CUPS keeps "forgetting" my USB printer!
 

Running SuSE 8.1: My HP DeskJet 932C works fine via CUPS and the USB port . . . for awhile. Then, the connection between CUPS and the printer seems to get lost. If I re-install / reconfigure the printer via YaST2, it again works for awhile -- maybe even a few days -- then quits! The printer always works in Windoze, so I don't think the printer is at fault.

Could this be happening because the printer is usually turned off unless needed (and is therefore perhaps not detected when Linux starts)? This is the one nagging problem in Linux that I've been unable to solve.

^^^ :Pengy:

Hi,

I too have an HP deskjet 932c. I run Mandrake Linux 10.0, and used to have a similar problem as you when printing through CUPS, where CUPS would at times fail to find the printer device .

It turned out that it was because at random times (but usually when the computer was started with the printer OFF), CUPS would start looking for the USB printer port device in the wrong place.

Here's what I mean. My HP 932 is the USB printer #1, thus shows up as a printer device in /dev/usb/lp1
At times, CUPS has this path set for the printer device, and it prints just fine. However, it would sometimes mess up and begin looking for the printer device in /dev/usblp1 which is incorrect on my system as no USB printer devices are put there.

To "fix" it, I simply made a symbolic link in the /dev/ folder which points to the USB printer device in /dev/usb/. I did this by typing ln -s /dev/usb/lp1 /dev/usblp1 in the terminal.

I know this isn't a "true" fix, but it did fix my printer problems as now the printer device is found regardless. :D

-Nick

Thanks, Nick! I'll give that a try.