8    Administering the Print Services

This chapter describes how to gather information for, then set up and administer the print services. You can set up and administer the print services immediately after a new installation or an upgrade to a new version of the operating system, or you can wait until later. The files and utilities that you use to administer the print services are discussed in this chapter.

During initial configuration of your system after a full installation, you see a checklist titled System Setup. On this menu is an option for Printer Configuration, which runs the printconfig graphical user interface. See Section 8.3.2 for more information.

The following topics are discussed in this chapter:

8.1    Print Administrative Tasks

There are two categories of print administration tasks: setting up the print system and maintaining the print system:

Perform these tasks to set up the print system initially:

After a printer is set up and running on your system, you need to:

The tools that you use to perform these operations are described in Section 8.1.6.

8.1.1    Printer Connection Methods

Depending on your local system configuration, you have several methods for installing and connecting printers, for example:

Network

Connection to a shared network printer across a local area network (LAN) or a local area transport (LAT) connection or through TCP/IP.

Direct

Installation of a single physically-connected printer is the simplest installation. There are serial or parallel hardware ports at the rear of the system to which you connect a printer with a cable; see the printer documentation for a description of the hardware installation.

Any user on the local system can access the printer.

Remote

Connection to a printer directly connected to another system on the network.

The remote option requires that your system can access and use services on the system to which the printer is connected.

PC Network

Connection to Personal Computer (PC) print queues when using the Advanced Server for UNIX (ASU).

This application is used to manage mixed environments incorporating PCs and UNIX systems. When ASU is installed, you have additional options to configure PC print queues and share printers between PC clients.

8.1.2    Printer Administration Methods

There are also several printer administration methods, each of which provides certain advantages.

8.1.2.1    Using the Printer Configuration utility (printconfig)

This utility features a graphical user interface, which is recommended if you are a first-time user and for setting up a system quickly. This utility is part of the standard set of system administrative tools. See Chapter 1 for general information on these tools.

When ASU is installed, printconfig also enables you to manage PC printers.

The operating system supplies drivers and configuration files a number of third-party printers. The printconfig utility automatically displays a list of all the supported printers and enables you to configure them quickly.

Note

There are restrictions on using printconfig with older /etc/printcap files. See printcap(4) for information.

8.1.2.2    Using the lprsetup utility

This command line utility that you run from a terminal provides backwards compatibility with previous releases.

The lprsetup utility performs the same tasks as printconfig, but does not support PC printers, even if ASU is installed. Invoking the command line option of printconfig initiates the lprsetup utility.

The lprsetup utility does not support the management of PC printers under Advanced Server for UNIX (ASU), although ASU itself offers features for PC queue management.

8.1.2.3    Manually editing system files

Experienced system administrators may want to manage printers by editing the /etc/printcap file directly; for example, you may want to clone a particular printer configuration across a number of systems or merge parts of one system's printcap file with another. The information in this chapter is useful for performing such tasks. It is recommended that you use lprsetup or the printconfig utility to manage individual print queue entries.

Note

The /var/spool/lpd file is a special link used in a TruCluster Server environment. It cannot be used as a spool directory. You must take care not to break this link when manually editing a file. See the section on CDSLs in Chapter 6.

8.1.3    Advanced Printing Software

The Advanced Printing Software is an optional subset on the Associated Products CD-ROM. For information about this software, see the Installation Guide. When the Advanced Printing Software is installed, you must configure a gateway, as described in Section 8.3.2, to run Advanced Printing Software and the print daemon lpd on the same system. You can run Advanced Printing Software with lpd disabled, in which case it receives all inbound remote print requests (on socket 515) instead of LPD. However, with this configuration, local lpd commands such as lpr do not work.

8.1.4    Related Documentation

Additional documentation on using printer configuration tools is available in manuals, reference pages, and online help.

8.1.4.1    Manuals

The following lists references to information on using printer configuration tools in the Tru64 UNIX operating system documentation set.

Other Tru64 UNIX documentation references include the Installation and Administration Guide, which describes ASU features for managing PC print queues.

The Advanced Printing documentation provides information about using the Advanced Printing Software, which is included as an optional component of the Tru64 UNIX operating system. The Advanced Printing Software User Guide describes how to submit jobs to your printer using the command line interface. It also shows you how to set up your local print environment and monitor jobs you have submitted. This manual is also packaged with the software kit, as is the following companion documentation:

Also, be sure to see the printer manufacturer's documentation for information on installing the printer and for required software settings such as data communication (baud) rates. This is particularly important if you are attempting to configure a printer that is not in the list of supported devices. The printer documentation provides information that you may need to provide to the configuration utility to use any of the printer's special capabilities, such as tray selection. Usually, you see your printer included in the list of supported devices when you use an installation utility (or if you look in the /usr/lbin/lprsetup directory). If your printer is not defined by a file in that directory, and the manufacturer does not provide information for using the printer, use the generic settings provided by the configuration tools. Access to printer capabilities often is restricted when you use a generic configuration.

8.1.4.2    Reference Pages

The reference pages listed here provide further information regarding utilities, files, and daemons.

lpc(8)

Controls the operation of the line printer system. For each line printer configured in the /etc/printcap file, the lpc command may be used for disabling or enabling a printer; disabling or enabling the printer spooling queue; rearranging the order of jobs in a spooling queue or finding the status of printers, their associated spooling queues, and the printer daemons.

ports(7)

Contains information about the printer ports that you use to connect printers to a system, and how they map to printer device special file names in /dev.

printconfig(8), lprsetup(8)

Contain information about the configuration tools and their command line options.

printcap(4), lprsetup.dat(4)

Contain information about the system files in which printer configuration information is located.

wwpsof(8), pcfof(8)

Contain information about generic print filters.

The wwpsof(8) reference page describes a generic internationalized print filter for PostScript printers, which enables you to support local-language PostScript printing.

The pcfof(8) reference page describes a generic print filter for ANSI, PCL (Printer Control Language), and PostScript printers.

lpd(8)

Contains information about the print daemon.

latcp(8)

Contains information about the local area transport (LAT) control utility. This utility is used for adding services, such as print services, to a host and is only of interest if you are using networked printers.

lpr(1), pr(1), lprm(1), lpq(1), and lpstat(1)

Describe the commands used to print files. See the Command and Shell User's Guide for information on using these commands.

lptest(8)

Describes the printer test pattern utility.

ppdof(8)

Describes the text to PostScript print filter.

services(4)

Describes the format of the /etc/services file where you can define the service ports for TCP/IP printing.

8.1.4.3    Online Help

The Printer Configuration application (printconfig) features an online help volume that explains its use.

The lprsetup utility has command line help.

8.1.5    System Files

The following system files contain printer configuration information. Some files, such as /var/spool, are defaults or UNIX conventions. You can use your own preferred file names and locations.

/etc/printcap

Contains the data on configured printers.

/usr/lbin/lprsetup

The /usr/lbin/lprsetup directory contains a series of files (*.lpd), each of which contains the configuration data for a supported (known) printer. The name of each file corresponds to the printer name. This information is compiled into the /etc/lprsetup.dat file and transferred to the /etc/printcap file when a printer is installed and configured for use.

/etc/lprsetup.dat

The /etc/lprsetup.dat file is a compilation of the files in the /usr/lbin/lprsetup directory.

/usr/spool

This file is a symbolic link that points to /var/spool (see below). This symbolic link is used to satisfy the legacy programs such as mail and uucp.

/var/spool

This directory is the default directory where print jobs are stored temporarily during printing. The spool queue is identified by the sd entry for a device in /etc/printcap.

Keep newly-created spool directories under /var/spool; /var is defined for variable data.

/var/spool/lpd

This file is a symbolic link that points to /var/spool/cluster/members/{memb}/spool/lpd. This is a member-specific spool directory on node of a cluster; a standalone system is considered as a single node cluster (member0). The lock file lpd.lock is stored in this directory.

/usr/adm/lpd*err

The /usr/adm/lpd*err files are the error log files for each installed printer. These are only created if error logging is enabled.

/var/adm

The /var/adm directory contains printer accounting files when accounting is enabled. These files have a file name format of /var/adm/<printer>acct_sum, where <printer> is the name that you assign to the printer during installation.

/usr/lbin/lpd

The /usr/lbin/lpd file is the line printer daemon. Configuration files are located in the /var/spool/* (or /usr/spool/*) directory.

