Print Job over Network

[hennessy1]

I have a printer attached by 2 active extension usb cables to a computer. The cables are about 5m each. I can print from the computer directly no problem but when I print from other computers over the network the print job seems to either get stuck or take forever to print because it never prints.

Is this because of the cable length? and if so why does it allow the direct connected computer to print but not the network?

 

[rasczak]

go to printers and faxes (assuming you have windows xp) right click on the printer in question and select properties.

click on the advanced tab and make sure the check box for start printing immediately is selected. (both on the pc that hosts thw printer and the pc having printer issues.)

 

[hennessy1]

Yes that is checked on both pcs.

 

[thegpfury]

Does it get hung up on the client computers or does it get hung up on the pc that's connected to the printer?

 

[rasczak]

in that case, go start > run type services.msc

locate the print spooler and stop the restart the service.

on both systems.

also do you have the printer shared?

http://www.microsoft.com/windowsxp/using/networking/expert/honeycutt_july2.mspx

 

[corkyg]

Basic question . . . is the printer installed on all systems as a network printer?

 

[hennessy1]

I know that if I restart the computer that the printer is installed on the print job goes through. I can print over the network from that computer to another computer with a printer just fine as well.

Yes I have it shared and it is installed on all systems as a network printer except on the one where it is physically connected to it.

 

[corkyg]

Why the exception?

 

[hennessy1]

Well I mean the physical printer on that computer is shared but its not installed as a shared printer but as physical one.

 

[corkyg]

Try installing it as a network printer on ALL machines. I have 2 priunters and 3 computers on a network, and they are all installed the same way on every machine and it works fine in XP, Vista, and Win 7.

 

[Fardringle]

corkyg, the printer is physically attached to one computer. It can't be installed as a network printer on that machine...


hennessy1, try connecting the printer to the "server" computer using just one regular USB cable without the extenders. It shouldn't make a difference, particularly if the server computer can print to the printer, but it will help eliminate possible causes.

Also, if you have not done so already, try deleting the shared settings from the computer that is attached to the printer, then share the printer again. If that doesn't work, completely uninstall the printer, reinstall it, then share it again to see if it helps. This does sound more like a print spooler problem than a physical issue, and reinstalling the printer drivers might help.

 

[hennessy1]

I will try that thank you. Will report back.

 

[rudder]

Basic question . . . is the printer installed on all systems as a network printer?

Second basic question... is it a host printer?

I had a laserjet 1020 and it always printed fine from the pc it was plugged into. It would sometimes print when I shared it over the network, but more often than not the queue would just freeze and I would have to stop the print services and delete the jobs. I finally realized that host based printers are not designed to be shared. This is mostly for HP printers... they seem to be the only company doing this.

 

[hennessy1]

Ok so I tried using a regular usb cable no luck. I deleted the share and restarted and then shared it again no luck. I uninstalled restarted installed and restarted no luck. It is also a host based printer thing is It is connected to a plenty powerful computer to make up for the lack of an on-board cpu. I did have it installed in a home network before and printed no problem. I can't understand why it is happening now. Well I did restart the print spooler service and worked like a charm. Now is there a way I can make a shortcut on the desktop that a novice computer user would be able to do?

 

[rudder]

It is also a host based printer thing is It is connected to a plenty powerful computer to make up for the lack of an on-board cpu.

Trust me, it will drive you insane. I tried everything... rendering jobs on clients, as well as every other combination of printer settings for my laserjet 1020. It just did not like being shared over the network. It would work fine for a few print jobs... then just quit printing until I cleared the queue/restarted services. So I ditched it and bought a nice samsung laser with wireless for $99.