Printing over Network with only cups-client !

Xeratul · 05-13-2014, 12:07 PM

Hello,

Why to install cups server if you do not need a server?

A printer on a network has an IP. A modern printer/fax... so that can be surely understanding PS and PDF format. (type xerox).

Well, since there is no information on the web about using cups-client, then, everyone uses apt-get install cups

OK. so the target of this mission is to print with only the minimum requirement:

Code:

ii  cups-client                          1.5.3-5+deb7u1                     i386         Common UNIX Printing System(tm) - client programs (SysV)

If you add :

Code:

mkdir ~/.cups
touch ~/.cups/client.conf
vim ~/.cups/client.conf

With the following content of .cups/client.conf :

Code:

Encryption IfRequested
#Encryption Never
#Encryption Required
ServerName 192.xxx.xxx.xxx

lpr -S <-- is not available on debian stable, so you must add to /etc/hosts the name of the printer for using -P option with LPR. you may add myprinter to the given ip of hosts.

Code:

ping myprinter

might now work.

so far so good, the following command might eventually print.

Code:

curl http://www.gnuplot.info/docs/tutorial.pdf > /tmp/mydocument.pdf 
lpr -P myprinter /tmp/mydocument.pdf

However a quick check of lpq tells you that the pdf is awaiting to be printed, and hangs forever...
lpq

Likely there is something wrong...

A great expert my help !! ex. our master Tobi

I am looking forward to reading and exchanging.

Many Thanks

smallpond · 05-13-2014, 03:57 PM

cups-client forwards requests to port 631 (internet print protocol) of the ServerName that you configured in the conf file. That's great if your printer speaks ipp. If not, then you need cupsd running, because it maintains a printer database and print queues and can talk to any kind of printer.

I haven't seen lpq or lpr in at least 10 years. I have cupsd talking to a shared printer on a Windows 7 machine. For any of you who tried to do this some years back, you may remember this story:

http://www.catb.org/esr/writings/cups-horror.html

Anyway, the cups browser-based management is greatly improved since the above was written, and the error messages will tell you what's in the queue, why it's stuck, and will let you restart it once the problem is fixed.