A vacuum control module for use in a biopsy system includes a user interface that presents buttons and icons to control operation of a biopsy device. The icons may indicate, e.g., the position of a cutter relative to a transverse opening, whether the system is in a view sample mode, that an adjacent button is operable to reset the position of a rotatable tissue sample holder, whether the system is in a maintenance vacuum pulse mode, the level of vacuum provided by a vacuum source, the volume level of a speaker, that an adjacent button is operable to place the system in a standby mode, and that an adjacent button is operable to shut down the system. The icons may each have an associated button. The icons may be allocated among separate pages (e.g., a probe page and a system page). Another button may be used to switch between pages.