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Least memory hungry printer networking options?

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keenerb

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Is there any sort of basic packet driver print redirection software? I know that MS network client can do printer sharing, but it consumes a LOT of memory. I feel like something more efficient ought to be otu there somewhere...
 
What are you trying to print, and what type of printer? If just plain text and you have JetDirect, all you'd have to do is send your text to port 9100.

Or are you asking about how to share a non-networked printer on a network? If you have *nix, CUPS will work as a print server, and you can print to it without a driver over the network. Though I'm not sure how it is on memory.

There exist standalone print server boxes you can purchase, or if you have HP, you can get a jetdirect box. Or perhaps those are the things you're trying to avoid.
 
Bentendo64 said:
What are you trying to print, and what type of printer? If just plain text and you have JetDirect, all you'd have to do is send your text to port 9100.

Or are you asking about how to share a non-networked printer on a network? If you have *nix, CUPS will work as a print server, and you can print to it without a driver over the network. Though I'm not sure how it is on memory.

There exist standalone print server boxes you can purchase, or if you have HP, you can get a jetdirect box. Or perhaps those are the things you're trying to avoid.
Click to expand...
I have two printers and three computers, and was curious what printer sharing software options there were to share these printers between the vintage computers, all running MSDOS.
 
A while back I did some ad-hoc experiments with some DOS software to capture printing to a fake LPT port on my Tandy 1000 to a file, and then sending the resulting file to an HP JetDirect using "nc" (netcat) from the mTCP suite, and it worked. I'd have to dig around to figure out what I was playing with for the capture TSR but it was fairly small. Obviously it's a bit more awkward than being able to print directly.

If you're looking for a lightweight print *server* programmed for an MS-DOS computer, well, that's a different can of worms. (Maybe you could, following the example above, use "NC" to listen on a port, capture to a file, and then copy that file to lpt1 or whatever...)
 
If your printer listens on port 9100 (JetDirect) then you can print to a file and then use netcat to send the file directly to the printer. Be sure to use binary mode. (I have this documented in the mTCP PDF documentation.) It was kind of magic watching told Epson MX-80 dump files show up on my Brother laser printer.

If you can't print to a file look for a TSR as Eudimorphodon suggests.
 
mbbrutman said:
If your printer listens on port 9100 (JetDirect) then you can print to a file and then use netcat to send the file directly to the printer. Be sure to use binary mode. (I have this documented in the mTCP PDF documentation.) It was kind of magic watching told Epson MX-80 dump files show up on my Brother laser printer.

If you can't print to a file look for a TSR as Eudimorphodon suggests.
Click to expand...
I've actually got a decent setup right now using some switchboxes, a Retroprinter, and an Epson LX350 printer. I was just exploring what other possibilities were out there. I'm 99% positive I came across exactly what I'm thinking about on a site somewhere, but I've forgotten what it was called or where I found it, like I forgot the name of the screen remote control software I found for MSDOS systems a long time ago...
 
I run a Wifi-to-USB print adapter using an Orange Pi cheapie. Just set up Linux and do the port 9100 thing for Jet direct. WWW should have details.

There were also printer parallel auto switchboxes that require no extra memory. I used to have one--4 or 5 users per printer.
 
keenerb said:
I was just exploring what other possibilities were out there. I'm 99% positive I came across exactly what I'm thinking about on a site somewhere, but I've forgotten what it was called or where I found it
Click to expand...

How about this:

http://ftp.oldskool.org/pub/simtelnet/msdos/lan/neos-10.zip

I haven't tried it myself. I've always been able to use Personal Netware to get this done. Not TCP/IP, but the memory requirements were OK for me.

like I forgot the name of the screen remote control software I found for MSDOS systems a long time ago...
Click to expand...

You might be thinking of this:

http://josh.com/tiny/
 
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