[EdLUG] Printer Advice (cups print servers)

[Tahir Hafiz]

Salaam Subhi,

Just to say that I got this working nicely with the Macs by setting up a
centralised Cups Print Server on a CentOS 7 virtualised system.
Found a Linux ppd here:
http://www.openprinting.org/printer/Ricoh/Ricoh-Aficio_MP_C2051

That colour ppd file works a treat. And the Macs just point to the CentOS 7
cups print server (printers get set-up by running a shell script on the
Macs) and seem to send generic postscript jobs to it but the cups print
server must translate them into colour jobs. It's working well.

Regards,
Tahir




On Sun, Mar 1, 2015 at 10:31 PM, Subhi S Hashwa <lists at subhi.com> wrote:

> Salam Tahir,
>
> Do you realise that CUPS is already part of OSX?
>
> You can use this to install the CUPS driver to OSX:
> http://gimp-print.sourceforge.net/ then just add the printer as an
> LPD/IPP/whatever printer to each machine.
>
> Although having a centralised CUPS server does have its advantages in
> controlling the print queue.
>
> Hope this helps
>
> Subhi
>
>
> On Sun, Mar 1, 2015 at 10:20 PM, Edinburgh Linux Users Group
> <edlug at lists.edlug.org.uk> wrote:
> > Hi Edlug,
> >
> > Looking for some Linux advice.
> >
> > At work we have a number of Ricoh Aficio MP C2051 printers (no postscript
> > module installed and none available for them) and Mac OS X Yosemite
> clients
> > that have to print to those printers.
> > The Mac clients communicate to a Windows Print Server in order to print.
> >
> > The Mac clients have to have three bits of software installed (pxlmono,
> > foomatic, ghostscript) and a script run to allow their local cups print
> > service running on their Macs from being "sandboxed" and allow it to
> > communicate to the printing subsystem (different file system tree from
> the
> > cups file system tree) as set-up by the three bits of software. This
> set-up
> > in order to print is somewhat flakey.  I can set-up printing from the Mac
> > clients through a generic PCL driver but the prints are greyscale and
> people
> > want colour.
> >
> > In order to improve things I am thinking of setting up a Central Cups
> Print
> > Server (CentOS 7 virtualised), run the three bits of software and
> > de-sandboxing script as required on the Central Cups Print Server and
> then
> > have all the Mac clients communicate via just raw print data to the
> Central
> > Cups Print Server. Then the Central Cups Print Server can translate the
> raw
> > print data from the clients into colour PXL data (because the central
> cups
> > server has the three bits of software installed) which the Ricohs like
> and
> > all will be well. Lots of nice colour printing, very little hassle for
> the
> > Mac OS X clients (no need to run a script to get around sandboxing) and
> no
> > need to go through a Windows Print Server which might be better all round
> > (I'm thinking that cups to cups print communication might be more robust
> and
> > stable).
> >
> > I don't know that much about cups print servers but I think that
> technically
> > the above might work. I know this is sort of a Linux/Mac cups type
> question
> > but is the above solution technically possible?
> > And is there a better solution than the one I am thinking about doing?
> >
> > Thanking you all in advance,
> > Tahir
> >
> >
> > _______________________________________________
> > EdLUG mailing list
> > EdLUG at lists.edlug.org.uk
> > https://lists.edlug.org.uk/mailman/listinfo/edlug
> >
>
>
>
> --
> Subhi S Hashwa
> When everything is heading your way, you're in the wrong lane.
>
> Are you on LinkedIn ? Connect with me! http://linkedin.com/in/subhi
>
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