DoIT Departmental Support - PaperCut License Sharing

What is PaperCut?

PaperCut MF is a comprehensive print management software solution that can monitor, report against, control, and secure printing, copying, and scanning. It provides visibility for departments into their printing environments in order to reduce waste, manage budgets, and secure confidential documents by requiring user authentication (such as a Wiscard swipe or NetID login) before a print job is released at a device. 

Consolidated License

DoIT has consolidated all UW-Madison PaperCut licenses into a single license file that can be shared across departments.  By participating in the campus-wide license-sharing pool, departments can reduce procurement overhead and ensure consistent printing services for students, faculty, and staff.

Requesting Access

Interested departments must setup their own infrastructure to use the UW-Madison shared PaperCut license. Information on how to do so is available from PaperCut.

To request access to the UW-Madison shared PaperCut license, first review all information on this page. Then send an email to doit-seam-support@doit.wisc.edu including the following:

Technical Considerations

To ensure a stable environment and minimize support complications, all participating units must adhere to the following technical standards:

Software and Version Alignment

• PaperCut MF Requirement: All departments sharing the UW-Madison shared PaperCut license are required to use PaperCut MF.

• Major Version Alignment: Application servers must keep their major versions aligned (version 25.0 as of 6/18/2026)

  • Upgrade Timeline: PaperCut usually releases new major versions annually in the summer or fall. Generally, to avoid disrupting academic services, major version updates should not be installed immediately. DoIT will coordinate communications and share the results of initial update testing so individual units can confidently schedule their own updates shortly thereafter. This will usually happen during winter break. Participating departments should upgrade to new major versions within a few weeks DoIT providing the go-ahead.

• Point Releases: Aligning point updates (e.g., 25.0.1) is less critical. However, because they often contain security enhancements and bug fixes, DoIT recommends staying at or near the current point release.

Installing the License

• DoIT will provide a link to the current license file when you initially request access.  Contact doit-seam-support@doit.wisc.edu should you need it thereafter. 

• You can install the license in your Papercut MF web interface on the About > Registration page using the Register > License File section at the bottom of the page.  (Papercut Documentation)

• Once installed, the Registration page should show a license registered to "University of Wisconsin" with a valid support date and a number Devices, Release Stations, Gateways, etc. available.  That page will also show how many devices and release stations are connecting to your server in particular.

License Syncing (Global Entitlement Service)

As of PaperCut v24, all PaperCut application servers utilize PaperCut’s Global Entitlement Service.

• This service automatically keeps license entitlements in sync across all servers sharing the same license.

• DoIT will apply a new license any time we purchase additional entitlements and as part of our annual renewal.  Activated servers should automatically update with the new support dates and entitlement counts within a day or two.

• Administrators can manually trigger the sync by navigating to the License Info section of the About > Registration page in the PaperCut admin console and clicking the Sync button.

Purchases and Chargebacks

All financial transactions and vendor communications regarding license entitlements are centralized through DoIT.

• Procurement Process: All new license entitlement purchases must be requested through DoIT by contacting doit-seam-support@doit.wisc.edu. DoIT will coordinate directly with PaperCut distributor ACDI to purchase the additional license add-ons and will charge this amount back to the requesting department.

• Funding and Chargebacks: Purchased entitlements will be charged back directly to each participating department's funding string.

• Annual Renewal: DoIT will coordinate the renewal of the UW-Madison PaperCut license and will charge each participating unit back based on their purchased license obligations.

  • A nominal shared license fee may be included to cover administrative overhead.

Accessing Support

DoIT cannot provide technical support for PaperCut. Campus PaperCut administrators using the shared PaperCut license can request access to the ACDI support portal for direct technical assistance.

How to Register for Support Access:

1. Navigate to the ACDI Support Portal.

2. Register a new account using your official UW-Madison email address (@wisc.edu).

3. Once registered, send the exact email address you used to doit-seam-support@doit.wisc.edu. 

4. DoIT will submit your email address to ACDI to validate your registration and grant authorized support access.