Print setup problem

[TobyR]

Hello all,

I am trying to configure a Lexmark C720 as a network printer on a HP-UX 11.11 box. JetDirect (via SAM) produces the following error: /usr/lib/lpadmin: can't open printer status file. I have downloaded and installed Lexmark's driver package and then used lexprt, a nifty little setup programme. It has successfully installed for me a virtual driver (called lexmark) but when I try to install the queue I get the same mysterious error message: /usr/lib/lpadmin: can't open printer status file.

I have searched this forum and the FAQs. I have searched on google. I have searched the man pages. I have searched our documentation. Nowhere can I find the answer to the following simple question: To which bloody file is the error message referring!!!?

Any help will be rewarded, of course and as always, with my undying gratitude.

Cheers

Toby

 

[mewa]

Hi,
Printer status files are:
pstatus, qstatus and outputq (in /usr/spool/lp).
One or all of them cannot be open, probably it does not exist or has an incorrect permissions.
You might have these problems also due to incorrect permissions (owner, group, modes) to other files in /usr/spool/lp directory, but it will be hard to find on the forum the specific file which makes this mess...

Regards,
mewa

 

[TobyR]

Thank you thank you Mewa, your suggestion has taken me a step further to Nirvana. The files pstatus and qstatus were missing. I created them and called lexprt again. Now I have a new error message. We love it. It is:

mkdir: cannot access request: No such file or directory
/usr/lib/lpadmin: can't create new request directory

Thank you (once more) so far. Eternal gratitude looms large on the horizon.

Toby

 

[KenCunningham]

Not sure if this will help, but many print systems keep a log of requests in a specific directory (usually called requests, below the printer directory, or similar in my experience). Unfortunately 'my experience' doesn't include HP, so I can only suggest you create a directory called request under /usr/spool/lp and see how that goes. Don't forget to check the permissions once created and alter as appropriate. No doubt someone will come along with the definitive answer soon, but this might while away the minutes until they do. Cheers.

 

[unixqueen]

Ken is right

These are your permissions of request directory under /usr/spool/lp

drwxr-xr-x 6 lp bin 96 Jan 10 17:32 request

Clare

 

[TobyR]

Thank you Ken and Clare,

there was indeed no request directory (I wonder why not). It is now there and I have finally created a print queue (hooray!). This queue 'lexqueue2' is according to SAM enabled and accepting requests. When I try to print however, I get told that lp 'can't open default destination file'. I use the following command variations:

lp -p lexqueue2 /etc/hosts
lp -plexqueue2 /etc/hosts
lp /etc/hosts

I have tried making lexqueue2 the default destination via SAM, but get a curious message: "Lp destination does not exist on usage:.". Is that a PATH problem? Is SAM calling whatever command he needs to call as user lp? Is it just me or is this process unnecessarily complicated?

As ever and as always thank you.

Toby

 

[TobyR]

DOH!

lp -dlexqueue2 /etc/hosts. Ignore me.

However, although no longer urgent since we do not require a setting for default destination, I would be interested to here any ideas on why I am getting that curious message from SAM "destination does not exist on :."

Nirvana and eternal gratitude to all suggestors. Problem effectively solved.

Toby

 

[mewa]

Hi,
Check the permissions to the file /usr/spool/lp/default.
The correct permissions are as follows:
-rw-r--r-- 1 lp bin ... ... default

Cheers,
mewa