[EdLUG] Printer Advice (cups print servers)

[Edinburgh Linux Users Group]

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
>
>
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-- 
Subhi S Hashwa
When everything is heading your way, you're in the wrong lane.

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