/dev

The /dev directory contains the local UNIX socket /dev/printer. This socket is created by the lpd daemon and exists for as long as the parent lpd is running.

8.1.6    Related Utilities

The following utilities are also available for use in your printer environment:

lpc

The line printer control utility enables you to manage print queues and control access to printers; it also allows you to examine printer description files for potential configuration errors. See lpc(8) for information.

pac

The printer/plotter accounting utility formats the data from printer accounting log files and displays it or stores it in a text file. See pac(8) for more information. See acct(8) for information on accounting.

Print Manager GUI

The Print Manager graphical user interface, located under Desktop_Apps in the CDE Application Manager, enables you to perform the following tasks. See its online help for information on how to use these graphical interfaces to manage print queues, control access to printers, and customize your view of the printer data.

These features are similar to features offered by the lpc utility and the lpq or lpstat commands, which you can run from the command line in a terminal.

Print Screen GUI

The Print Screen graphical user interface, located under Desktop_Apps in the CDE Application Manager, enables you to print all or a portion of the display, or save it to a file. See its online help for information.

CDE front panel's printer icon

The printer icon on the CDE front panel allows you to select printers and manage print queues locally. You also can run Printer Configuration (printconfig) from CDE Application Manager - Configuration, in addition to invoking it from SysMan Menu or the SysMan Station. The latter user environments use graphical tools remotely or from a different workstation such as a PC or another UNIX system. See the CDE documentation for information on setting environment variables such as LPDEST to assign system default printers in CDE environments.

8.2    Gathering Information

Before adding a printer, you need to gather the information about the printer that you enter when using the lprsetup or printconfig utilities. The information required depends on whether the printer is remote, a direct connection, or a network connection using LAT or TCP/IP:

If your system is part of a network, contact your local network administrator or see the Network Administration: Connections and Network Administration: Services manuals for information required when adding or accessing a network printer.

8.2.1    Network and Direct Printer Connections

The following list identifies the information you need when installing a direct physical connection, or a network connection using LAT or TCP/IP.

Available Printer Types (supported printers)

Determine the printer type from lprsetup.dat(4) or by viewing the files in the /usr/lbin/lprsetup directory if you have added third party printers. Usually, the name embossed on the printer is similar, such as LN03, however the printer type for the DECLaser 5100 is ln09. The printconfig utility displays a list of supported devices, including PC printer options if ASU is installed.

Printer Aliases (alternative names)

You can assign one or more aliases for the printer. An alias is a name that you can use with printer commands. For example, if your local system is named alfie2, you can assign that as an alias and use that name when printing files as follows: 

# lpr -Palfie2 prt_accounting.txt

Connection type

This depends on how the printer is connected to your system. It can be:

TCP

A networked print server device.

Direct

Connected to a port at the rear of the system box.

LAT

Connected as a Local Area Transport port or service. (See the Network Administration: Connections manual for more information.)

Device Pathname

This depends on the Connection type:

TCP

For the TCP/IP connection type, you need the TCP address, in one of two formats:

@node/port

The printer host (or node) name followed by either the port number such as 9100 for an LN32, or the service name defined for this port in the /etc/services file. If no service name is defined, you must use the port number. For example @alfie.nic.ccc.com/ln32port maps to the entry ln32port 9100/tcp in /etc/services. The entry @alfie.nic.ccc.com/9100 directly specifies a port number, and no service entry in /etc/services is required.

@tcp_address/port

The TCP/IP address in nnn.nnn.nnn.nnn format, followed by the port number (such as 9100 for an LN32) or the service name defined in /etc/services. For example @123.321.123.321/9100.

Direct

For the Direct connection type, this entry specifies the device file name in the /dev directory. For example, if you connected the printer cable to the 9-pin socket labeled 1 or COMM1, the corresponding device special file is /dev/tty00.

LAT

For the LAT connection type, printconfig supplies a default /dev/lat port or service name, LAT server node name, or LAT port name. (See the Network Administration: Connections manual for more information.)

Advanced Options

Most of these options are not required to complete a basic installation and you can accept the defaults. However, the owner's manual for your printer may state requirements for certain settings, such as the communications baud rate. Communications rates can depend on features such as the length and type of printer cable that you chose for the installation.

The advanced options are set as symbols in the /etc/printcap file and printcap(4) contains a definitive list of supported symbols and values. When using printconfig, the online help provides a description of the symbols.

This screen scrolls down to list all available options and also contains default entries, which you can override if required.

The most commonly used options are:

Accounting file name

Choose the default, or enter your preference, if you want to use printer accounting to track print consumables.

stty baud rate (hard-wired ports only)

If your printer specifies communication rate requirements you can enter it here. You can sometimes increase the default rate to improve printer throughput.

Restrictions on use

Set the restrictions here if you want to control the volume and quantity of print jobs.

Default page layouts

If you want default values for certain page layout characteristics, set the characteristics here. Supported layouts may depend on printer restrictions and capabilities. See the owner's manual for the printer.

Destination directories and files

Specify the locations here if you want certain directory and file locations for print spooling or for error output.

8.2.2    Remote Printers

The following is a list of the information you need when installing a remote printer:

Printer aliases (alternative names)

You can assign one or more aliases for the printer. An alias is a name that you can use with printer commands. For example, if the remote system is named alfabet, you can assign that name as an alias and use that name when printing files as follows: 

# lpr -Palfabet prt_accounting.txt

Remote system name

The host name for the remote system, such as alfabet.ccc.nic.com

Remote printer name

The name of the printer on remote system, such as lp0, or a valid alias.

Advanced options

These options are not required for a basic installation. Remote printing allows you to configure a few advanced options (or deconfigured, such as error logging). See Section 8.2.1 for more information. Most advanced options are not passed on to the remote system.

The Generic_Remote_LPD is the printer type that needs to be selected for remote printing setup.

8.3    Configuring Printers

The following sections describe the information you need in order to use the printconfig utility to connect a printer to your computer; there is also a section that describes how to use the lprsetup utility to configure a printer.

Before proceeding, verify that the printer is connected to your system physically, accessible on the network (for remote printing), and functions as described in the owner's manual. A good strategy for avoiding installation problems is to accept the default data presented by the configuration utility. After you have the printer working, you can read about the advanced options and use the same utility to tune your configuration, as required.

You must have the Printer Support Environment subset installed. To see if you have this subset installed, enter: 

# setld -i | grep OSFPRINT

If the OSFPRINT subset is installed, the following information is displayed: 

OSFPRINT540     installed       Local Printer Support (Printing Environment)
 

If the OSFPRINT subset is not installed, see the Installation Guide for information on adding this, or any, subset with the setld utility.

The following lists the printer configurations discussed in this section:

You can invoke printconfig from CDE, or from the command line; see printconfig(8) for more information. The Printer Configuration main window, as illustrated in Figure 1-1, appears; the first display is the main window titled Printer Configuration on host name.

Figure 8-1 shows the Printer Configuration (printconfig) main window.

Figure 8-1:  Printconfig Main Window

8.3.1    Using printconfig to Configure TCP/IP Printing

TCP/IP printing allows you to submit print jobs to a printer that is directly connected to the network. To use this feature, your printer must contain a network interface card or be connected to a print server or terminal server, and you must register it with a TCP/IP node name and node address.

With TCP/IP printing, the local host manages print jobs in the same way as it does for a directly connected printer. The only difference is that with TCP/IP printing, the local print daemon ( lpd ) communicates with the remote printer over TCP/IP (similar to LAT printing). Each printer listens for connection requests on a socket number that is specified in the network interface hardware or that is user-defined through the printer console.

Although multiple hosts can talk to a single printer connected to the network in this way, the hosts are handled on a first-come, first-served basis. Therefore, TCP/IP printing is not the same as remote printing, in which the remote host or printer manages a print queue on the remote site and listens for network connections on socket 515 (as specified in the entry for printer in /etc/services).

8.3.1.1    Using printconfig for TCP/IP Printer Configuration

TCP/IP printing allows you to submit print jobs to a printer that is directly connected to the network as a host device. See Section 8.3.1 for information on TCP/IP printing. Gather the information as described in Section 8.3.

Invoke printconfig as described previously.

In this window you use the data you have gathered to select the printer type, for example:

Because the printer is treated as a physically—connected printer, the next window is Printer Config: Local Printer Settings. The next available printer name is displayed, such as lp4. Complete the fields as follows:

For a basic TCP/IP printer configuration, that is all you need to do. If you decide to use advanced options, such as setting print job limits, choose the Advanced option to display the "Printer Config: Local Printer Settings: Advanced" window.

