Printing under Solaris

Most Frequently Asked Questions

  1. How do I set up a PostScript printer with the Solaris printer manager in admintool?
  2. How do I set up a Hewlett-Packard LaserJet printer with the Solaris printer manager in admintool?
  3. Will my Hewlett-Packard LaserJet4 work with NeWSprint under Solaris?
  4. My printer has a network interface with its own address. How do I set this up under Solaris?
  5. How do I set the baud rate for my serial port printer under Solaris?
  6. When setting up a remote printer with printer manager, should I specify system type "SystemV" or "BSD" for the printer server?
  7. Can my work stations running 4.X and my work stations running 5.X share printers?
  8. I am setting up a third party print spooler, or a Novell UNIX print server, or another UNIX box as a print server. What should I do?
  9. When I connect my printer to the serial port, its lights flashcontinually. Yet I cannot print any jobs.
  10. How can I configure the printer to stop printing the banner page?

  1. How do I set up a PostScript printer with the Solaris printer manager in admintool?

    Create a new printer, of type "PostScript," with file content type "PostScript." This will tell the printing software that files that are not in PostScript form must be filtered--converted--into PostScript. This capability is within the operating system; no additional software is needed. Select the appropriate device (generally, /dev/term/a or /dev/term/b for a serial printer, and /dev/bpp0 for a parallel printer).


  2. How do I set up a Hewlett-Packard LaserJet printer with the Solaris printer manager in admintool?

    Create a new printer. Choose type "Other" for the printer type. A pop-up window will appear, prompting user to specify the printer type. Enter "hplaserjet." Choose file content type "simple." Select the appropriate device (generally, /dev/term/a or /dev/term/b for a serial printer, and /dev/bpp0 for a parallelprinter).


  3. Will my Hewlett-Packard LaserJet4 work with NeWSprint under Solaris?

    Because the LaserJet4 series uses the same HP language as the LaserJet2 and LaserJet3, it can be successfully installed under NeWSprint as an HP LaserJet3. Someof the additional features for the LaserJet4 are unknown, and therefore unsupported, by NeWSprint.


  4. My printer has a network interface with its own address. How do I set this up under Solaris?

    The operating system by itself doesn't have a method to configure a printer with its own address. Contact the printer manufacturer for details on this.


  5. How do I set the baud rate for my serial port printer under Solaris?

    Use the "lpadmin" command. Under admintool, the printer manager assumes that a printer on a serial port will be running at 9600 baud, with character size 8 (cs8) and no parity bits set (-parity). For other settings, run lpadmin after creating the printer through the tool.

    The format for lpadmin is:

    # lpadmin -p printer_name -o "stty=stty_modes"

    where stty_modes is a string such as 19200, cs7, -parity, or any of the appropriate modes for the stty command. For more options, see the man page for stty, or Appendix B of the volume "Setting Up Accounts, Printers, and Mail" in the System AnswerBook.


  6. When setting up a remote printer with printer manager, should I specify system type "SystemV" or "BSD" for the printer server?

    Always specify type "BSD." This reports less status information, but reducesthe possibility of communications problems between systems.


  7. Can my work stations running 4.X and my work stations running 5.X share printers?

    Yes. To print to a printer on a 4.X system from a system running 5.X, create a remote printer under printer manager in admintool. Indicate that the printer host is type "BSD."

    To print to a printer on a 5.X system from a system running 4.X, add the "rm" and "rp" to the printer's printcap entry, as though for a printer on a remote system running the same release of the operating system.


  8. I am setting up a third party print spooler, or a Novell UNIX print server, or another UNIX box as a print server. What should I do?

    As mentioned above, indicate that the printer host is type "BSD." There is a good rate of success with configuring printers on other UNIX systems and servers, but detailed information about equipment from other vendors is not available.


  9. When I connect my printer to the serial port, its lights flash continually. Yet I cannot print any jobs.

    Sounds like a login process is running on the port. Give the command "pmadm -l;" look for a process on the port.

    If there is a process, give the following command to set the port as a non-login device.

    # lpadmin -p -h


  10. How can I configure the printer to stop printing the banner page?

    The printer manager allows a printer to be set up so that a banner is not required. If a user then submits a print job with the command "lp -o nobanner," then a banner page will not be printed.

    If banners are never wanted, customize the interface file for the printer. Edit the file /etc/lp/interfaces/ . Search on the word "nobanner." Change the line "nobanner=no" to "nobanner=yes."