The "TECH MODE" of the Lexmark X215 / Samsung SCX-4216F

According to official sources from Samsung, the brother of Lexmark's X215, the in the same way constructed Samsung SCX-4216F, has a so-called "Tech Mode", where a service technician (or you!) can do some tests or adjust some additional settings.

Entering and leaving the "TECH MODE"

To enter the TECH MODE (or to leave it) ...

Press the Menu key
on the keypad quickly enter # 1 9 3 4

If the menu / display is configured to use a language different from English (e.g. German, French, ...) the display will change to the English language (Ready instead of Bereit etc.). There will also be a clock displayed instead of the zoom percentage values. In the end the display will look similiar like this:

Ready
14:32       TECH

To leave the TECH MODE just repeat the above mentioned procedure or just wait a moment, as the X215 will leave TECH MODE automatically after some time. You will recognise this by the absence of TECH MODE in the display. If you normally use a different language for the display, the display will revert to the configured language after leaving TECH MODE.

Possible applications

The TECH MODE menu can be used for ...:

resetting the toner catridge counter / messages when using a new catridge
resetting the toner catridge counter / messages when using a used catridge (to fully use its toner content)
change modem settings, e.g. modem speed
clear / reset the memory or different counters
check / test the RAM and ROM of the MFP
print some test pattern to check print quality / equipment
park the scanner's CCD sensor / test, if the CCD sensor moves

Structure of the TECH MODE menu

To go to TECH MODE (after enabling it) just go to menu #10:

Menu	Submenu	Value(s) [Default]	Remarks
Data Setup	Send Level	09 - 15 [12]	signal level of the fax modem, factory default is 12dB
	Dial Mode	[Tone] Pulse
	Error Rate	[5%] 10%	if this error rate is exceeded, modem will revert to 2400 baud modem speed
	Modem Speed	4.8, 9.6, 12.0, 14.4, 28.8, [33.6]	in kbps
	Clear All Memory		clear/reset memory (to factory default), page counters will NOT be cleared!
	Clear Count		clear/reset page counters (printer, scanner)
	Flash Upgrade	[Local] Remote
Machine Test	Switch Test	Wait Key ...	will prompt the user to press certain keys on the keypad and will display their name; pressing Stop/Cancel 2 times will exit this test
	Modem Test		conducts a modem test; press Stop/Cancel 2 times to cancel this test
	Dram Test	[O.K.]	conducts a RAM memory test
	ROM Test	`Flash: x.xx Engine: Vx.x.x`	conducts a ROM test; shows version information for flash and engine
	Pattern Test	Pattern-X (1-7), QaPattern-X (1-4), Pattern-All	allows for printing different printer test patterns
	Shading Test	Adjust Shading?
	Move CCD		will move CCD sensors to the middle of the scan area (transport/park position)
Report	Protocol		prints protocol (CCITT group 3 T.30), used for recognising receive/transmit errors
Report	System Data		prints MFP settings (similar to menu #3 -> settings)
Cartridge	New Cartridge	[Yes] No	resets the toner cartridge counter

Machine Test » Pattern Test — types of test pattern

When printing test patterns there are the following 7 patterns:

test pattern	description ENG	description DEU
1	Graphics / image quality	Grafik / Bild Qualität
2	Graphics / image quality	Grafik / Bild Qualität
3	Horizontal lines	Horizontale Linien
4	White page	weisse Seite
5	Dot array (fine)	Punktmuster (fein)
6	Dot array (coarse)	Punktmuster (grob)
7	Vertical line	Vertikale Linien

Using Pattern-All will print all patterns at once.

... in the end

Although this procedures are described for the Lexmark X215 MFP and Samsung SCX-4216F (and tested by me for the X215), they should work for the Xerox WorkCentre PE16 as well (see link to xerox.ru at the end). AS ALWAYS: USE THIS INFORMATION AT YOUR OWN RISK!

Beside TECH MODE there are (at least) the following modes:

# 1 9 3 0: Factory Reset
# 1 9 3 1: Diagnostics (Motor/Fan/Solenoid; LSU [Printhead Motor, HSYNC, Laser Diode]; Sensor Tests)
# 1 9 3 3: EDGE PRINT
# 1 9 3 4: TECH MODE
# 1 9 3 5: Counter (Print or Display [ADF Count, Plat Count, Print Count, GetFax Count])
allows for quick look at page counters on the display (or on a printed page)
# 1 9 3 6: Detecting Starting Pixels
# 1 9 3 7: Autotest Mode (Infinite, Copy, Fax)
# 1 9 3 8: Operator Panel Test / Scanner Test
# 1 9 3 9: PBA TEST (test of MFP's mainboard)

More information can be found in the Lexmark X215 MFP Service Manual (Nr. 4038-001). There was a Google Cache copy (in html format) available in October 2007.

Links

Samsung USA Support FAQ Database - Question: "Why does SCX-4216F displays "Toner Low" or "Toner Empty" message?": describes how to use the TECH MODE to reset the toner counter / message "Toner Low" and "Toner Empty" after installing a new toner cartridge (if these messages do not clear automatically, e.g. when using alternative / other printers cartridges).
FAQ for Xerox WorkCentre PE16 at xerox.ru (Russian language): describes resetting toner cartridge settings / messages for Xerox MFP clone