud printing. Some embodiments provide a method performed by executing an application using an information processing apparatus that transmits print data to be transferred to a printing apparatus by a server system, the method including transmitting, to the server system, a request to check a processing status of the print data in the printing apparatus, receiving the processing status of the print data from the server system having responded to the request, and displaying the received processing status on a display unit of the information processing apparatus.

An image processing device may include a controller configured to, in a case where a disabling instruction to cause a service state to shift to a disabled state is obtained under a situation where the service state is an enabled state, shift the service state from the enabled state to the disabled state, and in the case where the disabling instruction is obtained under the situation where the service state is the enabled state, send an acceptance stop instruction to a server. The acceptance stop instruction may be an instruction to cause the server to stop acceptance of a job sending request.

A printing system manages printing devices. A managing server receives device update status information and pending job information from each of the printing devices. A status change for a component within a first printing device is detected, thereby updating the device information for the first printing device. The managing server parses a print job queue for the first printing device to update the pending job information to determine the print job will cause a first potential error related to the changed status of the first printing device. When a new print job is received, the managing server determines that the new print job will not occur according to the first potential error, identifies a second printing device, determines the new print job will not result in a second potential error at the second printing device, and sends the new print job to the second printing device.

An information processing apparatus comprises: an acquisition unit configured to acquire resource information concerning a remaining amount of a consumable from an image output apparatus; a generation unit configured to generate notification information indicating a quantity or amount of the consumable based on the resource information acquired from the image output apparatus; and a notification unit configured to make a notification of the notification information generated by the generation unit. The acquisition unit acquires the resource information of a plurality of types of consumables from each of a first image output apparatus and a second image output apparatus. The generation unit generates the corresponding notification information for each of the plurality of types based on the acquired resource information. The notification unit makes a notification of the notification information for each of the plurality of types.

A printing apparatus includes a sending unit to send an order request for requesting an ordering apparatus to order a consumable in a case where a predetermined condition regarding a consumable of which the degree exceeds a predetermined degree is satisfied based on the information related to a contract and information related to the consumable. The sending unit sends the order request based on information related to a current contract and the information related to the consumable in a case where a remaining contract period based on a contract expiration date of the current contract is equal to or more than a predetermined number of dates and sends the order request based on the information related to a next contract in a case where the remaining contract period based on the contract expiration date of the current contract is less than the predetermined number of dates.

Apparatus is described that comprises a printer carriage (100), comprising a printhead (105), at least one sensor (101, 102) for scanning an image deposited on a print media by the printhead (105) and a spectrophotometer (104) connected to the at least one sensor (101, 102) for generating data based on a reference image (120) on a test print media (110). The sensor (101, 102) is calibrated based on the generated data to detect a specific ICC profile, and wherein, in use, the sensor (101, 102) scans and digitizes an image of a final print media as the image is being printed on the final print media; and wherein the sensor (101, 102) is connected to a controller (106) that performs image quality analysis of the digitized image to determine whether colour deviation has occurred.