Path: utzoo!utgpu!news-server.csri.toronto.edu!cs.utexas.edu!rice!sun-spots-request From: papowell@vlsi.cs.umn.edu (Patrick Powell) Newsgroups: comp.sys.sun Subject: Re: Printcap for a large site; how??? Keywords: Source Message-ID: <5739@brazos.Rice.edu> Date: 13 Mar 90 12:18:31 GMT Sender: root@rice.edu Organization: Sun-Spots Lines: 37 Approved: Sun-Spots@rice.edu X-Refs: Original: v9n50, Replies: v9n59 X-Sun-Spots-Digest: Volume 9, Issue 76, message 5 In article <5067@brazos.Rice.edu> pwa-b!m086414@uunet.uu.net (Fred Comins) writes: >X-Sun-Spots-Digest: Volume 9, Issue 50, message 2 > >We have many printers and are getting another 45 laser jets. The problem >is that all users want to be able to get to any of the printers. I'm >looking for advice on the easiest way to keep this managed. Currently we >were planning to use rdist with 1 master printcap with an entrie for every >printer. Any better ideas?? Do I have to have a spool directory for >each?? thanks The PLP (Public Line Printer) available from vlsi.cs.umn.edu using anonyumous ftp in pub/PLP..tar.Z has been updated to use the following technique: It has a list of printcap files it checks, starting with /usr/spool/lpd/..../printcap., /usr/spool/lpd/..../printcap, /usr/etc/printcap, /etc/printcap. It searches for the FIRST printcap file with an entry for the named printer. (This is available in version PLP.5Mar90.tar.Z) This allows you to 1. Create a printcap file just for a host (printcap.) that holds the local printer information. 2. have a globally available printcap (/usr/spool/lpd/.../printcap, usr/etc/printcap, /etc/printcap) that holds global information, such as "remote printer, send to hacks.cs.berkeley.edu" types of entries. WARNING WARNING WARNING: PLP tried to use the lockf (lock daemon) to avoid problems with locking, etc. THE LOCK DAEMON as supplied by SUN DOES NOT WORK. and will hang/crash your systems with monotonous regularity. A rewrite of PLP is underway to use a new scheme that will avoid all the sillyness of having individual spool directories, etc. Patrick POWELL Prof. Patrick Powell, Dept. Computer Science, EECS 4-192, University of Minnesota, Minneapolis, MN 55455 (612)625-3543/625-4002