Xerox error 016-799 - invalid print job or unsupported PDL
The printer received a job containing instructions it could not interpret, so it cancelled it and reported an invalid job. It usually means the driver is sending a page description language or a feature combination that the machine does not support in its current configuration. The printer itself is healthy and other jobs may print normally.
What causes it
- The driver is set to a page description language the printer does not have installed
- A job requests a finishing option, tray or paper size the machine does not have
- The wrong Xerox driver or a driver for a different model is in use
- A corrupt or unusually complex document is producing invalid output
- A third-party application is generating non-standard PostScript or PCL
How to fix it, in order
Work down the list and stop when the printer recovers. The steps are ordered from most likely and least invasive to last resort.
Print a simple test page
Send a single line of text from Notepad or TextEdit. If that prints, the printer and connection are fine and the problem is specific to the document or the options it requests, which narrows the search considerably.
Switch the driver's page description language
Open Settings › Bluetooth & devices › Printers & scanners, click the printer, choose Printing preferences, and look for a PostScript or PCL option, often under an Advanced or XPS section. If the current setting is PostScript, install the PCL driver instead, or the reverse. Machines without the PostScript option installed reject PostScript jobs with this code.
Remove unsupported finishing options
In Printing preferences, set stapling, hole punch, booklet and offset options to none, and set paper source to Auto. A job requesting a finisher the machine does not have is invalid from the printer's point of view even though the driver offered the option.
Install the Xerox Global Print Driver
Download and install the Xerox Global Print Driver for your machine family, then create a new queue with it. It negotiates supported features with the device rather than assuming them, which eliminates most invalid-job conditions caused by driver mismatches.
Check the machine's installed options
Open the printer's Embedded Web Server by typing its IP address into a browser and review the configuration or installed options page. Then match the driver's installable options under Printer properties › Configuration so the driver only offers what the machine actually has.
Re-export the problem document
If only one file fails, open it and export a fresh PDF, or use Print as image in the print dialog's advanced options. Documents with damaged embedded fonts or unusual transparency regularly generate output the printer rejects.
Clear the queue and resend
Cancel all jobs on the computer, and on Windows stop Print Spooler in services.msc, empty C:\Windows\System32\spool\PRINTERS and start it again. A failed job resending repeatedly will keep producing the same error and obscure whether your fix worked.
Stopping it happening again
When it is not worth fixing yourself
If you would rather not work through this alone, a printer specialist can take a look with you on a screen-share and tell you honestly whether the machine is worth saving.
Printers that show this code
Frequently asked questions
What is a PDL?
A page description language such as PostScript or PCL. It is the format the driver uses to describe your page to the printer.
Why does one document fail and others print?
Because that document requests something the machine cannot do, or contains malformed content the interpreter rejects.
Does the Global Print Driver work with every Xerox?
It covers a wide range of current models. Very old machines may need their model-specific driver instead.
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