Solaris Print Package Redesign

This section describes the redesign of the Solaris print packages starting with the Solaris 2.6 release and the additional features that were added with that release.

Redesign of Print Packages

Starting with the Solaris 2.6 release, print packages have been redesigned to provide greater flexibility and modularity of print software installation and to enable installation of a smaller footprint for the print client.

Solaris 2.6 print software includes the following features.

• Redesign of print packages.

• Print protocol adapter.

• SunSoft print client.

• Network printer support.

  The Solaris 2.6 print software has the following limitations.

• No support for print servers defined as S5 (the System V print protocol) in previous Solaris releases.

• No print filtering on print clients.

With the Solaris 2.6 redesign, the default is to install all the print packages. Print servers require installation of all packages, including both client and server. For print clients, you can choose to install only the print client packages. PostScript filter software is provided in its own print package. Table 86 describes the new set of print packages.

Table 86. Solaris Packages

Package	Base Directory	Description
SUNWpcr	root (/)	SunSoft Print—Client.
SUNWpcu	/usr	SunSoft Print—Client.
SUNWpsr	root (/)	SunSoft Print—LP Server.
SUNWpsu	/usr	SunSoft Print—LP Server.
SUNWPSF	/usr	PostScript filters.
SUNWscplp	/usr	SunSoft Print—Source compatibility.
SUNWppm	/usr/sadm/admin/bin	Solaris Print Manager (new in the Solaris 8 release).

The following print packages were removed from the Solaris 2.6 release.

• SUNWlpr— LP print service (root).

• SUNWlpu— LP print service—Client (usr).

• SUNWlps— LP print service—Server (usr).

Print commands from SUNWscpu have been moved into the SUNWscplp (SunSoft Print—Source Compatibility) package.

Print Protocol Adapter

The Solaris 2.6 print protocol adapter replaces the Service Access Facility (SAF), the network listener, and lpNet on the inbound side of the LP spooler with a more modular and modern design.

The print protocol adapter provides the following features.

• The complete BSD print protocol and extended Solaris functionality are implemented.

• Multiple spooling systems can coexist on the same host and have access to the BSD print protocol.

• Third-party application developers can extend the print protocol adapter to support other printing protocols such as Apple and Novell.

The new print protocol adapter is compatible with print clients set up in previous Solaris releases if the BSD protocol was used to configure these clients. If the BSD protocol was not used, you must modify the previous Solaris print client configuration to use the BSD protocol by using Solaris Print Manager or the lpsystem command.

SunSoft Print Client

Starting with the Solaris 2.6 release, the SunSoft Print Client software is bundled with the Solaris Operating Environment as packages SUNWpcr and SUNWpcu. This software was previously released as an unbundled product. It was available on the Solaris Migration CD and as part of the Solstice AdminSuite suite of administration products.

The SunSoft Print Client software uses an NIS map, an NIS+ table, or a single file to provide centralized client administration in the Solaris 2.6 release. The Print Client software includes the following features.

• Replacing the /etc/lp directory structure with a configuration database that can be stored in a user file ($HOME/.printers), a system file (/etc/printers.conf), an NIS map (printers.conf.byname), or an NIS+ FNS context.

• Using a more streamlined implementation that provides reduced client overhead and quicker and more accurate responses to print status requests.

• Using the lpset(1M) command to create the printers.conf file.

• Reducing the size of the package (183 Kbytes total) from previous Solaris releases.

• Providing interoperability with the BSD protocol available with SunOS 4.x, Solaris 2.x, HP-UX, and other systems, as described in RFC-1179.

Enhanced Network Printer Support

Starting with the Solaris 2.6 release, print software provides better support for network printers than in previous Solaris releases. The following new features are included.

• A new interface script, /usr/lib/lp/model/netstandard, which is specifically designed to support network printers. This script collects the spooler and print database information needed to perform network printing and passes it to the print output module.

• A new print output module, netpr, is called from the netstandard interface script to print the print job. It opens a network connection to the printer, creates the correct protocol instructions, and sends the data to the printer. The netpr program currently supports two protocols: BSD print protocol and a TCP pass-through.

• New arguments to the lpadmin -o command to specify destination name, protocol, and time-out values for the network printer.

• Solaris Print Manager, now included in the Solaris 8 Operating Environment, can set up and manage network printers.