How can I enable two-sided printing on my Mac with OS Yosemite?

Hi guys! i just figured it out!!

I had the same problem for quite some time, the two-sided option was greyed out.

You have to do the following:

1. Go to "System Preferences" and further to "Printers and Scanners".

2. Hover over your printer title and right-click.

3. Click "Reset printing system..."

4. Click "+" to add a new printer.

5. Now attention please:

a) click the field "Use", ignoring the default setting (e.g. Secure AirPrint), and

b) select the original software for your printer (it may be Epson, HP etc...), there may be options, check them all out, one by one, until you find the one that explicitly offers you a "duplex" mode.

See the screenshots below! this is fantastic!! Good luck!

a) ignore the default setting (e.g. Secure AirPrint) and click the field "Use":

b) click the field "Use" and select the original software for your printer (it may be Epson, HP etc...)

c) click Add in the right bottom corner

d) then, in the opened up window, check "duplexer" option or sounding something like this

Et voila! you all set! 🙂

Dear MrHoffman,

Thank you for this reply. That I had to check "Two-Sided" to be able to print two-sided was already long time clear to me, but that in the other cases I had to switch "Copies & Pages" to "Layout" to be able to select what I need had not yet reached me. Of course Apple has pampered us for long time so much with obvious places of much used tools (like just having to check "Two-Sided" next to the amount of "Copies" you want) that I overlooked that they could be nested a bit deeper. Once you are noticed by a convincing red mark on a screenshot it has to be found on that location and nowhere else, it is more easy to find it.

For those interested in the matter: in Adobe InDesign you have to click first the button "Printer…" (red marked) in the Print window to be spoiled with two different ways to switch on the two-sided print option (green marked).

I hope that with your reply the original post from poppyandsprout is solved too.

Thanks again and best regards,

Jerome

I have the same problem, but it seems to occur only with Adobe Acrobat, Reader as well as Acrobat Pro DC. Printer used: Brother HL-1140D series. On my iMac I have Yosemite OS 10.10.5 and there is no way to print double sided. Screen shot Print window in Acrobat, there is no option next to the amount of copies to print two-sided and you can't find it somewhere else:

Screen shot, in this case printing from Firefox, where you see next to Copies the possibility to select Two- Sided:

If your printer supports 2-Sided Printing, _AND_ the drivers tells the Mac, then it should be an available option in the Print dialog box, or maybe configuratble from System Prefernces -> Printers.

If the driver does not tell the Mac, you may be able to enable this via the Unix CUPS subsystem (Geekie stuff follows)

From a Terminal session enable the CUPS web interface:

sudo cupsctl WebInterface=yes

Now from a Web browser:

<http://localhost:631>

• Click on the "Printers" tab
• Select the Print from the list
• There should be "Maintenance" and "Administration" buttons
• Click "Administration" -> "Set Default Options"

Now things get printer specific. Look for something about Duplex printing, such as:

Duplex Unit (_) Installed (X) Not Installed

Click on (X) Installed

Click on "Set Default Options" at the bottom of the page.

Username: <your_Unix_side_Username>

Password: <your_Mac_password>

Now you can disable the CUPS web interface:

sudo cupsctl WebInterface=no

This assumes your printer has duplex unit installed.

Here is what worked for me.

1. Be sure your are in the Safari Browser

2. Open System Preferences (Apple Icon to the left of Safari)

3. In System Preferences click on Printers & Scanners Icon

4. Click on Options and Supplies for the printer installed.

5. When tab opens click on Options

6. When Options tab opens look for Duplex

7. Check the Duplex box.

Your are in business for Duplexing in Safari.

Thank you for replying. I have tried what you advise already, but also there I see no two-sided possibility. So it is not Adobe only, also the Mac OS does not offer me what you suggests. Selecting in Options "General", "Supply Levels" or "Utility" doesn't help as well. When I print from "Mail" two-sided is available (see screenshot 3). Printing from Microsoft Word, again I find no 2-sided option (see screenshot 4). In Adobe InDesign you have to click first the button "Printer" where you can select two-sided. Printing from "TextEdit", "Keynote", "Preview", "Safari" and "Firefox" 2-sided option is visible directly after your print command. I did not included from each example a screenshot, but believe me, it is true.

