[bit.listserv.novell] Printer & Queue management

tim@J.CC.PURDUE.EDU (Timothy Lange) (02/01/90)

I have setup my 2.12 and 2.15 networks so users on the 2.15 can print to
lasers on the 2.12 server without knowing where the printers are.
I used PRINTCON to setup default jobs and speciality jobs.  The default job
on my 2.15 server says to print to the queues on the 2.12 server.  I don't
have a GUEST account on the 2.12 server, so it isn't needed.  I do have all
printers on all servers setup so a printer number is spooled to the appropriate
queue.  This spooling seems necessary for some tasks.

From CIS I downloaded the instructions to patch NPRINT and CAPTURE so they
will all read the SUPERVISOR's PRINT.DAT file.  This means the Supervisor's
copy of PRINTCON and PRINTDEF info will be used by all on the network.

The nice thing about the print jobs is I can easily switch printers, queues,
and servers around and reroute output with just a few seconds with PRINTCON.

Tim.

KOSTERTAG@WILLIAMS.BITNET (Keith Ostertag) (02/01/90)

Could you tell me a more about this idea of patching NPRINT and CAPTURE so
they will read the Supervisor's PRINT.DAT file?  I am new to Novell, and
could not find in the documentation how to copy job configurations from
the Supervisor to the user.

ton@GUFALET.UUCP (Ton Roovers) (02/02/90)

Rod Nussbaumer wrote:
>
>        All Netware gurus:
>
>        I am trying to set up my print queues so that a queue on one
>        file server (ANW 286 ver 2.15C) can be serviced by a
>        printer on another file server (ANW 286 ver 2.12).  This
>        would (hopefully) allow users on a given file server (who are
>        attached to the other file server) to simply send print data
>        to a queue, without worrying about any other intricacies themselves.

That is exactly what I was looking for too! And I thought maybe PS-Print
could do the trick: let one (dedicated) PC be attached to all servers and
serve queues on all those servers, redirecting printer jobs to one
printer connected to that PC. But it seems this doesn't work, since you
can load only one 'printer driver' per physical port (p.e. LPT1). If you
try to load a second one, the first one is replaced. Does anybody know if
other products like Printer Assist have the functionality we are looking for?
I think Netware should handle this kind of thing.

--
 Ton Roovers                                                    systems manager
_______________________________________________________________________________
 Faculty of Arts and Letters, Groningen University             ton@gufalet.UUCP
 PO Box 716, NL 9700 AS Groningen, The Netherlands

artw@ENGR.WISC.EDU (02/02/90)

> could do the trick: let one (dedicated) PC be attached to all servers and
> serve queues on all those servers, redirecting printer jobs to one
> printer connected to that PC. But it seems this doesn't work, since you
> can load only one 'printer driver' per physical port (p.e. LPT1). If you
> try to load a second one, the first one is replaced. Does anybody know if
> other products like Printer Assist have the functionality we are looking for?
> I think Netware should handle this kind of thing.
>
Yes, We've written our own print server that does this.  It could be made
usable for the general public, but it would take some work on our part.

The print server will drive both serial and parallel printers, although
it definitely works best with parrallel.  It reads a configuration file
like the following:

PRINTER=PROPRINTER_XL
TYPE=PARALLEL
QUEUE=CAELAB CLEVER
QUEUE=CAEUSR PRO
PORT=2
BUFFER=512
FORM_FEEDS=2

So the print server knows the printer type (it doesn't do much with this),
and the interface.  It knows the names of queues and servers that they are
on.  Port is the physical port number, Buffer is the number of bytes to be
read at a time.  FORM_FEEDS is the number of form feeds to issue at the
end of the job.

There are some other parameters that can be put in this file (mostly for
moving jobs from queue to queue).  If many of you are interested, we
could make this avaliable.  It works only as a dedicated print server,
so it's not a direct replacement for Printer Assist and the like.  (Printer
Assist is great program, in my opinion).  It would probably take us a couple
of weeks or so to get documentation ready and clean up some of the loose
ends.

Please let me know if you are interested, if I get enough responce we'll
make it avaliable.

Art

=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=
Art Wittmann                                  Phone: (608) 263-1748
Network Manager                               Email: wittmann@engr.wisc.edu
Computer Aided Engineering Center                or: wittmann@cae.wisc.edu
University of Wisconsin, Madison

BCNSTAT@NAS.BITNET (Bob Caine) (02/02/90)

Check with the QueueIT! by Brightwork Technology. You can load only one
driver per output device on the computer, but that driver can service
multiple queues, each one with it's own priority.


>That is exactly what I was looking for too! And I thought maybe PS-Print
>could do the trick: let one (dedicated) PC be attached to all servers and
>serve queues on all those servers, redirecting printer jobs to one
>printer connected to that PC. But it seems this doesn't work, since you
>can load only one 'printer driver' per physical port (p.e. LPT1). If you
>try to load a second one, the first one is replaced. Does anybody know if
>other products like Printer Assist have the functionality we are looking
>    for?
>I think Netware should handle this kind of thing.


Bob Caine
National Academy of Sciences

CONTEDUC@UVMADMIN.BITNET (Lawrence Keyes) (02/02/90)

Art, I'd be very interested in looking at your print server software.
Larry


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CAW@UVVM.BITNET (Lance Grant) (02/02/90)

I've been meaning to discuss this matter on the list.

Patching NPRINT and CAPTURE is certainly a solution to the problem
of having to place a PRINTCON.DAT file in every users mail driectory,
but is completely unnecessary.  Why not use Novell's SMODE capabilities
in the following manner?

What we have been using successfully on our network is a SHELL.CFG file
that has  the SEARH MODE=5 line in it.  This forces the shell to search along
the path for files when they aren't where they are supposed to be, and since
public is always on the path we place a PRINTCON.DAT in the public directory.
When nprint or capture cannot find the PRINTCON.DAT file in the user's mail
directory the shell will then search the path and find the file in the public
subdir.  If a user has a PRINTCON.DAT file in their mail directory
nprint and capture will use it rather than the one in public.

No patches necessary, thus leaving netware utilities in their original state,
and no possibility of lawbreaking by altering protected software.

Lance

LARRY@VM.NRC.CA (Larry Bradley) (02/03/90)

Re using SMODE instead of patching PRINTCON, etc ...

This will work, however if a user does create his own PRINTCON.DAT,
then he will NEVER see any changes made to the global one. We have
chosen to patch, and now allow user PRINTCONs. IF a user needs
something special, we will put it in the global one.


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DAVEH@CCCLAN.BYU.EDU (David Howard) (02/03/90)

>        I am trying to set up my print queues so that a queue on one
>        file server (ANW 286 ver 2.15C) can be serviced by a
>        printer on another file server (ANW 286 ver 2.12).  This
>        would (hopefully) allow users on a given file server (who are
>        attached to the other file server) to simply send print data
>        to a queue, without worrying about any other intricacies themselves.

I think that you will find that Novell printserver services will provide the
support for one printer to service multiple queues and multiple printers.
Currently these are provide with Netware 386 as an NLM and as a dedicated
printserver. I hear that a VAP is to be released soon. I would imagine that
the VAP would provide the same support as the dedicated or NLM printservers.

David Howard
Computer Systems Analyst
Brigham Young University
daveh@ccclan.byu.edu
(801)378-2089