After committing the configuration, you are returned to the Configuration on host name window, and the printer now appears in the list of configured printers. Use the Test option to print a test page to the printer. If you do not get any output, review the data carefully and refer to the troubleshooting section.

It may be necessary to configure the printer for its TCP/IP address. This may involve making entries on a hardware console panel or using telnet or a web browser to communicate with the printer. See your printer documentation for more information.

The remaining option on the window Configuration on host name is Make Default, which enables you to choose any configured printer as the default printer for this system. Printing a job without specifying the print queue causes the job to be printed on this printer.

Select the required printer and choose Make Default. The current default printer is displayed in the field labeled Default Printer.

8.3.1.2    Additional Manual Steps Required for Setting Up TCP/IP

Use the following steps, which describe how to set up TCP/IP printing on a local host, in addition to the information in the previous section.

  1. Set up the printer. Assign a TCP/IP address and node name to each printer with a network card. Also, determine the TCP/IP socket number on which the printer listens for connection requests. You can either specify a name that is defined in the /etc/services file, or directly specify the port number assigned to the printer. If you want to create a service name, you need the socket number in Step 2b when you edit the /etc/services file.

    Table 8-1 lists the socket numbers for five Compaq printers, one Lexmark printer, and one Hewlett-Packard printer.

    Table 8-1:  TCP/IP Socket Numbers

    Printer Socket Number
    DEClaser 3500 (LN14) 10001
    DEClaser 5100 (LN09) 10001
    HP Printers 9100
    Digital_LN17 2501
    Lexmark Printers 9100
    Compaq LN16 9100
    Compaq LN32 9100

    To obtain the socket number for other printers, see your printer documentation under the network card. Some printers may allow you to specify this number yourself.

  2. Configure the local host. This step describes the utilities that you need to run and the files that you need to modify on the local host in order to configure TCP/IP printing. You must have superuser privileges to perform the following tasks:

    1. Assign the following values to the ct and lp variables: 

      ct=tcp
lp=@nodename/servicename

      Replace nodename with the name of the printer's node as registered for use on your network. Replace servicename with either the name that you choose to enter in the /etc/services database in the next step or the port number (for example, lp=myHPLaserjet/9100) . If you want to modify an existing /etc/printcap printer entry to use TCP/IP printing, edit the /etc/printcap file and modify the values for the ct and lp variables.

      You also can remove the values for the xs, xc, fs, and fc control variables. These variables establish settings that are relevant to the serial port driver but are ignored by the network socket driver.

    2. Configure the services database. You must register a service name and tcp port number (socket number) in the /etc/services database file. Enter the socket number that you determined when you configured the printer in step 1 and associate it with a service name of your choice. For example, to configure the services database for a DEClaser 3500, you add the following line to the /etc/services file: 

      declaser3500    10001/tcp

      The user-defined string declaser3500 represents the service; it is the same string that you entered as the servicename in the /etc/printcap file in step 2a. Save the changes to the /etc/services file.

      Do not modify the /etc/services file if you provided the port number in step 2a.

    3. Configure the remote hosts database. The nodename value that you specified as part of the lp variable value in the /etc/printcap file must be known by your local host's network management services; therefore, you must enter the nodename and its network address in the /etc/hosts database file. If you are running a BIND server for remote host names, you do not necessarily need to add the printer's node name to the /etc/hosts file, though if there is ever a problem with the BIND server, an entry in /etc/hosts is a useful fallback.

    After configuration, TCP/IP printing is used like local and remote printing. From the command line, execute the lpr command specifying the node name of the printer, command options, and file names. You also can view the printer status and submit print jobs with the CDE print utilities.

8.3.2    Installing a Directly Connected Printer with printconfig

This section describes how to install a directly connected printer using the printconfig utility. The example given is a DEClaser 5100 printer installed using the graphical user interface. It assumes that you have made all the physical connections and gathered the required information. You also can use printconfig to modify a printer configuration or remove a printer. These other tasks are described in Section 8.4.

Note

Do not use printconfig if you are modifying an /etc/printcap file on a system running Version 3.2 or older. There are incompatibilities in older /etc/printcap files that may cause printconfig to corrupt the file. Use lprsetup instead.

A typical installation of a printer (after the hardware is installed) takes about ten to fifteen minutes, including time required to gather the data.

The recommended action is to accept the default values for an initial printer installation. Then you can use printconfig to modify the configuration later if required.

Invoke printconfig as described previously.

You must have superuser privileges to run the printconfig utility. Depending on the type of printer you are adding and the information you provide, the utility may do the following:

When you run the printconfig utility, the first display is the main window titled Printer Configuration on host name. In this window you select the printer type using the data already gathered as described in Section 8.2:

Because this is not a remote printer, the next window is Printer Config: Local Printer Settings. The next available Printer name is displayed (lp0 if this is the first printer that you are configuring on this system). In this window you enter:

For a basic printer configuration, that is all you need to do. If you decide to use advanced options, such as setting print job limits, choose the Advanced option to display the "Printer Config: Local Printer Settings: Advanced" window. See Section 8.5.

After committing the configuration, you are returned to the Printer Configuration on host name window, and the printer now appears in the list of configured printers. Use the Test option to print a test page to the printer. If you do not get any output, review the data carefully and see Section 8.7.

The remaining option on the Printer Configuration on host name window is Make Default, which enables you to choose any configured printer as the default printer for this system. Printing a job without specifying the print queue causes the job to be printed on this printer.

Select the required printer and choose Make Default. The current default printer is displayed in the field labeled Default Printer.

Your printer is now ready for use. Test the printer's capabilities with appropriate files, such as PostScript or color graphics files. The printer utilities described in Section 8.1.6 can verify printer and queue status.

8.3.3    Setting Up Remote Printers with printconfig

A remote printer refers to a printer that is directly connected to a remote host or is otherwise treated as local by the remote host. You can connect remote printers directly to the network if their network cards emulate the remote lpd protocol, so they appear as remote hosts with a printer attached.

You configure your local print queue so that print jobs are sent to the remote host over the network. These jobs are then printed on the remote host. If you are setting up a remote printer from a remote system, list the local system (the client) in the hosts.lpd file or hosts.equiv file of the remote system (the host).

See Section 8.2 for information on the data that you need to gather before performing this task, then invoke printconfig as described previously (the remote queue is the same queue as the example created in that section). The following illustrates how to use printconfig to create some remote print configurations:

  1. Select remote.

  2. Choose the Configure option.

    Note

    Because this is a remote printer, the next window is Printer Config: Remote Printer Settings. The next available printer name is displayed (lp0 if this is the first printer that you are configuring on this system).

  3. Enter the printer alias names, such as the name of the remote host and printer type.

  4. Enter the remote system name.

  5. Enter the remote printer name. For example in Section 8.3.2, a printer lp0 was added to the system.

  6. Choose Commit to write the options to the /etc/printcap file.

For a basic printer configuration, that is all you need to do. Choose the Advanced option to display the "Printer Config: Local Printer Settings: Advanced" window if you decide to use advanced options, such as setting print job limits. Because the printer is remotely configured, you can specify only a small number of advanced options that affect local processing, such as the local error log file and spooling directory.

After committing the configuration, you are returned to the Printer Configuration on host name window, and the printer now appears in the list of configured printers. Use the Test option to print a test page to the printer. If you do not get any output, review the data carefully and see Section 8.7.

8.3.4    Configuring PC Print Queues with printconfig

If the Advanced Server for UNIX (ASU) is installed and running, you can configure client PC printer queues. ASU also offers features for configuring and managing print queues. See Installation and Administration Guide for more information on using ASU. You must have at least one printer configured in your /etc/printcap file before you can create a printer share queue for PC clients.

Invoke printconfig as described previously. When you invoke printconfig under ASU, an available printer type is the Advanced_Server_Shared_Printer_Queue. Choose this option and the next window displayed is titled "Printer Config: Advanced Server Shared Print Queue Setting". There are only three options on this window:

Advanced Server shared print queue name

Enter a queue name such as psq1

Printer devices

Enter a comma-separated list of device names such as: lp0,lp2

Comment

Enter any comments or notes on queue use and restrictions.

Select OK to create the queue and return to the printconfig main window. The new queue is displayed.

