Adding an HDA networked printer

To set up a network printer attached to the HDA from Windows, you need to perform a few simple steps. Each machine that will need access to the printer will also need the drivers installed. This will be accomplished at the time you connect them to the printer.

• Connect the printer to the HDA (parallel or USB) and ensure it is powered on. It should automatically detect the printer and set it up for you.

• As user root, add the following lines to [global] and [printer] sections of /etc/samba/smb.conf file and save. If the [printer] sections does not exist, add it to the end of the file.

[global]
printing = cups
printcap name = /etc/printcap
load printers = yes
cups options = raw

[printers]
path = /var/spool/samba
printable = yes
public = yes
writable = no

• Restart the Samba server by executing /etc/init.d/smb restart

• Next go to a machine on your network that you want to install the printer. For Windows, from the run option, enter \\hda followed by your user ID and password if required.

• You should see the printer now.

• Right click on the printer and select connect. Answer Yes to install when it prompts to install the printer.

• Now, it won’t find the drivers, so select OK as we will install the drivers from the printer disk.

• You should now see the add printer wizard. If your driver is in the list, select it. Otherwise, select Have Disk and point it to your drive where the printer driver disk is located.

• Once you install the driver, you can check the Printers and Faxes to see if it is installed. Although it says Access denied, unable to connect, it is working. For some reason, it only periodically displays Ready on my machine, but it is connected. Print a test page. If all works well, you should see it in a matter of seconds.

This worked great on my network, but may require some additional adjustments for others. For more assistance, see the FAQ (I want to add a printer to my HDA and make it a printer server, how do I do it?)