Printer Installation and Drivers
Connecting and Configuring
1 Purpose
This document covers the essential steps for installing and configuring a printer. Understanding how printers connect to a computer, the role of the driver software, and how print jobs are managed is a fundamental skill for any help desk or IT support technician. We will cover both traditional methods and the modern, driverless standards that are now common.
2 What You’ll Accomplish
By the end of this reading, you will be able to:
- List common printer connection types.
- Describe how modern printers are automatically discovered on a network.
- Explain the concept of driverless printing with IPP Everywhere.
- Contrast the modern printing workflow with the legacy driver-based model.
- Define the role of CUPS in a Linux environment.
This reading maps to the following program and course learning outcomes:
- Course Learning Outcomes (CLOs):
- 1. Identify hardware and basic network components: This topic covers the software and networking components required to make a printer functional.
- 3. Troubleshoot hardware and basic network components: Understanding the installation process is the first step in troubleshooting a non-working printer.
This exercise develops the following skills, which align with the O*NET SOC Code 15-1232.00 for Computer User Support Specialists.
| Learning Objective | O*NET KSAs | Technologies Used |
|---|---|---|
| Describe printer connection and driver concepts. | Knowledge: Computers & Electronics, Telecommunications Skills: Installation |
IPP, Bonjour, CUPS, PPD |
| Explain network printer sharing. | Knowledge: Telecommunications Abilities: None |
Shared Printer, IPP |
3 Printer Connection Types
A printer can be connected to a computer or a network in several ways.
- USB: The most common connection for a local printer. It’s a simple, direct connection to a single computer.
- Ethernet: Many office printers have a built-in network interface card (NIC) with an RJ45 port. They connect directly to the office network switch and are assigned an IP address.
- Wi-Fi: Wireless printers connect to the local network via Wi-Fi. This can be done by connecting to an existing wireless network (Infrastructure mode) or, on some models, by creating their own ad-hoc network (Wi-Fi Direct).
4 Modern Printer Setup: Discovery and Communication
In the past, setting up a network printer required knowing its IP address and manually configuring it. Today, the process is almost entirely automatic thanks to two key technologies.
4.1 Automatic Discovery: Bonjour (mDNS/Zeroconf)
Instead of needing manual configuration, modern network devices use Zeroconf (Zero-configuration networking) to find each other. The most common implementation of this is Bonjour, originally from Apple, which uses mDNS (Multicast DNS).
Here’s how it works:
- A new printer on the network sends out a multicast message to all devices on the local network.
- This message effectively announces, “Hello, I am a printer named ‘Office-LaserJet’, I support IPP printing, and you can reach me at this IP address.”
- Operating systems like Linux, macOS, and Windows are constantly listening for these mDNS announcements.
- When your computer “hears” the announcement, it automatically adds the printer to the list of available devices, requiring no action from the user.
This is the “magic” that makes printers appear automatically in your print dialog, and it’s a core feature of modern, user-friendly networking.
4.2 Driverless Printing: IPP Everywhere™
Once the printer is discovered, the computer still needs to know how to talk to it and what its capabilities are (e.g., can it print in color? does it support duplex?).
- The Old Way: Required a specific driver or PPD file from the manufacturer that contained this information.
- The New Way: Uses the Internet Printing Protocol (IPP), a universal standard for sending and managing print jobs over a network.
IPP Everywhere™ is a certification standard built on IPP. A printer that is “IPP Everywhere” compliant can describe its own capabilities to the computer.
The workflow is simple: 1. The computer discovers the printer via Bonjour. 2. When a user wants to print, the computer sends an IPP query to the printer asking, “What can you do?” 3. The printer responds with a list of its features: paper sizes, color support, resolution, etc.
Because the printer provides this information on demand, the need for a pre-installed, model-specific driver from the manufacturer is eliminated. The ippeveprinter you configured in the exercises is a perfect simulation of a modern, IPP Everywhere-compliant device.
5 The Role of Drivers and the Print Spooler
5.1 Legacy vs. Modern Drivers
While driverless printing is the future, you will still encounter older devices that require a traditional driver.
Legacy Drivers (PPD Files): For older network printers or those not IPP Everywhere compliant, the OS relies on a PPD (PostScript Printer Description) file. This is a text file provided by the manufacturer that acts as a static “fact sheet,” telling the printing system about the printer’s capabilities. The printing system uses the PPD file to correctly format the job.
Modern “Driverless” Model: The “driver” is essentially built into the operating system’s printing system (CUPS). It knows how to speak the universal IPP language to discover any printer’s capabilities directly.
5.2 The Print Spooler
Whether using a legacy driver or the modern IPP model, the print job doesn’t go directly to the printer. It goes to a background service called a print spooler (or print queue). The spooler’s job is to manage print jobs from one or more applications and users, sending them to the printer one at a time. This is essential because it allows you to queue up multiple documents and continue working on your computer while the spooler manages the printing process in the background.
6 CUPS: The Common Unix Printing System
On Linux, macOS, and other Unix-like operating systems, the print spooler is CUPS (Common Unix Printing System). CUPS is a powerful, modular printing system that handles all aspects of printing: - Discovering printers on the network (using Bonjour/mDNS). - Communicating with printers (using IPP). - Managing print queues. - For legacy devices, locating and using the correct PPD file. - Sending the final job to the physical printer. - Providing a web-based interface for administration.
8 Reflect and Review
Now that you have reviewed this document, take a moment to reflect on your learning in your personal notes:
- 3 key technologies involved in modern printing (e.g., connection, discovery, communication).
- 2 ways a computer can learn about a printer’s capabilities (the old way vs. the new way).
- 1 question you still have about the difference between Bonjour and IPP.
Answer these questions in your notes to solidify your understanding:
- What is the role of Bonjour (mDNS) in printer setup?
- What does it mean for a printer to be “driverless”? What protocol makes this possible?
- What is a PPD file and when is it necessary?
- What is the name of the print spooler system used on Linux, and what are two of its key responsibilities?
- You plug a new, modern printer into your office network. A few moments later, it appears in your list of available printers. What two technologies worked together to make this happen?