To test the status of the queue, use the following ASU command and examine the output for the queue name as shown in the example: 

# net share 
.
.
.
Share name  Resource             Remark
----------  ------------------   ------------------------
psq1        lp0, lp2             Spooled

You may need to perform other ASU tasks to make the queue available to PC systems. See the ASU documentation for more information.

8.3.5    Using lprsetup to Install a Printer

Use the lprsetup utility to install a printer locally (directly connected to your computer) using the lprsetup utility. You also can use lprsetup to modify a printer's configuration or remove a printer. These other tasks are described in Section 8.4.

The recommended action is to accept the default values for an initial printer installation.

The printer described in the following example is an LN03R.

You can run lprsetup by entering /usr/sbin/lprsetup at the command prompt in a terminal window. You must have superuser privileges to run lprsetup. Depending on the type of printer you are adding and the information you provide, you can use lprsetup to:

When you run the lprsetup script, the first display is the main menu: 

# /usr/sbin/lprsetup
Tru64 UNIX Printer Setup Program
 
Command < add modify delete exit view quit help >:

Table 8-2 lists the lprsetup command options.

Table 8-2:  lprsetup Options

Command Description
add Adds a printer
modify Modifies an existing printer's characteristics
delete Removes an existing printer from your configuration
exit Exits from the lprsetup program
view Displays the current /etc/printcap file entry for the printer you are configuring
quit Exits from the lprsetup program
help Displays online help about the lprsetup program

You can abbreviate any command option with its initial letter.

You can enter information at each prompt or press [Return] to select the default information provided. (In most instances, you can accept the defaults.) You also can enter a question mark (?) to get a description of the information you specify at the prompt.

Note

Some of the symbols displayed by lprsetup are not supported by the operating system. See printcap(4) for information on the supported symbols.

The following example shows how to use the lprsetup command to set up an LN03R printer on the local system. Some tables are truncated to shorten the example: 

# /usr/sbin/lprsetup 
Tru64 UNIX Printer Setup Program
Command  < add modify delete exit view quit help >: add
Adding printer entry, type '?' for help.
Enter printer name to add [lp1] : [Enter]
 
Printer Types:
 
  1. Compaq Advanced Server ClientPS
  2. Compaq Advanced Server ClientText
  3. Compaq LN16
  4. Compaq LN32
  5. Digital Colormate PS
  6. Digital DEClaser 1100
  7. Digital DEClaser 1150
  8. Digital DEClaser 2100
  9. Digital DEClaser 2150
 10. Digital DEClaser 2200
 11. Digital DEClaser 2250
 12. Digital DEClaser 2300
 13. Digital DEClaser 2400
 14. Digital DEClaser 3200
 15. Digital DEClaser 3250
 16. Digital DEClaser 3500
 17. Digital DEClaser 5100
 18. Digital LA100
 19. Digital LA120
 20. Digital LA210
 21. Digital LA280
 22. Digital LA30N
 
Press 'ENTER' to continue scrolling, type '(q)uit' to end scrolling: [Enter]
 23. Digital LA30N A4
(and so on until)
 59. Digital LN03
 60. Digital LN03R
 61. Digital LN03S
 62. Digital LN03S-JA
 63. Digital LN15
 64. Digital LN15 A4
 65. Digital LN17
 66. Digital LN17 A4
 
Press 'ENTER' to continue scrolling, type '(q)uit' to end scrolling: q
 
Help Types:
 
  ?         - General help
  printer?  - Specific printer type information
 
Enter index number, help type, '(q)uit', or 'ENTER' [Generic Unknown type]: 60
 
You chose printer type 'Digital LN03R'.
Is that correct? [y]:y
 
Enter printer synonym: marks
Enter printer synonym: [Enter]
 
Set device pathname 'lp' [] ? /dev/tty01
 
Do you want to capture print job accounting data ([y]|n)? y
 
Set accounting file 'af' [/usr/adm/lp1acct]?[Enter]
 
Set spooler directory 'sd' [/usr/spool/lpd1] ? [Enter]
 
Set printer error log file 'lf' [/usr/adm/lp1err] ? [Enter]
 
Set printer connection type 'ct' [dev] ? [Enter]
 
Set printer baud rate 'br' [9600] ? [Enter]
 
 

After you respond to each of the prompts, lprsetup prompts you to determine if you want to change any of the values assigned to the various symbols in your /etc/printcap file or if you want to specify any additional symbols. For example, you can set a specific page length or width. If you want to make any changes or add information, enter the appropriate symbol name. See printcap(4) for more information. 

Enter the name of the printcap symbol you wish to modify.  Other
valid entries are:
        'q'     to quit (no more changes)
        'p'     to print the symbols you have specified so far
        'l'     to list all the possible symbols and defaults
The names of the printcap symbols are:
 
 af  br  cf  ct  df  dn  du  fc  ff  fo  fs  gf  if  lf  lo  lp 
 mc  mj  mx  nc  nf  of  on  pl  pp  ps  pw  px  py  rf  rm  rp 
 rs  rw  sb  sc  sd  sf  sh  st  tf  tr  vf  xc  xf  xn  xs  ya 
 yd  yj  yp  ys  yt 
 
Enter symbol name: q
 
        Printer #1 
        ----------
Symbol  type  value
------  ----  -----
  af    STR    /usr/adm/lp1acct
  br    INT    9600
  ct    STR    dev
  fc    INT    0177777
  fs    INT    03
  if    STR    /usr/lbin/ln03rof
  lf    STR    /usr/spool/lp1err
  lp    STR    /dev/tty01
  mx    INT    0
  of    STR    /usr/lbin/ln03rof
  pl    INT    66
  pw    INT    80
  rw    BOOL   on
  sd    STR    /usr/spool/lpd1
  xc    INT    0177777
  xf    STR    /usr/lbin/xf
  xs    INT    044000
 
Are these the final values for printer 0 ? [y] y

Next, the lprsetup script prompts you to add comments to the /etc/printcap file. Enter n at the prompt if you do not want to add comments. Enter y at the prompt if you want to add comments. At the number sign (#) prompt, enter your comment. Press [Return] or [Enter] at the number sign (#) prompt to exit. The comments are inserted directly above the printcap entry in the /etc/printcap file. 

Adding comments to printcap file for new printer, type '?' for help.
Do you want to add comments to the printcap file [n] ? : y
Enter comments below - Press ENTER on empty line to exit
# Use this printer for drafts only
# [Enter]
 
Set up activity is complete for this printer.
Verify that the printer works properly by using
the lpr(1) command to send files to the printer.
 
 
 


Command  < add modify delete exit view quit help >: exit

See lprsetup(8) for more information.

8.3.6    Advanced Printing Software Print Symbols

When setting up Advanced Printing Software, you should select the Generic_Remote_LPD printer type and set the following print symbols:

rm

Specify @dpa to indicate that jobs submitted to this printer are directed to the Advanced Printing Software inbound gateway. The inbound gateway submits the job to an Advanced Printing Software spooler.

rp

Specify the name of the Advanced Printing Software logical printer.

See the Advanced Printing System Administration and Operation Guide for more information.

8.4    Routine Print System Maintenance

The first part of this chapter showed you how to set up the first printer on a system. The following sections describe the routine administrative tasks for a print system that is set up. You can use the printconfig and the X11-compliant (CDE) or command line tools to perform these tasks. The tasks described in the following sections are:

If you manually remove printers from the /etc/printcap file, you also have to manually remove spooling, accounting, and error directories and files.

8.4.1    Adding Printers

After you set up one printer, you can add other local, remote and networked printers at any time. Gather the information about each printer as described in Section 8.3.

You can add printers by running printconfig, or you can add printers manually by performing the following steps:

  1. Create a printer spooling directory, if it does not already exist. See Section 8.5.2.6.2.

  2. Modify the /etc/printcap file and edit it to include a description of the printer using the configuration data from the file in /usr/lbin/lprsetup that corresponds to the printer. See Section 8.5.1.

  3. Create an accounting file and a log file and enable printer accounting. See Section 8.4.5. Set the protection and ownership of this file appropriately.

Ensure that the /etc/inittab file does not invoke the getty process on serial lines that have printers attached. If you use printconfig, this is done for you.

8.4.2    Modifying Printer Configuration

To modify a printer's configuration, run printconfig and choose the configured printer. Then choose Modify to display the Settings window.

