How Remote Printing Works

The figure below shows what happens when a user on a SunOS 5.8 print client submits a print request to a SunOS 4.1 print server. The command opens a connection and handles it's own communications with the print server directly.

Figure 8-3 Network Printing Between a SunOS 5.8 Print Client and a SunOS 4.1 Print Server

The figure below shows a SunOS 4.1 print client submitting a print request to a SunOS 5.8 print server. The lpd daemon handles the local part of the print request and the connection to the print server. On the print server, the network listen process, inetd, waits for network printing requests and starts a protocol adaptor to service the request. The protocol adaptor communicates with the lpsched daemon, which processes the request on the print server.

Figure 8-4 Network Printing Between a SunOS 4.1 Print Client and a SunOS 5.8 Print Server

The figure below shows what happens when a user on a SunOS 5.8 print client submits a print request to a SunOS 5.8 print server. The print command on the print client handles the local part of each print request by communicating directly with the print server.

The inetd process on the print server monitors network printing requests and starts a protocol adaptor to communicate with the lpsched daemon on the print server, which processes the print request.

Figure 8-5 Network Printing Between a SunOS 5.8 Print Client and a SunOS 5.8 Print Server