[comp.os.vms] Shared Printers

murray@motto.UUCP (Murray S. Kucherawy) (05/22/91)

I seem to recall a thread about this recently, but I've just been informed
that we are now interested in doing this, and the thread's expired here,
so forgive me for asking again.

Is it possible for VAXen (some VMS, some Ultrix) to share printers,
other than using a DECserver to drive them?

=============================== Murray S. Kucherawy ==========================
Motorola Canada, Ltd.     Communications Division, Toronto      [on work term]
University of Waterloo, Ontario, Canada               2B Math/Computer Science
Internet: murray@motto.UUCP (work)       mskucherawy@watmath.UWaterloo.ca (UW) 
UUCP:     uunet!utai!lsuc!motto!murray   uunet!watmath!mskucherawy

Carpenter@Fwva.Saic.Com (Apprentice Wizard Wannabe) (05/22/91)

murray@motto.UUCP (Murray S. Kucherawy) writes:
>I seem to recall a thread about this recently, but I've just been informed
>that we are now interested in doing this, and the thread's expired here,
>so forgive me for asking again.
>
>Is it possible for VAXen (some VMS, some Ultrix) to share printers,
>other than using a DECserver to drive them?
>
>=============================== Murray S. Kucherawy ==========================
>Motorola Canada, Ltd.     Communications Division, Toronto      [on work term]
>University of Waterloo, Ontario, Canada               2B Math/Computer Science
>Internet: murray@motto.UUCP (work)       mskucherawy@watmath.UWaterloo.ca (UW) 
>UUCP:     uunet!utai!lsuc!motto!murray   uunet!watmath!mskucherawy
 
   For VMS, set up a que on the node the printer is connected to. Then create a
generic on each node in the cluster. (only works ina cluster)
eg.
$ DEFINE SYMBOLS FOR TERMQUE_NAME AND USE LEXICAL FOR NODENAME HERE
$  Initialize /Queue /Start /Default=(Flag,NoBurst) -
	/On=NODE::'TermQue_Name' 'TermQue_Name'
$!          ^^^^ The node the printer is connected to
$  Initialize /Queue /Start /Generic='TermQue_Name' Sys$Print
$!  Define /System  Sys$Print 'NodeName'$Print
 
|=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-|\
|Scott Carpenter           |  \
|VAX System Manager        |    \
|SAIC Falls Church, VA     |______\     
|Carpenter@Fwva.Saic.Com   |
|75500.446@Compuserve.Com  |
|=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-|   

murray@motto.UUCP (Murray S. Kucherawy) (05/23/91)

grr@cbmvax.commodore.com (George Robbins) writes:
>The sharing of DECserver printer ports is via LAT,
>DECnet/Ultrix is *not* needed
>to get this functionality.

That's not what I had in mind.  Our printers are currently on the DECserver
using LAT.  We want to take them off and put them on the VMS machine,
but still allow the Ultrix machine and the other VMS machines to be able
to use those printers.  All the machines are equipped with DECnet.

Can this be done?

=============================== Murray S. Kucherawy ==========================
Motorola Canada, Ltd.     Communications Division, Toronto      [on work term]
University of Waterloo, Ontario, Canada               2B Math/Computer Science
Internet: murray@motto.UUCP (work)       mskucherawy@watmath.UWaterloo.ca (UW) 
UUCP:     uunet!utai!lsuc!motto!murray   uunet!watmath!mskucherawy

davidh8@pogo.WV.TEK.COM (David Haight) (05/23/91)

murray@motto.UUCP (Murray S. Kucherawy) writes:
>I seem to recall a thread about this recently, but I've just been informed
>that we are now interested in doing this, and the thread's expired here,
>so forgive me for asking again.
>
>Is it possible for VAXen (some VMS, some Ultrix) to share printers,
>other than using a DECserver to drive them?
>
>=============================== Murray S. Kucherawy ==========================
>Motorola Canada, Ltd.     Communications Division, Toronto      [on work term]
>University of Waterloo, Ontario, Canada               2B Math/Computer Science
>Internet: murray@motto.UUCP (work)       mskucherawy@watmath.UWaterloo.ca (UW) 
>UUCP:     uunet!utai!lsuc!motto!murray   uunet!watmath!mskucherawy


We (Tektronix) have a print symbiont for VMS that allows VMS to print to
our eithernet attached color printer via the Unix protocol (TCP/IP, LPR)
making the printer available to both VMS and Ultrix (unix) machines
on the network.



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grr@cbmvax.commodore.com (George Robbins) (05/23/91)

In article <178@motto.UUCP> murray@motto.UUCP (Murray S. Kucherawy) writes:
> grr@cbmvax.commodore.com (George Robbins) writes:
> >The sharing of DECserver printer ports is via LAT,
> >DECnet/Ultrix is *not* needed
> >to get this functionality.
> 
> That's not what I had in mind.  Our printers are currently on the DECserver
> using LAT.  We want to take them off and put them on the VMS machine,
> but still allow the Ultrix machine and the other VMS machines to be able
> to use those printers.  All the machines are equipped with DECnet.
> 

Well, Multinet provides BSD compatible print spooling services.  I think most
of the competitive products do also, but who knows about UCX?  It should also
be possible to do something with the DECnet/Ultrix "TELL"/remote objects to
submit jobs that dump things in VMS queues.

Excuse me if I've overlooked something obvious.  We've used an assortment of
things here which have evolved over time.  I think we started with the tell
approach, then did a third-party thing when we got sunlink DNI (decnet for Sun)
where ultrix remoted printed to suns which remote printed to VMS, but now we
depend on the Multinet services.

-- 
George Robbins - now working for,     uucp:   {uunet|pyramid|rutgers}!cbmvax!grr
but no way officially representing:   domain: grr@cbmvax.commodore.com
Commodore, Engineering Department     phone:  215-431-9349 (only by moonlite)

yzarn@lhdsy1.chevron.com (Philip Yzarn de Louraille) (05/24/91)

Yes it can be done using the tell command to send the files to be
printed to the VMS machines using DECnet.
-- 
  Philip Yzarn de Louraille                 Internet: yzarn@chevron.com
  Research Support Division                 Unix & Open Systems
  Chevron Information & Technology Co.      Tel: (213) 694-9232
  P.O. Box 446, La Habra, CA 90633-0446     Fax: (213) 694-7709