We have a situation in which remote network printers (very remote --
several states away from the servers) sometimes have communication errors.
This wouldn't be a big problem except that whatever was being printed at
the time starts again from the first page. Users also sometimes cause
this by switching a printer off (to clear a paper jam or something like
that). The reprinting happens automatically, without anyone stopping and
restarting the print queue. It's bad enough when it reprints an entire
300-page report that already had printed the first couple of hundred
pages, but the worst problem is when it reprints checks. (It's all
too easy for the users not to notice the duplicates.) Is there some
option that controls whether or not print jobs will be restarted from
the beginning when communication errors occur?

--
Wayne Brown (HPCC #1104) | "When your tail's in a crack, you improvise
fwbrown@bellsouth.net | if you're good enough. Otherwise you give
| your pelt to the trapper."
"e^(i*pi) = -1" -- Euler | -- John Myers Myers, "Silverlock"

Wayne Brown <fwbrown@bellsouth.net> writes:
>
>pages, but the worst problem is when it reprints checks. (It's all
>too easy for the users not to notice the duplicates.) Is there some
>option that controls whether or not print jobs will be restarted from
>the beginning when communication errors occur?
>

Nope. Modern printers have buffering (and if they don't, the device
that connects them to the network does), so Solaris has no idea which
page the printer last printed before the error occurred. When a timeout
or other printer error occurs, all Solaris can do is start again from
the top.

The HP Jetdirect printer software appears to have the feature of resuming
a print job where it left off. That's because it works only with HP
printers, and it knows how to ask the printer how many pages have been
printed. If you have HP network printers, then this might be an option.

-Greg
--
Do NOT reply via e-mail.
Reply in the newsgroup.

Wayne Brown wrote:
> We have a situation in which remote network printers (very remote --
> several states away from the servers) sometimes have communication errors.
> This wouldn't be a big problem except that whatever was being printed at
> the time starts again from the first page. Users also sometimes cause
> this by switching a printer off (to clear a paper jam or something like
> that). The reprinting happens automatically, without anyone stopping and
> restarting the print queue. It's bad enough when it reprints an entire
> 300-page report that already had printed the first couple of hundred
> pages, but the worst problem is when it reprints checks. (It's all
> too easy for the users not to notice the duplicates.) Is there some
> option that controls whether or not print jobs will be restarted from
> the beginning when communication errors occur?
>


There are 2 reasons that I've run across that can cause this behaviour:

1. You are using HP printers with their jetdirect software and you need
to change the config so that "TRUE END OF JOB" and "JOB RECOVERY" are
set to OFF

2. You are using HP or other printers and have set them up as remote
printers when they should be setup as network printers.

This is a remote printer. It should point ONLY to another full fledged
actual print server that is another computer and NOT the printer itself:

# lpstat -lp localname
printer localname is idle. enabled since May 05 14:05 2004. available.
Remote Name: q_on_another_computer
Remote Server: another_computer


This is an actual network printer. It points to the printer on the
network and defines content type, printer type, interface, etc.:

# lpstat -lp lexmark
printer lexmark is idle. enabled since Wed May 05 07:47:48 2004. available.
Form mounted:
Content types: postscript
Printer types: PS
Description:
Connection: direct
Interface: /usr/lib/lp/model/netstandard
On fault: no alert
After fault: continue
Users allowed:
(all)
Forms allowed:
(none)
Banner not required
Character sets:

Default pitch:
Default page size: 80 wide 66 long
Default port settings:
Options: dest=ip_or_hostname_of_printer, protocol=bsd


Sometimes you need to fiddle with whatever timeout options may exist on
the printer's network interface, but first thing is to get the q
properly configured.

Greg Andrews <gerg@panix.com> wrote:
>
> The HP Jetdirect printer software appears to have the feature of resuming
> a print job where it left off. That's because it works only with HP
> printers, and it knows how to ask the printer how many pages have been
> printed. If you have HP network printers, then this might be an option.

Thanks. We're looking into the JetDirect configuration now.

--
Wayne Brown (HPCC #1104) | "When your tail's in a crack, you improvise
fwbrown@bellsouth.net | if you're good enough. Otherwise you give
| your pelt to the trapper."
"e^(i*pi) = -1" -- Euler | -- John Myers Myers, "Silverlock"

In comp.sys.sun.admin ML Starkey <martha.starkey@sun.com> wrote:
>
> There are 2 reasons that I've run across that can cause this behaviour:
>
> 1. You are using HP printers with their jetdirect software and you need
> to change the config so that "TRUE END OF JOB" and "JOB RECOVERY" are
> set to OFF

Thanks for the suggestion. I think this probably is where our problem
lies.

> 2. You are using HP or other printers and have set them up as remote
> printers when they should be setup as network printers.

I've checked this and it appears to be configured correctly.

--
Wayne Brown (HPCC #1104) | "When your tail's in a crack, you improvise
fwbrown@bellsouth.net | if you're good enough. Otherwise you give
| your pelt to the trapper."
"e^(i*pi) = -1" -- Euler | -- John Myers Myers, "Silverlock"