Printing over Network to HP with Jetdirect card

[Budgie2]

Feel I am in dunces corner here because I had this all working fine with Suse 10.0. I wish to print directly to an HP printer over the network. The printer has built-in network interface and is working fine with other computers on the lan.

Using YaST I can get the connection confirmed as working and install the driver but when I try and print a test page nothing happens.

Firewall is configured with NIC as external interface and I have allowed CUPS services although there is no external CUPS server. I have also opened port 9100 which is the port indicated in the driver.

Where am I going wrong please?

Budgie2

[lwfinger]

Budgie2 wrote:
>
> Where am I going wrong please?

If there is ever a question of the firewall getting in the way, always
disable it to test.

How are you connecting to your printer? Look at the URL in the YaST
configuration. If it says LPD://..., then it will use port 515. If it
is IPP://..., then port 631. Port 9100 is for PDL protocol.

My JetDirect, which is mounted in a LaserJet 2200, connects with LPD
protocol.

Larry

[Budgie2]

Hi,
Thanks for the port info. I should have said I am just starting with OpenSuSE 11.1 and the yast process is different from SuSE 10.0 which I used before and different also from OpenSuSE 11.0 which I have on a laptop.

What I am trying to set up is to print using TCP directly to a printer. If I use the yast process unedited it offers the port 9100 but on the machine which is working I do not have LPD or IPP but "Socket:<IP Address>.
I tried editing the 9100 which is not open on the JetDirect to 515 following your message and this seems to work. The driver uses a local CUPS server which is started by the installation process.
Thanks again.
Budgie2

[smpoole7]

Originally Posted by Budgie2

Firewall is configured with NIC as external interface and I have allowed CUPS services although there is no external CUPS server. I have also opened port 9100 which is the port indicated in the driver

lwfinger's comment about trying it without the firewall was a good one. If you suspect it, briefly disable it.

But for future reference, if disabling it does make the printer work, you'd done something unusual. The typical firewall (and Suse's is no different) sets up the iptables to block INCOMING packets, not outgoing. From that same point of view, unless you are deliberately using your Suse machine as a Cups server that will relay to the HP printer, there's no need to open the Cups ports.

As for your specific problem, I've run across the same thing, and as I recall, it was a driver mismatch issue. See if you have an alternate driver that you can try. It may be that you can (a), see the printer, that (b), Suse can touch it (and thus confirm that it's there and that it's listening, but (c), your driver is sending a format that the printer can't understand.

One final tip: HP has very good support for Linux at their Website. Do a search and confirm whether that particular printer wants port 9100, or something else.

I believe that Opensuse 11.1 has changed a lot of drivers. I had to back off to an older printer driver with our HP3500 on port 9100 at the office. The one that Yast recommended just didn't work. And touching on what I said above, I have ALL ports closed solid on my laptop, and yet, I can print just fine. The firewall (by default) blocks INCOMING packets, not outgoing.

[pignatenko]

How new is your card? The driver may not be supported by CUPS yet. Also make sure you have the HP driver packages. Also try not to use YaST it sometimes makes a big stink instead of working, try using the CUPS http interfact by going to http://localhost:631/. CUPS should autodetect the printer with Avahi, so use the "Find New Printers" button in the Administration tab, and everything should be filled in for you except what driver to use. Use the post script ones first and if you have a problem with them (sometimes they don't get landscape printing right) reconfigure the driver through CUPS. You'll need your root password for the web interface.

[Budgie2]

Originally Posted by pignatenko

How new is your card? The driver may not be supported by CUPS yet. Also make sure you have the HP driver packages. Also try not to use YaST it sometimes makes a big stink instead of working, try using the CUPS http interfact by going to http://localhost:631/. CUPS should autodetect the printer with Avahi, so use the "Find New Printers" button in the Administration tab, and everything should be filled in for you except what driver to use. Use the post script ones first and if you have a problem with them (sometimes they don't get landscape printing right) reconfigure the driver through CUPS. You'll need your root password for the web interface.

In fact the printer is ancient a mono LaserJet 5/5M which has PS installed and a jetDirect internal nic. I couldn't find it on the HP site; they do have a 5/5m but it refers to a colour printer. I want to use CUPS which is what I did on Suse 10.0. Will try your suggestion.
Many thanks and also to the others who have replied,
Budgie2

On Wed February 11 2009 05:26 pm, Budgie2 wrote:
<snip>
>> the web interface.
>
> In fact the printer is ancient a mono LaserJet 5/5M which has PS
> installed and a jetDirect internal nic. I couldn't find it on the HP
> site; they do have a 5/5m but it refers to a colour printer. I want to
> use CUPS which is what I did on Suse 10.0. Will try your suggestion.
> Many thanks and also to the others who have replied,
> Budgie2
>
>
Budgie2;

Have you checked the "open printing" site?
See:
http://openprinting.org/show_printer...HP-LaserJet_5M

Also search these forums for installing HP printers.
--
P. V.
"We're all in this together, I'm pulling for you." Red Green

[elserj]

I had a similar issue and it turned out to be the driver. I fixed it by replacing the hplip packages with ones in the packman repo. To do this, make sure you have the packman repo added as an installation source. Then in yast, do a software search for hplip. Uninstall the ones that don't have packman in the name, and install the ones that do have packman.

Hope that helps.

[Budgie2]

Originally Posted by elserj

I had a similar issue and it turned out to be the driver. I fixed it by replacing the hplip packages with ones in the packman repo. To do this, make sure you have the packman repo added as an installation source. Then in yast, do a software search for hplip. Uninstall the ones that don't have packman in the name, and install the ones that do have packman.

Hope that helps.

Many thanks. I did ensure that the hplip files were from Packman and they are more recent than the ones that were installed. I have been able to get PS driver to work which is fine but I cannot get CUPS to work, neither can I get the direct TCP approach to work as it did before because the JetDirect card refuses access to port 9100. Will read up the threads suggested and come back later if I get stuck.

Yast seems to have a will of its own and judging by the time it takes, seems to download drivers during the install process rather than using those already installed. Is that correct?

Will persevere but at least I have PS working.
Many thanks,
Budgie2

[elserj]

Originally Posted by Budgie2

Yast seems to have a will of its own and judging by the time it takes, seems to download drivers during the install process rather than using those already installed. Is that correct?

Will persevere but at least I have PS working.
Many thanks,
Budgie2

My understanding is that it is not actually downloading them, but repopulating a database with the current drivers. I don't know why it does this nearly every time I do something with the printers in Yast.

I have only done it using newer printers and have never had a problem with setting up a direct TCP connection in Yast. I don't really like how it changed in 11.1, but I guess it isn't really that different.

You said that when you set up the connection in Yast, it tests OK, even on port 9100? If it does there and still doesn't print right, I would be inclined to agree that it is definitely a driver issue.

At least on mine, there seems to be 5 different drivers for the Laserjet 5, and 5 more for the Laserjet 5M. I don't know what the differences are, but have you tried all the different drivers?