All Products: Testing a Device's Support of the LPD Protocol

Goal:

• Determine if a print device supports the Line Printer Daemon (LPD) protocol required for Pharos Secure Release Here job release.

Environment:

• Pharos Blueprint Enterprise (all versions)

• Pharos Uniprint Suite v8.3

• Pharos Uniprint Suite v8.4

• Pharos Omega terminals

• Pharos iMFP terminals

Cause:

Pharos Blueprint Enterprise and Pharos Uniprint 8.3 and 8.4 require that the device support the LPD protocol, as these software products use the associated LPR (Line Printer Remote) protocol to send the job from the server in a Secure Release HereTM workflow. This also applies to "Direct Print" configurations in Uniprint 8.3 and 8.4. The "Resolution" section will help you determine if your device(s) has the LPD protocol enabled.

Resolution:

Test Using the LPR Protocol

1. Create a text file with something in it. "The quick brown fox..." is an excellect choice.

2. Use the LPR command line to submit this job to the device. The syntax for the LPR command is:     

   lpr -S <IP address of printer> -P <LPR queue name> <Filename>.txt

   NOTE: The "S" and the "P" must be uppercase. Further, ensure that spaces are used after each.

   NOTE: It is also important that, if required by the device, the LPR queue name be used. This queue name varies by manufacturer and sometimes by model. For your convenience, the more popular queue names are listed below. Please consult with your device manufacturer's Product Installation Guide or Technical Support group to verify the correct queue name for your device. This queue name must also be specified when setting up your terminal (Pharos Blueprint Enterprise) or device (Pharos Uniprint) for the best possible user experience. Be aware the queue names are case-sensitive.

Test using the LPQ (Line Printer Query) Command

You could also use the LPQ command. Note that similarity between LPQ and LPR, but no file is required for LPQ:     

lpq  -S <ip of printer> -P <LPR queue name>

NOTE: If desired, you can add the -l switch for verbose output. 

If you are not able to LPR a print job to the device, or determine the queue's status via LPQ, neither Pharos Blueprint nor Uniprint will be successful when attempting to release a print job. In some cases, a failure may be due to simply not having the LPD protocol enabled in the device's network/network services configuration. Other reasons include:

• Using the wrong, or no, LPR queue name

• A network device (router, firewall, proxy server) blocking or capturing the traffic. The LPD service listens over TCP port 515.