Path: utzoo!utgpu!news-server.csri.toronto.edu!clyde.concordia.ca!uunet!tut.cis.ohio-state.edu!snorkelwacker!spdcc!merk!alliant!linus!nixbur!nixpbe!peun33!freiss From: freiss@nixpbe.UUCP (the hacker) Newsgroups: comp.protocols.tcp-ip.ibmpc Subject: Re: wanted: printer redirector that works still under windows 3.0 Message-ID: Date: 4 Jul 90 12:29:04 GMT References: <9007021931.aa07944@louie.udel.edu> Sender: news@nixpbe.UUCP Lines: 42 In <9007021931.aa07944@louie.udel.edu> NEUMANN%AWIWUW11@WUW.WU-Wien.AC.AT (Gustaf Neumann) writes: >Our problem: > PC-NFS and MD-DOS (Univ. of Maryland TCP/IP) work as a charm as long > MS Windows 3.0 is not involved. Both packages allow to assign the > printerports of the PCs (eg lpt1) to eg Unix's lpd spool queues. > Under Windows 3.0 the redirection of the printers ports is not > recognized anymore (we found no setup such one could print under eg. > MS-Word to lpt1). I'll post this, since I believe many are wondering why printer redirection (not only NFS, but *any* printer redirection not directly configurable from inside Windows) doesn't work. I was bitten by this myself some days ago when a printer redirector I wrote failed to operate under Windows 3.0. The solution: Win 3.0 writes directly to the printer port hardware (do not pass Interrupt 17h, do not collect $2000), which of course fails all redirectors. Validate by attaching a printer to LPT1, redirect LPT1 to your favorite network printer with your favorite redirector and print something - you will still get your output on the local printer. Printerport configuration for a network printer probably causes Windows to issue the appropriate NETBIOS requests, which is not much help with NFS or custom networking software. My solution: print to file and choose the filename lpt?, with ? being a number between 1 to 3 :-). DOS recognizes this as a device and routes the characters to be printed via Int 17 where a redirector can grab them. Rather a quick and dirty solution, but as far as I know the only way to do it. Hope this helped. -Martin -- Martin Freiss internet: freiss.pad@nixdorf.com Nixdorf Computer AG in europe: ..!unido!nixpbe!freiss.pad Dept. PSDD43 Voice: +49 5251 14 6601 D-4790 Paderborn AMPR: dg5kx@dg5kx.ampr.org