Printing system, printing apparatus, printing method, control method and computer-readable medium relate to a technique that gives a printing instruction to a printing system in which a plurality of printing apparatuses are series-connected physically and generates one printed product on one printing medium

A printing method of a printing system in which a paper feed unit of a second printing apparatus is connected to a paper discharge unit of a first printing apparatus, a sheet conveyed from the paper discharge unit of the first printing apparatus is fed to the paper feed unit of the second printing apparatus, and the second printing apparatus performs printing on the sheet,

• the first printing apparatus comprising:
• a first paper feed unit configured to feed a held sheet to the first printing apparatus, and
• an inserter configured to be further connected to the paper feed unit of the second printing apparatus, and to feed a held sheet to one of the first printing apparatus and the second printing apparatus, wherein the inserter is separate from the first paper feed unit,
• the method comprising:
• a first control step of causing a first control unit to control paper feed from the inserter to the paper feed unit of the second printing apparatus, in the first printing apparatus;
• and
• a second control step of causing a second control unit to transmit, to the first control unit, control information for controlling paper feed from the inserter, in the second printing apparatus,
• wherein in the second control step,
• whether an instruction designating manual insertion paper feed is contained in a received print job is determined,
• in a case where it is determined that the instruction designating manual insertion paper feed is contained in the received print job, the control information requesting to feed a sheet held in the inserter from the inserter to the paper feed unit of the second printing apparatus is transmitted to the first control unit, and
• in a case where it is determined that the instruction designating manual insertion paper feed is not contained in the received print job, a sheet which has been fed by the first paper feed unit and then undergone printing by the first printing apparatus is fed to the paper feed unit of the second printing apparatus.

A non-transitory computer-readable medium storing a program which, in a printing system in which a paper feed unit of a second printing apparatus is connected to a paper discharge unit of a first printing apparatus, a sheet conveyed from the paper discharge unit of said first printing apparatus is fed to the paper feed unit of said second printing apparatus, and said second printing apparatus performs printing on the sheet,

• said first printing apparatus further comprising:
• a first paper feed unit configured to feed a held sheet said first printing apparatus, and
• an inserter which is further connected to the paper feed unit of said second printing apparatus, and feeds a held sheet to one of said first printing apparatus and said second printing apparatus, wherein the inserter is separate from the first paper feed unit,
• causes said first printing apparatus to function as a first control unit which controls paper feed from said inserter to the paper feed unit of said second printing apparatus, and
• causes said second printing apparatus to function as a second control unit which transmits, to said first control unit, control information for controlling paper feed from said inserter,
• wherein said second control unit comprises:
• a determination unit which determines whether an instruction designating manual insertion paper feed is contained in a received print job, and
• a paper feed control unit which,
• in a case where the determination unit determines that the instruction designating manual insertion paper feed is contained in the received print job, transmits, to said first control unit, the control information requesting to feed a sheet held in said inserter from said inserter to the paper feed unit of said second printing apparatus, and
• in a case where the determination unit determines that the instruction designating manual insertion paper feed is not contained in the received print job, feeds, to the paper feed unit of said second printing apparatus, a sheet which has been fed by the first paper feed unit and then undergone printing by said first printing apparatus.