# printcap's sd being ignored?



## MMacD (Sep 18, 2015)

(Apologies if this isn't the right place for this)

I have 2 print queues defined in /etc/printcap:


```
m401:\
  rm=192.168.0.97:\
  rp=m401:\
  sh:mx#0:\
  sd=/var/spool/printer/m401:\
  lf=/var/log/m401-errs

lpr:\
  rm=192.168.0.97:\
  rp=m401:\
  sh:mx#0:\
  sd=/var/spool/printer/lpr:\
  lf=/var/log/lpr-errs
```

As far as I can tell from the documentation, that should work.  But when I run chktermcap, I get


```
lpr and m401 share the same spool, /var/spool/output/lpd
```

I'm unable to discover where output/lpd is hard-coded.

Do I have the printer declarations wrong?  The printer is a postscript device with its own ethernet card.

(v9.3, newly installed)


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## wblock@ (Sep 19, 2015)

Note how the last line in both entries does not have a final colon.  I suggest using colons at both the start and end of each line.  There is no need to save space here, so putting only one entry per line can help, also.

It is unlikely that this printer really has a print queue called m401.  HP printers usually only have a couple of names for print queues, the important one being raw.

The Handbook shows both the LPD style (rm for remote machine and rp for remote printer) and the HP-specific port 9100 style:

```
:lp=9100@network-printer-name:\
```
That HP style is more easily understood.

Given that 10.2 just came out, it's not clear why you would install 9.3.  But they are the same as far as LPD.


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## shepper (Sep 19, 2015)

I followed wblock@ printing guide for a network FreeBSD printer with several queue's Thread 291623.  You did not specifically state if you created the spool directories with the proper owner/group and permissions.  Also most of the examples have a colon preceeding the lines after the printer name and an empty :lpr=:\.  

```
lpr=:\
  :lpr=\
  :rm=192.168.0.97:\
  :rp=m401:\
  :sh:mx#0:\
  :sd=/var/spool/printer/lpr:\
  :lf=/var/log/lpr-errs
```

The printing guide also mentions that using the JetDirect port sometimes works better.

```
lpr=:\
  :lpr=9100@192.168.0.97\
  :rp=m401:\
  :sh:mx#0:\
  :sd=/var/spool/printer/lpr:\
  :lf=/var/log/lpr-errs
```

Edit:  Speak of the Devil, my post was seconds to minutes behind his.


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