Check for Jobs Backed Up in the Local Client Queue

Jobs earmarked for a print server may back up in the client system queue for the following reasons:

•  The print server is down.

•  The printer is disabled on the print server.

•  The network between the print client and print server is down.

•  Underlying Solaris 2.x network software was not set up properly.

While you are tracking down the source of the problem, use the disable command on the print server to stop new requests from being added to the queue.

Check for Jobs Backed Up in the Remote Server Queue

If jobs back up in the print server queue, the printer probably has been disabled. When a printer is accepting requests but not processing them, the requests are queued to print. After you enable the printer, the print requests in the queue should print--unless there is an additional problem.

Use the following steps to send jobs to a remote printer when they back up in the local queue:

1.  On the print client, type reject printer-name and press Return. Additional queuing of print requests from the print client to the print server ceases.

2.  Type ping print-server-name and press Return to check that the print server and the network between the print client and the print server is up.

3.  Type tail /var/lp/logs/lpsched and press Return. The resulting information may help you pinpoint what is preventing the transmission of print requests from the print client to the print server.

4.  After you fix the problem, on the print client, type accept printer-name and press Return. New jobs can begin to queue.

5.  (If necessary) On the print client type enable printer-name and press Return. The printer is enabled.

Use the following steps to free jobs from a print client that back up in the print server queue:

1.  On the print server, type reject printer-name and press Return. Additional print requests are not queued.

2.  Type tail /var/lp/logs/lpsched and press Return. The information that appears on-screen may help you pinpoint what is preventing the print requests that have been transmitted from the print client to the print server from being printed.

3.  After you fix the problem, on the print server type accept printer-name and press Return. The printer accepts new jobs in the print queue.

4.  (If necessary) On the print server, type enable printer-name and press Return. The printer is enabled.

Conflicting Status Messages

A user may enter a print request and be notified that the client system has accepted it, then receive mail from the print server that the job has been rejected. These conflicting messages may occur for the following reasons:

•  The print client may be accepting requests, but the print server is rejecting requests.

•  The definition of the printer on the print client might not match the definition of that printer on the print server. More specifically, the definitions of the print job components, such as filters, character sets, print wheels, and forms, are not the same on the client and server systems.

Make sure that identical definitions of these job components are registered on both the print clients and print servers so that local users can access printers on the print servers.

Use the following steps to resolve conflicting status messages:

1.  Type lpstat -p printer-name and press Return. Check that the printer connected to the print server is enabled and accepting requests. Users see conflicting status messages when the print client accepts requests but the print server rejects them.

2.  On the print server and on each print client, type lpstat -p -l printer-name and press Return. Check that the definition of the printer on the print client matches the definition of the printer on the print server. Look at the definitions of the print job components, such as print filters, character sets, print wheels, and forms, to be sure they are the same on both the client and server systems, so that local users can access printers on print server systems.