question about using a shared printer

[pontifex]

not sure which forum this would go in...

we have 2 people who do a lot of work in Photoshop. There is one printer that they use to make posters and such. this is installed and shared on PC1.

PC2 prints to this printer through the share.

If PC2 sent a 800mb file to be printed, how much RAM would that take up on PC1's computer?

 

[JeffreyLebowski]

it would take up whatever Ram is available and use the paging file for he rest. If this is a large printer which it must be if it is printing that big of a file, I would highly recommend you get an HP jet direct printserver to be a stand alone that the printer is connected to on the network and offload the printer burden from the workstation.

 

[lokiju]

Originally posted by: JeffreyLebowski
it would take up whatever Ram is available and use the paging file for he rest. If this is a large printer which it must be if it is printing that big of a file, I would highly recommend you get an HP jet direct printserver to be a stand alone that the printer is connected to on the network and offload the printer burden from the workstation.

I concur.

 

[spidey07]

There's a thing called a print server for what you're trying to do.

Your 800 meg file would take up 800 meg of virtual memory - some ram, some disk and be extremely slow and painful.

 

[SirChadwick]

Originally posted by: lokiju

Originally posted by: JeffreyLebowski
it would take up whatever Ram is available and use the paging file for he rest. If this is a large printer which it must be if it is printing that big of a file, I would highly recommend you get an HP jet direct printserver to be a stand alone that the printer is connected to on the network and offload the printer burden from the workstation.

I concur.

Good call.

 

[pontifex]

Originally posted by: JeffreyLebowski
it would take up whatever Ram is available and use the paging file for he rest. If this is a large printer which it must be if it is printing that big of a file, I would highly recommend you get an HP jet direct printserver to be a stand alone that the printer is connected to on the network and offload the printer burden from the workstation.

yeah, its a huge plotter printer (i think its called a plotter).

so if the pc had 1000 mb available of ram left, it would use all of it?

either way, i'm betting this is what caused the problem. pc1 was trying to save a file while pc2 was trying to print that 800mb file. pc1 received a not enough memory error and couldn't save. i told pc1 to wait until the printing was done and try to save then and see if it works.

and yeah, i know what a print server is and does but its not my call to get one.

 

[spidey07]

Why in the world would you be sharing this off of a PC? Do you really love pain that much? You're just asking for problems.

Just share it off of a server (make queue, use print server to attach printer to network)that has the memory and resources to hand these kinds of jobs.

 

[pontifex]

Originally posted by: spidey07
Why in the world would you be sharing this off of a PC? Do you really love pain that much? You're just asking for problems.

Just share it off of a server (make queue, use print server to attach printer to network)that has the memory and resources to hand these kinds of jobs.

because it was only 1 person using the printer until recently.
only 2 people total use it now and its not very often.

 

[spidey07]

Even if it is only a single PC it should be served with a print queue on a server. That's what a network is for - let it do all the work so the PCs don't have to.

 

[j00fek]

Originally posted by: JeffreyLebowski
it would take up whatever Ram is available and use the paging file for he rest. If this is a large printer which it must be if it is printing that big of a file, I would highly recommend you get an HP jet direct printserver to be a stand alone that the printer is connected to on the network and offload the printer burden from the workstation.

:thumbsup:

 

[pontifex]

Originally posted by: spidey07
Even if it is only a single PC it should be served with a print queue on a server. That's what a network is for - let it do all the work so the PCs don't have to.

yeah well, if you worked here your brain would explode from all of the things that don't make sense or the way they are done.

 

[EagleKeeper]

Originally posted by: spidey07
Even if it is only a single PC it should be served with a print queue on a server. That's what a network is for - let it do all the work so the PCs don't have to.

Small businesses do not always have the luzury of running out and getting/upgrading equipment.

A print server is just another PC to them.

 

[bsobel]

Originally posted by: pontifex
not sure which forum this would go in...

Yea, but you KNOW it's not OT

 

[Muse]

By a print server you people mean a desktop dedicated as a print server? How would that be set up? Jetdirect was mentioned, so I assume that a jetdirect card would be installed in the desktop, presumably in a PCI slot?