Best regards,

Jerome

That's exactly the problem I got,

I have three printers at hand, and I'm sure that at least two of them support two sided printing:

HP laserjet 1022

Brother HL-3140CW

Samsung ML-2160

The option to print two sided is greyed out for all the three of them, with a previous version of the OS I could print double sided with the Laserjet 1022, and it worked like a charm.

Now it's all greyed out, how can I re-enable the double sided printing?

I've got El capitan, 10.11.6

and here's the driver versions for the brother and for the HP printers,

and here's the screenshots from the printer settings of the HP, only mention to the 'two sided printing' is in the layouts page, but that's greyed out.

This appeared to be my problem as well, but as straight forward as your instructions were, and I was all excited to move forward with them, unfortunately it didn't work. Here's a screenshot of the window that's not allowing me to do the two sided, despite having a two sided printer. The two sided option is not active to turn it on.

Sent this to the worng person , hopefully you can help.. Not sure this works but you seemed to be the most straighforward. I'm using Sierra. Thanks.

This appeared to be my problem as well, but as straight forward as your instructions were, and I was all excited to move forward with them, unfortunately it didn't work. Here's a screenshot of the window that's not allowing me to do the two sided, despite having a two sided printer. The two sided option is not active to turn it on.

This thread is an old one, and it's collecting what are unrelated questions.

According to the Brother web site, the HL-3140CW does not offer duplex printing hardware. The Brother HL-3170CDW does; that's the D in the usual Brother printer model name.

According to the HP web site, the LaserJet 1022 is both a fairly old printer, and lacks support for duplex printing.

According to the Samsung web site, the Samsung ML-2160 also lacks duplex printing.

Apple has available printer troubleshooting information. The usual general troubleshooting sequence — which won't help with the problem that dongiulio is reporting here, with duplex printing on a printer that lacks the necessary duplex printing hardware — is to try the following steps. Confirm that the printer supports duplex printing with the printer vendor. Then, try to remove and re-add the printer from your configuration and see if this clears, check for printer driver updates (from the printer driver vendor, via Apple), check for printer firmware updates, then check with the printer vendor.

Firefox and Adobe Acrobat use their own custom print panels, not the print panel from OS X. The lack of a Two-Page/Duplex setting on Adobe print panels is a matter that you need to address with them.

Adobe Reader (11.0.14), and Adobe Reader DC (15.010.20059) do not present duplex (Two-Sided) settings on their print panel. You must enable/disable duplex printing with your printer directly, providing your printer hardware supports it, via the web browser configuration for your printer, printer-specific software, or the OS X System Preferences : Printers & Scanners : <printer name> : Options & Supplies settings.

That's a pretty glib response-- and, alas, flat out wrong. Just do some searching via Google or in these forums. Many people have fully capable two-sided printers that *aren't* working. It's related to the printer drivers and the operating system.

We have 2 Brother printers that work fine under recent OSs, doing two-sided printing with aplomb. Under older OSs, though, the option is greyed out!

Others have found when they upgrade to newer OSs, the 2-sided options are greyed.

For anyone using an epson workforce printer and unable to double sided print on their mac, I have found a solution.

Follow the following steps:

1. Go to system preferences and click on printers and scanners

2. Select your printer and then make sure you are under the "print" tab.

3. Select options and supplies, then show printer webpage

4. When at the website, click the "back to main" button.

5. At top of the page select advanced settings in the dropdown menu

6. Select printer setting from the list on the left side of the page, then select error settings

7. make sure auto error solver is switched to On.

You are done.

After hours of fighting, I now have the double sided page option when i go to print.

frankierayo,

I have 2 questions?

1) When you set up your printer on the Mac, did you select the "AirPrint Epson..." drivers, -OR- did you select the "Epson..." drivers WITHOUT "AirPrint" in the driver name?

I ask, because I have heard that not all of a vendor's printer features are exposed to the user if your select the "AirPrint..." flavor of driver.

2) Have you by any chance tried the Unix CUPS interface for telling the underlying printer subsystem that your printer supports 2-sided printing? Us you scroll up, you will see my instructions.

Not sure if these are the same instructions for Sierra (not High Sierra) as they are for Yosemite, but no 'duplex' shows up under the options tab. Per the attached screen shot of my previous message, two sided printing shows up as off, but it's not active and can't be changed.