If you change the name of the spooling directory, the accounting file, or the error log file, printconfig prompts you to verify that the information is correct before it deletes the original information.

To modify a printer's configuration manually, edit the /etc/printcap file and modify the printer entry. See Section 8.5.1 and printcap(4) for information about the /etc/printcap file symbols.

8.4.3    Removing Printers

To remove a printer, run the printconfig utility and choose the printer that you want to delete, then choose Deconfigure. Then you are prompted for confirmation that you want to delete the error log file and the accounting file. Several printers can share an accounting file. If you have such shared files, do not delete them.

The lprsetup command line utility does not delete the comments when you remove a printer if you included comments for the printer in the first line of its /etc/printcap file entry. You can edit the /etc/printcap file and delete the comments.

To remove a printer manually, edit the /etc/printcap file and delete the entry that relates to the printer. Manually delete the accounting and log file and the spooling directory if no longer required.

You also can use lpc and the CDE print management tools to temporarily control access to printers and queues. See Section 8.4.4.

8.4.4    Controlling Local Print Jobs and Queues

To manage the flow of print jobs and the contents of local print queues, you can use the lpc command line utility.

If CDE is your local user environment, you also can manage print jobs using the Print Manager located in the CDE Application Manager - Desktop_Apps folder. See the online help for information on how to use these graphical user interfaces and to the Common Desktop Environment: User's Guide and Common Desktop Environment: Advanced User's and System Administrator's Guide.

You can use the lpc command to:

You must have superuser privileges to perform some lpc commands, for example, the disable command.

Note

You can use the lpc command only to manage print queues that are local to your system. Although a remote printer has both a local queue and a remote queue, the lpc command manages only the local queue.

There are several command arguments that you can specify with the lpc command. You also can use the lpc command interactively. If you enter the lpc command without any command arguments, the lpc> prompt is displayed. After that, you can enter command arguments.

The lpc command has the following syntax:

/usr/sbin/lpc [argument] [ all | printer... ]

Some of the command arguments allow you to specify all to indicate all the printers or to specify one or more printer variables to indicate a specific printer.

Table 8-3 lists the command arguments of the lpc command.

Table 8-3:  lpc Command Arguments

lpc Argument Description
help [argument] Prints a one-line description of the specified lpc command argument. If an argument variable is not specified, the list of arguments is displayed.
? [argument] Same as the help argument.
abort Terminates an active lpd daemon and then disables printing. This prevents the lpr or lp command from starting a new lpd daemon.
check Examines the printer description file and other components of the printing environment for potential configuration errors for each named printer
clean Removes any temporary files, data files, and control files (for example, files that do not form a complete printer job) from the specified print spooling directory.
disable Turns off the specified print spooling queue. This prevents the lpr or lp command from entering new jobs in the queue.
down message... Turns off the specified print queue, disables printing, and enters the specified message in the printer status file. You do not need to quote the message because remaining arguments are treated the same as echo. You can use the down argument to take down a printer and inform users. If a printer is down, the lpq command indicates that the printer is down.
enable Enables spooling for the specified printers. This enables the lpr or the lp command to enter print jobs in the spooling queue.
exit Exits from lpc.
quit Exits from lpc.
restart Attempts to start a new lpd daemon for the specified printer. This argument is useful if some abnormal condition causes the daemon to terminate unexpectedly and leave jobs in the queue. If this occurs, the lpq command indicates that no daemon is present. If a daemon is hung, you must kill the process, then restart the daemon by using the restart argument.
start Enables printing and starts a spooling daemon for the specified printer.
status [printer] Displays the status of the specified printer daemon and queue. The status argument shows if the queue is enabled, if printing is enabled, the number of entries in the queue, and the status of the printer's lpd daemon. If a printer name is not supplied, information about all printer daemons and queues is displayed.
stop Stops a spooling daemon after the current job is complete and disables printing.
topq printer Puts print jobs in the queue in the specified order. You can specify the print jobs by also specifying a request_ID variable or a username variable.
up Enables all printing and starts a new printer daemon. Cancels the down argument.

The following example shows that the lpd daemon is active on the printer named tester and there is one entry in the queue: 

# /usr/sbin/lpc
lpc> status tester
tester:
        printer is on device '/dev/tty02' speed 9600
        queuing is enabled
        printing is enabled
        1 entry in spool area
lpc>

See lpc(8) for more information.

8.4.5    Enabling Printer Accounting

Printer accounting allows you to charge users for printing services and to determine the amount of printer usage.

Note

Accounting is provided only for unformated text files; it is not provided for preformatted files such as PCL and PostScript.

There are two types of printer accounting:

printer user accounting

Printer user accounting provides information about printer use according to the system and user name that issues the print request.

printer summary accounting

Printer summary accounting provides information about the amount of media (number of printed pages or number of feet of roll paper or film) the printer produces. Specify the pac command with the -s option to produce printer summary accounting information.

The printer accounting files default to the /var/adm directory. Adding a printer with the lprsetup command creates the accounting file you specify. The /usr/adm/lpd/lpacct file is the default accounting file.

The printconfig utility provides default accounting files in the Advanced Options. If you do not require accounting, you can remove these entries during printer configuration or at any later date using the Modify option. If you add a printer manually, you must create the accounting file.

Note

User adm owns the /var/adm/lpd directory and it belongs to the adm group. User adm also owns printer accounting files, which have a protection mode of 644 and belong to the system group.

In the printer's /etc/printcap entry, the af parameter specifies the name of the accounting file. The accounting process uses this file to record the number of pages printed by each user on each printer. The name of the accounting file is unique for each printer on your system. Use the pac utility to display information in the printer accounting files. User daemon owns the accounting file, and it is a member of the daemon group. The correct file ownership is set automatically if you use the printconfig utility to specify the printer accounting file. The af parameter is not applicable for remote printer entries.

Accounting is accomplished through programs called print filters. The printconfig utility suggests a default print filter. The ifprint filter symbols is needed for accounting. For example: 

if=/usr/lbin/ln03rof

If you want to use separate accounting files for each printer on your system, ensure that the file names are unique. An unlimited number of printers can share an accounting file but you cannot specify an accounting file for remote printers. The print daemon owns the accounting files. If you specify an accounting file, intermediate directories are created automatically as needed.

8.5    Reference Information

The following sections discuss the information you need to configure a printer, on the line printer daemon (lpd), and on the print system files. The system files are created automatically if you use printconfig as described in Section 8.3.2.

You also can create and modify the files manually. If you do so, you also must manually change the /etc/printcap file so the changes can take effect.

8.5.1    The /etc/printcap File

The lpd daemon uses information in the /etc/printcap database file to print requests. Each entry in the /etc/printcap file describes a printer. You specify printer characteristics using two-letter abbreviations called print symbols. The print symbols are described in this section and in printcap(4). The lprsetup utility modifies the /etc/printcap file.

The default printer is named lp and it can be used as an alias for any type of printer, local or remote. The names lp0, lp1, and so on are default printer names that printconfig provides. You can use or ignore them as you want.

The following examples show /etc/printcap entries for a TCP/IP connected printer, an LPD remote printer, a serial printer, and a parallel printer. 

TCP/IP connected
printer example
 
 lp0|myprinter|hp8000:\
         :ct=tcp:\
         :if=/usr/lbin/ppdof +OPageSize=Letter +Chplj8000.rpd:\
         :lf=/usr/adm/lp0err:\
         :lp=@myprinter.com/9100:\
         :mx#0:\
         :of=/usr/lbin/ppdof +OPageSize=Letter +Chplj8000.rpd:\
         :pl#66:\
         :pw#0:\
         :rw:\
         :sd=/usr/spool/lpd0:
         :xf=/usr/lbin/xf:


LPD Remote printer example
 
lp0|remote:\
        :lf=/usr/adm/lp0err:\
        :lp=:\
        :rm=system:\
        :rp=queue:\
        :sd=/usr/spool/lpd0:

Note

Most of the printcap options for this configuration are disabled 

Serial port example
 
lp0|myprinter|la75:\
        :af=/usr/adm/lp0acct:\
        :br#9600:\
        :ct=dev:\
        :fc#0177777:\
        :fs#03:\
        :if=/usr/lbin/la75of:\
        :lf=/usr/adm/lp0err:\
        :lp=/dev/tty00:\
        :mx#0:\
        :of=/usr/lbin/la75of:\
        :pl#66:\
        :pw#80:\
        :rw:\
        :sd=/usr/spool/lpd0:\
        :xc#0177777:\
        :xf=/usr/lbin/xf:\
        :xs#044000:
 
