zplCloud Blog
Cloud Connect / Weblink vs. zplCloud Proxy vs. zplCloud CloudToBrowserPrint: What's the Difference?
Three ways to print from the cloud - which one is yours?
Three Doors Into the Same Cloud
"Cloud printing" can mean very different things depending on who says it. At zplCloud there are three main paths from the cloud to a physical label, and they get confused all the time:
- Cloud Connect / Weblink
- zplCloud Proxy (part of the zplCloud CLI)
- zplCloud CloudToBrowserPrint (the local print service - some call it the "browser link")
All three are secure and need no inbound ports. But they are built for different jobs. Here's the difference, straight.
Cloud Connect / Weblink - The Relay for Your Production Floor
Weblink is a small container that runs inside your network and keeps one outbound WebSocket connection to zplcloud.com. The cloud relays print jobs through that tunnel to the printer.
| What it is | Relay container in your LAN |
|---|---|
| Install | one-liner (weblink-deploy.ps1 / .sh) |
| Connection | outbound WebSocket to the cloud |
| Prints | jobs relayed from the platform (designer, Print View, batch, API) |
| Extra | certificate deployment (NRD), remote printer management, live console |
Best for: always-on production printers that should be reachable from anywhere in the platform - including from webhooks, batch jobs and the API.
zplCloud Proxy - The Outbound Agent for Managed Fleets
The proxy is part of the zplCloud CLI. You run zplcloud proxy --agent on any machine in the LAN (Windows, macOS, Linux, Raspberry Pi); the agent opens an outbound connection and registers the printer in your workspace. The CLI also applies printer profiles and sends raw ZPL via TCP 9100 or USB.
| What it is | Outbound agent CLI (zplcloud proxy --agent) | |
|---|---|---|
| Install | `curl -fsSL https://zplcloud.com/install-cli.sh | sh` |
| Connection | one outbound connection, printer registered remotely | |
| Prints | raw ZPL via TCP 9100 or USB, remote printers | |
| Extra | printer profiles, send, cookbook, weblink provisioning |
Best for: fleets you manage - push profiles, keep settings consistent, and reach printers behind NAT or on remote sites.
zplCloud CloudToBrowserPrint - The Local Print Service for the Browser
CloudToBrowserPrint is a local HTTP service (127.0.0.1:9100) that runs on a PC, Mac, Linux box or Raspberry Pi in your office. Web pages discover printers on the LAN and print through it - ZPL, PDF, Office files, images and barcodes. It converts formats, decodes barcodes and handles raw jobs - with no cloud in the loop if you don't want one.
| What it is | Local print service 127.0.0.1:9100 | |
|---|---|---|
| Install | `irm https://zplcloud.com/install-cloudtobrowserprint-pshell | iex (or .sh`) |
| Connection | local HTTP - browsers in the LAN talk to it | |
| Prints | ZPL, PDF, Office, images, barcodes - from any web page | |
| Extra | device discovery, conversion, barcode decoding, service install |
Best for: browser-driven printing - e.g. your own web app or the zplCloud designer printing to any LAN printer, without deploying anything in the cloud.
Side by Side
| Weblink | Proxy (CLI) | CloudToBrowserPrint | |
|---|---|---|---|
| --- | --- | --- | --- |
| Runs where | container in your LAN | CLI agent on a LAN machine | local service 127.0.0.1:9100 |
| Needs cloud? | yes - outbound relay | yes - outbound agent | no - works locally |
| Print path | cloud relays ZPL to printer | agent sends ZPL (TCP 9100 / USB) | browser → local service → printer |
| Format support | ZPL from the platform | raw ZPL | ZPL, PDF, Office, images, barcodes |
| Extra features | certificates, remote mgmt, live console | printer profiles, cookbook | discovery, conversion, barcode decode |
| Typical use | production floor, API/batch printing | managed fleets, remote sites | web apps, ad-hoc printing |
Which One Do You Need?
- One or a few printers, always on, printing from the platform? → Weblink.
- A fleet with profiles, USB printers, remote sites? → Proxy / CLI.
- Print from your own web app to any LAN printer? → CloudToBrowserPrint.
- All of the above? → They complement each other. Run Weblink for production, the CLI agent for the fleet, and CloudToBrowserPrint on the office PC.
They share one principle: outbound connections only - no inbound firewall holes, no VPN, no print servers.