2.5 Setting Up a Printer

YaST can be used to configure a local printer that is directly connected to your machine (normally with USB or parallel port) or to set up printing over the network. It is also possible to add PPD (PostScript Printer Description) files for your printer with YaST. Further information about printing (concepts, technical details, and troubleshooting) is available in Section 7.0, Printer Operation, (↑ Reference ).

2.5.1 Configuring Local Printers

If an unconfigured local printer is detected, YaST starts automatically to configure it. YaST can configure the printer automatically if the parallel or USB port can be set up automatically and the connected printer can be detected. The printer model must also be listed in the database used during the automatic hardware detection.

If the printer model is unknown or cannot be automatically detected, configure it manually. There are two possible reasons why a printer is not automatically detected:

  • The printer does not identify itself correctly. This may apply to very old devices. Try to configure your printer as described in Configuring Manually.

  • If the manual configuration does not work, communication between printer and computer is not possible. Check the cable and the plugs to make sure that the printer is properly connected. If this is the case, the problem may not be printer-related, but rather a USB or parallel port–related problem.

Configuring Manually

To manually configure the printer, select Hardware > Printer in the YaST control center. This opens the main Printer Configuration window, where the detected devices are listed in the upper part. The lower part lists any queues configured so far (refer to Section 7.1, The Workflow of the Printing System, (↑ Reference ) for more information about print queues). If no printer was detected, both parts of the configuration window are empty. Use Edit to change the configuration of a listed printer or Add to set up a printer not automatically detected. Editing an existing configuration uses the same dialogs as in Adding a Local Printer Manually.

In Printer Configuration, you can also Delete an existing entry. Clicking Other opens a list with advanced options. Select Restart Detection, to manually start the automatic printer detection. If more than one printer is connected to the machine or more than one queue is configured for a printer, you can mark the active entry as the default. CUPS Expert Settings and Change IPP Listen are advanced configuration options— refer to Section 7.0, Printer Operation, (↑ Reference ) for details.

Adding a Local Printer Manually

HINT: YaST Print Test

To make sure that everything works correctly, the crucial configuration steps can be checked with the print test function of YaST. The test page also provides important information about the configuration tested. If the output is garbled, for example, with several pages almost empty, you can stop the printer by first removing all paper then stopping the test from YaST.

  1. Start YaST and choose Hardware > Printer to open the Printer Configuration dialog.

  2. Click Add to open the Printer Type window.

  3. Choose Directly Connected Printers.

  4. Select the port to which the printer is connected (usually USB or parallel port) and choose the device in the next configuration screen. It is recommended to Test the Printer Connection at this point. If problems occur, select the correct device or choose Back to return to the previous dialog.

  5. In Queue Name, set up a print queue. Specifying a Name for Printing is mandatory. It is recommended to choose a recognizable name—with this name, you can later identify the printer in the printing dialogs of applications. Use Printer Description and Printer Location to further describe the printer. This is optional, but useful if you have more than one printer connected to the machine or if you set up a print server. Do Local Filtering should be checked—it is needed for local printers. To enable network access for this printer, check Share Printer.

  6. In Printer Model, specify the printer by Manufacturer and Model. If your printer is not listed, you can try UNKNOWN MANUFACTURER from the manufacturer list and select an appropriate standard language (the set of commands controlling the printer) from the model list (refer to your printer's documentation to find out which language your printer understands). If this does not work, refer to Adding PPD Files with YaST for another possible solution.

  7. The Configuration screen lists a summary of the printer setup. This dialog is also shown when editing an existing printer configuration from the start screen of this YaST module.

    Figure 2-3 Printer Configuration Summary

    The summary contains the following entries, which you can also modify with Edit:

    • Name and basic settings, Printer Model, and Connection let you change entries made while following this procedure.

    • Refer to Choosing an Alternative PPD File with YaST for details on PPD file.

    • With Filter settings fine-tune the printer setup. Configure options like Page Size, Color Mode, and Resolution here.

    • By default, every user is able to use the printer. With Restriction settings, list users that are forbidden to use the printer or list users that are allowed to use it.

    • With State and banner settings you can, for example, deactivate the printer by changing its state and specify whether a page with a Starting Banner or Ending Banner is printed before or after each job (the default is not to print them).

Adding PPD Files with YaST

If your printer does not show up in the Printer Model dialog, a PPD (PostScript Printer Description) file for your model is missing (see Section 7.3, Installing the Software, (↑ Reference ) for more information about PPD files). With Add PPD File to Database, add a PPD file from the local file system or an FTP or HTTP server.

Get PPD files directly from your printer vendor or from the driver CD of the printer (see Section 7.8.2, No Suitable PPD File Available for a PostScript Printer, (↑ Reference ) for details). An alternative source for PPD files is http://www.linuxprinting.org/, the Linux Printing Database. When downloading PPD files from linuxprinting.org, keep in mind that it always shows the latest Linux support status, which is not necessarily met by openSUSE.

Choosing an Alternative PPD File with YaST

For many printer models, several PPD files are available. When configuring the printer, YaST defaults to the one marked recommended as a general rule. To get a list of PPD files available for a printer, select PPD file in Configuration then click Edit. See Figure 2-3.

Normally it should not be necessary to change the PPD file—the PPD file chosen by YaST should produce the best results. However, if you want a color printer to print only in black and white, for example, it is most convenient to use a PPD file that does not support color printing. If you experience performance problems with a PostScript printer when printing graphics, it may help to switch from a PostScript PPD file to a PCL PPD file (provided your printer understands PCL).

2.5.2 Configuring Network Printers

Network printers are not detected automatically. They must be configured manually using the YaST printer module. Depending on your network setup, you can print to a print server (CUPS, LPD, SMB, or IPX) or directly to a network printer (preferably via TCP). Ask your network administrator for details on configuring a network printer in your environment.

Configuring a Network Printer with YaST

  1. Start YaST and choose Hardware > Printer to open the Printer Configuration dialog.

  2. Click Add to open the Printer Type window.

  3. Choose Network Printers to open a dialog in which to specify further details that should be provided by your network administrator.

See Section 7.4, Network Printers, (↑ Reference ) for detailed technical information.