[CentOS] CUPS not rendering documents via Samba

Wed Jun 22 16:24:25 UTC 2011
Robert Heller <heller at deepsoft.com>

At Wed, 22 Jun 2011 16:22:57 +0100 CentOS mailing list <centos at centos.org> wrote:

> 
> >>> On Wed, 22 Jun 2011 15:16:54 +0100
> >>> Kevin Thorpe <kevin.thorpe at pibenchmark.com> wrote:
> >>>
> >>>> Hi guys, any CUPS / Samba experts out there?
> 
> >>> In CUPS https://localhost:631/ setup your printers and set the printer
> >>> driver for each printer to local raw printer
> 
> > And you say that, using localhost:631, you did add printer, then selected
> > make and model, and chose one of the drivers, and it still doesn't do the
> > right thing?
> 
> That sets the printer up just fine in Linux. I can print to that fine
> with Open Office.
> The problem I have is that a generic PS driver in Windows to the SMB printer
> outputs the raw PS script instead of rendering which is odd because the
> CUPS test page is a postscript file.

Look *closely* at your smb.conf file.  I'll bet it has something like
this:

# Cups Options let you pass the cups libs custom options, setting it to
raw
# for example will let you use drivers on your Windows clients
#
# Printcap Name let you specify an alternative printcap file
#
# You can choose a non default printing system using the Printing option

        load printers = yes
        cups options = raw

;       printcap name = /etc/printcap
        #obtain list of printers automatically on SystemV
        printcap name = cups
        show add printer wizard = no
        printing = cups

Note the line 'cups options = raw'.  This means that when you add a
printer via NETBIOS (adding a network printer from the Network
Neighborhood) and send a printout, it gets sent *directly* to the
printer and DOES NOT go through the CUPS (foomatic) filter.  This means
that the MS-Windows machine must have the MS-Windows printer driver for
the printer installed and must be using this driver.

For a *real* PostScript printer (eg almost all *Laser* printers
(typically all but bargin basement types)), picking the 'generic'
PostScript driver will work just fine (I have no real idea *why*
MS-Windows thinks you need to have umpteen *different* PostScript
drivers, one for each model of PostScript printer).

MS-Windows *supposedly* supports the ipp protocol.  If you manage to get
the MS-Windows box to use *that* protocol for the network printer, (eg
ipp://IP-address:631/...), then you *should* be able to use the
'generic' PostScript, even if the printer is your basic (cheap) inkjet
printer using the CUPS foomagic (Ghostscript) driver/filter.

> 

-- 
Robert Heller             -- 978-544-6933 / heller at deepsoft.com
Deepwoods Software        -- http://www.deepsoft.com/
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