Step by step
- Create a pairing code first (+ Add agent, step 1).
- Pick a computer that stays on during the day (an office PC or a server) in the same network as the printers.
- On that computer download SubClik-Agent-Setup.exe and run it: either Download Setup for Windows in the + Add agent panel, or on the website at www.subclik.co.uk/download, where you sign in with your office or engineer account (the download is only for SubClik firms). Windows asks for administrator rights: say yes.
- Follow the installer: Install the SubClik Printer Agent, choose the folder, and wait while it stops any older agent, installs the Windows service, adds the tray icon and creates shortcuts.
- On the last page leave Open SubClik Agent now ticked and press Finish. The SubClik Agent window opens.
- In the window go to Portal connection, check the Portal address (normally
https://www.subsense.app), type the Pairing code and press Connect. - Go to Scanning and check the networks it will search. Add other networks or VLANs under Other networks and VLANs if the printers are elsewhere.
- Back on Overview press Scan now. Printers appear under Printers in the window and in Printers & agents in the portal within a few minutes.
- In the portal, link or add the printers that were not linked automatically.
What the installer does
It installs the agent as the Windows service SubClik Printer Agent: it starts with the computer, works when nobody is signed in and restarts itself after a fault.
It adds a SubClik icon by the clock for every user and shortcuts in the Start menu and on the desktop.
Installing a newer Setup over an older agent keeps its pairing and settings. The + Add agent panel shows the latest version under the download button.
Updates
From this version the agent updates itself: every 6 hours it asks the portal (www.subsense.app, the same address it already uses) whether there is a newer version, downloads it, checks it against the release checksum, swaps it in and restarts the service. Pairing and settings stay.
Agents installed before this version need the latest Setup once; after that they update by themselves.
Before swapping, the new version must start and report its version; otherwise the agent stays on the one it has.
The previous program is kept as subsense-agent.exe.old until the new version has run for 10 minutes. If the new version stops more than 3 times before that, the agent puts the previous one back by itself and does not install that version again.
To keep one computer on its current version, untick Install new versions automatically in the agent's Settings and actions (Printers & agents › Agents).
Reports the agent cannot deliver (no internet, portal down) are kept on the computer and sent later in the order they happened, with the time each was taken: a jam that starts and clears during an outage still appears in the history.
If something goes wrong
If the installer says The service could not be installed, run it again as administrator.
If the agent shows Paired, no contact yet in the portal, it was usually not installed as administrator or the service is stopped: run the latest Setup again, or open Start › SubClik Agent › Settings.
The settings window can only be opened by an administrator of the computer. Otherwise it says Open SubClik Agent from the Start menu.
Network and security
The agent only reads printers (SNMP, UDP 161) and only sends to the portal over HTTPS (443). Nothing connects into the customer's network, so no firewall ports need opening inwards.
Its data (token, settings, log, reports waiting to be sent) is kept in C:\ProgramData\SubClik Agent, readable by administrators only.
If the internet is down, reports are kept and delivered later with their original date (up to 15 days).
Tips
- Use Guide: install the Agent step by step in the + Add agent panel for a picture-by-picture walk-through to send to the customer's IT.
- Choose a PC that is not set to sleep during the day. Printers that were asleep at the morning read are tried again every hour.
- Nothing can be installed (locked-down IT)? Use a SubClik Box instead.
Questions
Does it need a server?
No. Any Windows PC that stays on during working hours is fine.
Does it slow the computer down?
No. It is one small program that reads printers a few times a day and checks status in the background.
Can the customer's IT install it silently?
Yes: SubClik-Agent-Setup.exe /S /CODE=XXXX-XXXX. See the silent install article.
How do I uninstall it?
Through Windows Settings › Apps (SubClik Printer Agent). It removes the service and its settings. Also press Remove agent in the portal.
Works together with
- The SubClik Agent window on the customer's PCThe Agent's own window on the customer's computer shows what it found and lets you pair it, choose networks, add printers by address and read its log.
- Silent install for IT departmentsIT can install and pair the Agent without any windows using one command line, for example through their software deployment tool.
- Add an agent (create a pairing code)Create a pairing code for a customer and site. The code connects one Agent or SubClik Box to that customer; it works once and is valid for 7 days.
- Agent for Linux, Raspberry Pi and macOSBesides Windows, the agent runs on Linux (64-bit and ARM, e.g. a Raspberry Pi) and macOS. Download it from Other systems.
- The SubClik BoxThe SubClik Box is a small Wi-Fi reader powered from the copier's USB port. It finds the printers on the customer's network and sends meters, toner, error codes and jams, with nothing installed on the customer's computers.
- Check an agent: online, offline and what it seesEach agent in the Agents list shows whether it is online, when it last made contact, how many printers it found and which machines on record it has not found yet.