 


Parallel port example
 
lp0|myprinter|la75:\
        :af=/usr/adm/lp0acct:\
        :ct=dev:\
        :if=/usr/lbin/la75of:\
        :lf=/usr/adm/lp0err:\
        :lp=/dev/lp0:\
        :mx#0:\
        :of=/usr/lbin/la75of:\
        :pl#66:\
        :pw#80:\
        :sd=/usr/spool/lpd0:\
        :sh:\
        :xf=/usr/lbin/xf:
 
 

The following example shows an /etc/printcap entry for both a local printer and a remote printer. The callouts describe the symbol entries: 

#
#
lp|lp0|0|dotmatrix|mary:\
      :af=/usr/adm/printer/lp.acct:\
      :br#9600:\
      :ct=dev:\
      :fc#0177777:\
      :fs#023:\
      :if=/usr/lbin/la75of:\
      :lf=/usr/adm/lperr:\    [1]
      :lp=/dev/tty01:\
      :mx#0:\
      :of=/usr/lbin/la75of:\
      :pl#66:\
      :pw#80:\
      :sh:\     [2]
      :sd=/usr/spool/lpd:\
      :xc#0177777:\     [3]
      :xf=/usr/lbin/xf:\
      :xs#044000:\
#
sqirrl|3r3|ln03r3|postscript3|In office 2T20:\
      :lp=:rm=uptown:rp=lp:sd=/var/spool/printer/ln03r3:mx#0:\ [4]
#

  1. Specifies a symbol with alphabetic characters. [Return to example]

  2. Specifies a symbol that represents a Boolean expression. [Return to example]

  3. Specifies a symbol with a numeric value. [Return to example]

  4. Specifies an entry for a remote printer. The lp, rm, rp, and sd symbols are required for remote printers for which you are a client. [Return to example]

The first line of a printer entry contains the fields that specify the printer primary reference name and printer name synonyms. This first line and these fields are required for every printer, both local and remote.

The printer reference name is the name that you subsequently use in order to specify printing to this printer. You can give each printer as many alternative reference names as you want, separating each field on the first line by using a vertical bar (|). The first line must end with a colon (:).

Note

A local printer entry in the /etc/printcap file should have the default printer reference name lp0 so that print jobs can have a destination when printer reference names are not specified in print commands.

The remaining lines of each printer entry contain the descriptive symbols and values that define the printer's configuration. Symbols are two-character mnemonics and you can specify them by using an equal sign (=) and alphabetic characters or with a number sign (#) and a numeric value. Some symbol names have Boolean equivalents, which do not use parameters. You can specify the symbols on one line or on individual lines, but you must separate them with colons (:).

To make the /etc/printcap file easy to read, you can place a colon (:) at the beginning of a line and a backslash (/\) at the end of a line to separate the symbols.

See printcap(4), which lists the printcap symbol names, the type of values they accept, default values, and descriptions of the symbols.

8.5.2    Data in /etc/printcap

The following sections describe the information typically required for a printer entry in the /etc/printcap file.

8.5.2.1    Printer Name

The printer name is the name by which you want to identify the printer through the lpr command. For example: 

# lpr -Pprintername

The lprsetup utility uses an internal numbering scheme from 0 to 99. The next available number is the default name. You can choose the default by pressing the [Enter] key or by entering any other alphanumeric name that is appropriate. The lprsetup utility always assigns at least two printer synonyms. The default number N is one synonym. The string lp plus the default number (lpN) is the other system-assigned synonym. If the default number is 1, the two assigned names are 1 and lp1. You can queue jobs to this printer using either of the following commands: 

# lpr -P1
# lpr -Plp1

You also can assign your own synonyms and use them to direct jobs to printers.

The first printer that lprsetup sets up has the names 0 and lp0. The name lp is reserved for the default printer (that is, the printer used when none is specified in an lpr command).

If you have only one printer or are entering the first of many printer names, the first name has a printer number of 0. This is recognized as your system's default printer if it has an additional name of lp.

Ask your network administrator for the names of the remote printers on the network.

8.5.2.2    Printer Type

The printer type corresponds to the product name of the printer, such as the LN03 laser printer. If you are using the lprsetup utility, printers are listed by type; only supported types are listed. These printers have some default values already included in the setup utility.

The supported printer types are defined in the files in the /usr/lbin/lprsetup directory. See lprsetup.dat(4) for information on generic printer types and for information on the printer types used in conjunction with HP's Advanced Server.

You can set up unlisted printers by selecting the Generic_Unknown printer type and responding to the prompts, using values similar to those for supported printers.

When specifying the printer type, you must use full command names and printer names. The default printer type is Generic_Unknown.

To install third-party printers, see the documentation that came with the printer.

8.5.2.3    Printer Synonyms

The printer synonym is an alternate name for the printer. Some examples include draft, letter, and LA-75 Companion Printer. You can enter as many alternate names for a printer as you like, but the total length of the line containing all the names must be less than 80 characters. When entering printer synonyms that can consist of many names, the entry process is terminated when you either enter a blank line or enter a line containing only white space.

In command line mode, after entering a synonym, you are prompted again. If you do not want to enter any more synonyms, press [Enter] to continue.

Each synonym (including the printer number) identifies the printer to the print system. For example, if you chose the synonym draft for a printer, the following command prints files on this printer: 

$ lpr -Pdraft files

The special printer synonym lp specifies the default printer.

8.5.2.4    Device Special File

The device special file provides access to the port on the computer to which the printer is connected. The device special file is used if the printer is connected directly to a local serial or parallel port. In this case, you must equate a printer device logical name to the printer's device special file name by using the lp symbol in the /etc/printcap file. For example: 

lp=/dev/lp0

The installation procedure creates some device special files for the hardware that is connected to your computer. Usually, the device special files for parallel printers are named /dev/lpn (for example: lp0, lp1, lp2), and the device special files for serial line printers are named /dev/ttynn (for example: tty00, tty01, tty02). The n and nn variables specify the number of the printer. On most systems, the device names map to default physical ports (connectors).

Table 8-4 shows the mapping of device names to default physical ports.

Table 8-4:  Communication Ports and Printer Device Special Files

Device Special File Communication Type Connector Label
/dev/lp0 parallel printer, or lp
/dev/tty00 serial COMM1 or 1
/dev/tty01 serial COMM2 or 2

If only one 9-pin serial connector is provided on a system, it is not always labeled as such. Some systems also use graphical icons instead of labels. See the owner's manual for the system for more information.

Note

If the port is used for logins, the lprsetup script turns off the terminal line established by the getty process.

For TCP/IP printers, specify the lp symbol with an asterisk character (@) followed by the printer hostname and either a port or service name as shown here: 

lp=@printer hostname/servicename
lp=@printer hostname/portnumber
 
 

The printer hostname is the network name or address that specifies the TCP/IP address of the printer's network interface. A portnumber is an integer TCP port number that your printer uses for raw socket printing. A servicename is a name you define in the /etc/services file. The service definition includes the service name, the protocol "tcp", and the port number that your printer uses for raw socket printing. To illustrate this, consider this entry in the /etc/services file: 

print_port_9100       9100/tcp       # printer port 9100
 

Also consider this entry for the /etc/printcap file: 

lp1|1|myprinter:\
          :lp=@printer123.sf.ourcomp.com/print_port_9100:\
          :lf=/usr/adm/lp1err:\
          :if=/usr/lbin/ppdof +OPageSize=Letter +Chplj9000.rpd:\
          :mx#0:\
          :of=/usr/lbin/ppdof +OPageSize=Letter +Chplj9000.rpd:\
          :pl#66:\
          :pw#0:\
          :rw:\
          :sd=/usr/spool/lpd1:\
          :xf=/usr/lbin/xf:
 
 

8.5.2.5    Connection Type

The ct parameter specifies the type of connection to the printer. You can connect a printer directly to your computer from a port or terminal line. You can access networked printers that are connected to a LAT (Local Area Transport) terminal server or to a remote host. If you are using lprsetup, the choices for the connection type are:

dev

for local devices

lat

for LAT devices

tcp

for TCP/IP devices

8.5.2.6    Spooling Directories

In /etc/printcap, the sd parameter specifies the spooling directory where files are queued before they are printed. Each spooling directory is unique. All printcap file entries must specify a spooling directory, both local and remote. When the spooling directory is created with printconfig, intermediate directories are created as necessary.

