Printing a PDF from the command prompt doesn't work

jasonws · 10-29-2010, 09:46 AM

I have a PDF that I built using BIRT, and that works fine. At this point I'm trying to print it using lpr or some other command. It seems as though I should just be able to type lpr invoice.pdf and it should print to the default printer. However, lpstat -t shows "Empty print file!" for the printer, and the printer doesn't do anything, let alone print the file. lpr -l invoice.pdf prints the file, but unformatted - just a bunch of characters and whitespace on a seemingly infinite number of pages. Any ideas?

Thanks,
Jason

mlangdn · 10-29-2010, 11:07 AM

Try it this way:

Code:

lpr -P printerName document.pdf

An example from mine:

Code:

lpr -P Officejet_5600 document.pdf

That is a real example I tested - just fit to your needs. It will keep the formatting and print exactly what you see from a pdf reader.

corp769 · 10-29-2010, 11:10 AM

Beat me to it, I was going to say the same thing =p