Each printer must have its own spooling directory located under the /usr/spool directory. The spooling directory acts as a printer's spooling queue; it contains the files that are queued for printing on that printer. A printer spooling directory should have the same name as the printer reference name and is located on the system attached to the printer. The printer reference name is the name that you specify to print on a particular printer.

If you are using lprsetup, the utility supplies the default value /usr/spool/lpdn. The n variable specifies the printer number. For example, the default name of the spooling directory for a second line printer is /usr/spool/lpd2.

Each printer entry in the /etc/printcap file must specify a spooling directory even if the printer is connected to another system or is on another network. You specify a spooling directory with the sd symbol. For example: 

sd=/usr/spool/local_printer1
sd=/usr/spool/network_printer1
sd=/usr/spool/remote_printer1

Note

Do not put subdirectories under /usr/spool/lpd or /var/spool/lpd. Do not rename or delete this pathname because it is a CDSL used by the parent lpd process and is unique for each node in a cluster. See the section on CDSLs in Chapter 6

8.5.2.6.1    Spooling Directory Files

A spooling directory contains a status file and a lock file that are created by the lpd daemon when a file is queued for printing. The /usr/spool/lpd/lpd.lock file contains the process identifier of the parent lpd process that listens for print jobs request on the local /dev/printer socket and the network socket 515. The processes that actually print the jobs are child daemons forked by the parent. Their process identifiers are stored in the lock file in the spool directory, such as /usr/spool/local_printer1/lock.

The lock file is used to regulate the creation of a child process, or lpd daemon, for job processing in a single queue, so that only one queue daemon runs at a time. The lock file contains the process identification number of the daemon that is currently running and the control file name of the job currently being processed. The status file contains a line that describes the current printer status. This line is displayed if a user inquires about printer status. If a printer whose status is queried is not active, the status message written to standard output is no entries. Two additional temporary files may appear in the spooling directory:

.no_daemon

This file is created when the queue has entries and no daemon is running and no files in the spooling directory are removed or have changed in the past ten seconds.

.seq

This file, created by the /usr/bin/lpr command, generates job numbers in sequence starting from zero.

When the lpd daemon is activated as a result of a print request, it looks in the printer spooling directory for a lock file. If a lock file is not found, the lpd daemon creates one and writes the identification number and the control file name on two successive lines in the file. The lpd daemon then scans the printer spooling directory for control files whose names begin with cf. Control files specify the names of print files that users have submitted and contain printing instructions for these files. Each line in a control file begins with a key character that indicates what to do with the remainder of the line. The key characters and their meanings are described in detail in lpd(8).

Note

Job control files (they begin with cf) are first created as temporary files, which begin with tf. If the job creation process terminates abnormally, temporary control files may be left behind. You should delete these files because they interfere with future job creation when the job number in the .seq file equals any value used in the temporary control file name.

Data files, whose names usually begin with df, also are located in the spooling directory. Data files contain the job to be printed. The job data may or may not be modified by a print filter, which is specified in /etc/printcap by anif or by of if if is omitted.

After a file is printed, the lpd daemon removes the control and data files from the printer spooling queue, updates the status file, and sets up the next file in the spooling queue for printing.

For example, if users submit jobs to a printer named milhaus, the following command lists the files that are stored in the spooling directory: 

# ls -l /usr/spool/local_printer1
-rw-rw----   1    root      75  Jan 17  09:57  cfA0220mothra
-rw-rw----   1    root      96  Jan 17  10:03  cfA143harald
-rw-rw----   1    root  199719  Jan 17  09:57  dfA0220mothra
-rw-rw----   1    root    9489  Jan 17  10:03  dfA143harald
-rw-r--r--   1    root      20  Jan 17  10:06  lock
-rw-rw-rw-   1  daemon     113  Jan 17  10:00  status

8.5.2.6.2    Creating a Spooling Directory

If you want to manually add a printer, use the mkdir command to create the spooling directories for each printer. Set the spooling directory permission mode to 775. Set the directory's group and ownership mode to the name daemon. For example: 

# cd /var/spool
# mkdir ./printers
# mkdir ./printers/lp1
# cd printers
# chmod 775 lp1
# chgrp daemon lp1
# chown daemon lp1
# ls -l lp1
drwxr-xr-x  2  daemon  daemon  24  Jan 12  1994  lp1

8.5.2.7    Baud Rate

The baud rate applies to directly connected serial line printers only.

The baud rate is the maximum rate at which data can travel between the data source and the printer (for example, 4800 or 9600). The default baud rate for your printer should appear in the printer documentation. If you reset this baud rate yourself during the installation of the printer hardware, the rate that you set on the printer must match the rate that you enter in the /etc/printcap file.

8.5.3    Line Printer Daemon

Printers are controlled by the line printer daemon, lpd, which is located in the /usr/lbin directory. Printing cannot take place unless the lpd daemon is running. The lpd daemon has many functions:

When you use the lpr command, it copies files into the spooling directory and activates the lpd daemon. Requests are printed in the order in which they enter the queue. A copy of the file remains in the queue until the printer is ready to print it; then the lpd daemon removes the file from the spooling queue after it sends the job to the printer.

After you install and boot your system, the lpd daemon usually is started by the /sbin/init.d/lpd utility. You can start and stop the lpd daemon with the following commands:

/sbin/init.d/lpd [-l] start

/sbin/init.d/lpdstop

The -l option causes the lpd daemon to log valid requests from the network. This option is useful for debugging.

To test whether the line printer daemon is running, enter: 

# ps agx | grep /usr/lbin/lpd | grep -v grep

8.5.4    Error Logging

Errors logged by the lpd daemon are logged to /var/adm/syslog.dated/<date>/lpr.log (or /var/adm/syslog.dated/current/lpr.log, which is a symbolic link to the most recent log file). The directory <date> is named for the date and time that the logs were saved. A typical log file entry is as follows: 

Apr 15 16:36:28 cymro lpd[1144]: ERROR -- lpr: cannot open printer description file
Apr 15 16:36:28 cymro lpd[1144]: ERROR -- exiting ...
Apr 15 16:36:46 cymro lpd[1130]: ERROR -- lpq: cannot open printer description file
Apr 15 16:36:46 cymro lpd[1130]: ERROR -- exiting ...
#

Monitor log files regularly for errors and deleted (or archive) the logs to prevent them from filling up the available disk space. You can establish a regular clean up procedure using the cron utility. You also can control the severity level of the messages that are posted to lpr.log by specifying only the required priorities in the file /etc/syslog.conf. See the syslogd(8) for information.

The lf parameter specifies the log file where most print filter errors are reported. The default log file, if one is not specified, is /dev/console. If you have more than one printer on your system, give each log file a unique name. When the error log file is created using printconfig, intermediate directories in the pathname are created as necessary.

The lpd daemon logs most of its printer errors to the error log file rather than the error file specified by the lf parameter. Therefore, specifying an error log file is optional. If you used lprsetup to install the printer, the utility provides the default value /usr/adm/lpd/lperr. If you do not specify an error log file, errors are logged to /dev/console.

The error log file is specified with the lf symbol in the /etc/printcap file. For example: 

lf=/var/adm/lpd/lpderr

Error log files usually are located in the /var/adm directory. Local printers can share an error log file, but you should specify the file in each /etc/printcap file printer entry.

8.5.5    Print Filters and Filter Directories

The filters for the lpd daemon translate the data that you want to print into the format appropriate for your printer. In many cases the filter is specified to match a specific printer. For example, use the ln03rof filter to print files with the LN03R printer.

When both input and output filters are specified, input filters process job data being sent to the printer and output filters process banner page data generated by the lpd. You can specify many filters as either input or output filters, and each operates differently depending on whether they are called as input or output filters. These filters are specified in the /etc/printcap file as follows: 

if=/usr/lbin/ln03rof
of=/usr/lbin/ln03rof

Input filters are also responsible for printer accounting, which enables you to keep a record of printer usage for text jobs (not for PostScript printing). See Chapter 10 for information on configuring printer accounting.

If only an input filter is specified, it filters the job data and the banner page data, and performs accounting.

If only an output filter is specified, it filters the job data in addition to the banner page data, but no accounting is performed.

These actions can be summarized by the following table.

Filter Job Data Banner Page Data Accounting
Both input and output filters      
  Input filter x   x
  Output filter   x  
Input filter only x x x
Output filter only x x  

See lpd(8) for more information.

See lprsetup.dat(4) for information on generic print filters and print filters used with HP's Advanced Server; these print filters are located in the /usr/lbin/lprsetup directory. For printers not listed in lprsetup.dat(4) or defined in that directory, see the printer documentation or contact the printer manufacturer for filter information.

Note

Manufacturers of many third party printers that provide Tru64 UNIX support supply filters that are installed by their own installation software. It is recommended that third party printer software, and the queues that they create, be modified by the printer manufacturer only.

8.5.6    Flag Bits

Flag bits specify characteristics about data transmission from the host to the printer and, if possible, from the printer to the host on a serial line only (LAT and RS232). Data that is passed from the printer to the host may include stop and start status information, which tells the host that the printer input buffer can accept input or that it is about to overflow.

Delays are specific times used to slow the transmission of the next group of characters to the input buffer. Delays give the printer mechanism time to perform operations such as a carriage return, newline, tab, and form feed.

Flag bits are cleared with the fc symbol and set with the fs symbol. All printers do not use all the flag bits, but you must either set the bits or clear them. See the manual for the printer for specific information about flag bits.

The flag bits are specified as octal numbers in a 16-bit word. Octal values are preceded with the number zero (0). To clear all the bits, specify the value 0177777 with the fc symbol. To set all the bits, specify the value 0177777 with the fs symbol. Clear all bits by using fc#0177777) before you call the fs symbol. To set or clear any groups of bits, specify the octal sum of the combined bits for the number of flag bits.

The following is an example of flag bit specifications: 

fc#0177777
fs#0141

In this example, fc#0177777 clears all bits and the fs symbol is set to 0141 specifying the OPOST, ONLRET, and OFILL flag bits.

Table 8-5 lists each flag bit name, its octal value, and its description.

Table 8-5:  Flag Bits

Flag Octal Value Description
OPOST 0000001 Enable output processing
ONLCR 0000002 Map NL to CR-NL
OLCUC 0000004 Map lower case to upper case
OCRNL 0000010 Map CR to NL
ONOCR 0000020 No CR output at column 0
ONLRET 0000040 NL performs CR function
OFILL 0000100 Use fill characters for delay
OFDEL 0000200 Fill is DEL, else NUL
NLDLY 0001400 Newline delay
NL0 0000000  
NL1 0000400  
NL2 0001000  
NL3 0001400  
TABDLY 0006000 Horizontal tab delay
TAB0 0000000  
TAB1 0002000  
TAB2 0004000  
TAB4 0006000  
CRDLY 0030000 Carriage Return delay
CR0 0000000  
CR1 0010000  
CR2 0020000  
CR3 0030000  
FFDLY 0040000 Form feed delay
FF0 0000000  
FF1 0040000  
BSDLY 0100000 Backspace delay
BS0 0000000  
BS1 0100000  
OXTABS 1000000 Expand tabs to spaces

See tty(7) for more information.

8.5.7    Mode Bits

Mode bits specify details about the capability of a particular terminal and usually do not affect printer operation. Mode bits are cleared with the xc symbol and set with the xs symbol. Some printers use all the mode bits, so you either must set them or clear them. The mode bits are specified as octal numbers in a 16-bit word format. You should clear all bits by specifying xc#0177777 before you specify the xs symbol.

See tty(7) for more information.

The following is an example of mode bits specifications: 

xc#0177777
xs#044000

As shown in the previous example, xc#0177777 clears all bits and the xs symbol is set to 044000 specifying the ECHO and ECHOCTL mode bits.

Table 8-6 lists a description of each mode bit.

Table 8-6:  Mode Bits

Mode Octal Value Description
ECHOKE 0000001 Echoes KILL by erasing the line
ECHOE 0000002 Visually erase characters
ECHOK 0000004 Echoes NL after KILL
ECHO 0000010 Enable echoing
ECHONL 0000020 Echoes NL even if ECHO is off
ECHOPRT 0000040 Echo erased chars between  and /
ECHOCTL 0000100 Echo control characters as ^(char)
ISIG 0000200 Enable special chars INTR, QUIT and SUSP
ICANON 0000400 Enable canonical input
ALTWERASE 0001000 Use alternate word erase algorithm
IEXTEN 0002000 Enable FLUSHO and LNEXT
XCASE 0040000 Canonical upper/lower presentation

8.5.8    Remote Printer Characteristics

For users to access a printer from a remote system, both the local system and the remote system require printer information in their /etc/printcap files. On the local system attached to the printer, security is controlled by the entries in /etc/hosts.lpd or /etc/hosts.equiv.

Optionally you can specify the rs symbol, which specifies a Boolean value that takes only a true (yes) or false (no) value, along with the other printer configuration symbols. If you define the value as true, remote users must have an account on the local system that is attached to the printer. If you define the value as false, remote users can access the local printer if the local printer is listed in the /etc/hosts file. See Section 8.5.1 for an example of an /etc/printcap file.

On the remote system, you must specify the rm, rp, lp, and sd symbols.

The rm symbol specifies the name of the system attached to the printer. For example: 

rm=deccom

The rp symbol specifies the printer spool name on the remote system. For example: 

rp=ln03lab

For remote printers, specify the lp symbol without a value: 

lp=

The sd symbol specifies the spooling directory. For example: 

sd=/usr/spool/lpd
 

8.6    Print Filters

Tru64 UNIX provides print filters for generic and for local-language use.

8.6.1    The pcfof Print Filter

The pcfof print filter is designed to accommodate many different printers through the use of a printer control file (PCF). PCF files contain printer control strings to set up and select printer-specific features such as paper tray selection, duplexing, and printing orientation. The filter is designed to work with text, ANSI, PCL, and auto-sensing multilanguage PostScript printers, but does not work with PostScript-only printers.

PCF files are text files. You can use any text editor to modify an existing file to customize printing behavior or create a new file for an unsupported printer. PCF files provided in Tru64 UNIX are replaced during an installation update, so you should take care that you preserve any customizations in backups. Using a file name prefix for new or modified PCF files prevents potential file name conflicts. For example, copy file names before customizing as follows: 

# cp ln32.pcf my_ln32.pcf

The print filter is located in /usr/lbin and the PCF printer specific files are in /usr/lbin/pcf. The file template.pcf provides documentation on the PCF file format.

8.6.2    The wwpsof Print Filter

The wwpsof filter uses settings in a printer customization file (PCF) to find the font glyphs for local language characters and then embeds the font data in the PostScript file. The filter uses PostScript outline fonts, if installed on the local system, or bitmap fonts, which the filter obtains through a font server. This feature supports print jobs that contain multinational character sets and you do not need to send such jobs to special printers. See wwpsof(8) for a list of options. See the Writing Software for the International Market and i18n_printing(5) for more information on local-language printer support.

8.6.3    Known Restrictions of Filter Use

The following are current restrictions on the use of print filters:

8.7    Testing and Troubleshooting Printers

A checklist for diagnosing printer problems is provided in this section. Most printer errors are logged in the /var/adm/syslog.dated/current/lpr.log file while some are logged in the /usr/adm/lperr file.

The printconfig window Printer Configuration on host contains an option to send test output to the printer immediately after configuration is complete. If the output is not printed, follow the troubleshooting steps described in this section.

You also can test a printer by using the lpr command to print a few pages of text. You should test any special printer features that you intend to use regularly on this printer, for example, PostScript or double-sided print. See lpr(1) for more information.

The lptest command writes a ripple test pattern to the standard output, or you can direct the output to a printer. A pattern that contains all 96 printable ASCII characters in each column is printed using 96 lines. In the pattern, each printed character is displaced rightward one character column on each successive line. This test is also useful for ascertaining the number of lines per page and the default page parameters. You can use the ripple test pattern to test printers, terminals, and drive terminal ports during debugging.

The lptest command has the following syntax:

/usr/sbin/lptest [length[count]]

Use the lptest command if you need quick output of random data. For example: 

# /usr/sbin/lptest |lpr -P3r44

See lptest(8) for more information.

If a problem occurs on an existing printer or when adding a printer to a system, diagnose the problem as follows:

For networked and remote printers, you also have to ensure that the systems are properly connected and authorized to transfer print jobs. See the Network Administration: Connections manual for information on network troubleshooting.