Export thread

  • Be sure to checkout “Tips & Tricks”
    Dear Guest Visitor → Once you register and log-in:

    This forum does not automatically send notices of new content. So if, for example, you would like to be notified by mail when Steve posts an update to his blog (or of any other specific activity anywhere else), you need to tell the system what to “Watch” for you. Please checkout the “Tips & Tricks” page for details about that... and other tips!

    /Steve.
  • A Patch for SpinRite 6.0's Division Overflow
    Please see my blog posting for the whole story!

print spooler service

#1

MichaelRSorg

MichaelRSorg

On the show Steve/Leo said that with the print spooler service disabled, we could still print. I tested on a Windows 10 pc and a Windows 7 pc. In each case, this was not true. Am I missing something?


#2

P

PHXdNelson

MichaelRSorg said:
On the show Steve/Leo said that with the print spooler service disabled, we could still print. I tested on a Windows 10 pc and a Windows 7 pc. In each case, this was not true. Am I missing something?
Click to expand...

From Steve (via the newsgroups):

If you right-click on the Printer and select "Printer
Properties", the "Advanced" tab offers the options:




(o) Spool print documents so program finishes printing faster


( ) Start printing after last page is spooled
(o) Start printing immediately


( ) Print directly to printer




So, it's inelegant for Windows not to automatically fall back to
the non-spooling option if the spool service is not running. But
sadly, it's hardly surprising. :(


--
________________________________________________________________
/Steve.
Click to expand...


#3

B

Bplayer

My setup consists of a Win 10 PC with a printer attached via USB, and a Win 11 laptop that is network connected to the printer via the Win 10 PC. The printer properties on both PC's is set to disabled and I can print from both of them.


#4

danlock

danlock

Bplayer said:
The printer properties on both PC's is set to disabled and I can print from both of them.
Click to expand...
It might depend on the printer's settings or the printer itself, as well as what software/hardware you're printing from.

For example, I have a b/w (grayscale) 1997 HP LaserJet 4000n (a business printer) which doesn't work when connected via a bi-directional USB-to-Centronics parallel printer cable (when set in the printer's on-device options, of which there are many), but connecting it to my LAN via an Ethernet cable works fine, regardless of whether the spooler service is running, when the printer itself is set to print from its Ethernet port. The printer has several megabytes of internal RAM (or a flash DIMM) where it stores a lot of things (default fonts, etc.). It works with different drivers (with differing capabilities/resolutions, depending on the driver) because it supports different common protocols (which were probably more common in 1997). Sometimes the driver itself tries to access the spooler service, but I think whether the driver uses the Print Spooler service can be controlled on the computer. (Win 8.1)

Officially, the printer supports Windows NT 4.0, Windows 95, windows 3.1x, Novell NetWare, HP-UX, Solaris, SunOS, and OS/2... or, instead, one of the following three from a web server: Windows NT, HP-UX, OS/2.

A modern printer in the same class would probably detect an incoming print job automatically and, if authorized, use the appropriate protocol without as much specific on-printer configuration, but that's just a guess. (a config options listed in my '97 printer's manual are e.g. Network config, IPX/SPX stack, DLC/LLC stack, TCP/IP stack, Apple EtherTalk stack, Novell config, packet sizes, IP address, subnet mask, transmission speed (baud rate), handshaking, I/O timeouts and buffer size, unit of measure, resolution 300dpi/600dpi/1200dpi, which input/output trays to use, which ports to use, many other things... the manual says that the computer's print driver settings override the printer's own hardware configs, though, so most or all of those things can probably be changed without using the printer's buttons and LCD display)


#5

M

Mervyn Haynes

danlock said:
For example, I have a b/w (grayscale) 1997 HP LaserJet 4000n (a business printer) which doesn't work when connected via a bi-directional USB-to-Centronics parallel printer cable
Click to expand...
Funny, I have an old HP Laserjet 6MP that works just fine with a USB to parallel cable. I also have several USB to RS232 convertors & only one works with the application I use it with. So not all USB convertor cables are the same!


#6

MichaelRSorg

MichaelRSorg

Using Windows 10 with a network-based printer, I could not print with the spooler service disabled. I could not even see the list of printers. And, yes, that was after I turned off print spooling in the printer properties and opted instead to print directly to the printer.

The description of the printer spooler service says this will happen: "If you turn off this service, you won’t be able to print or see your printers."


#7

B

Bplayer

Confirmed. If the Print Spooler is turned off in Services then you cannot print. The Print Directly option in the printer driver is misleading and likely useless.


#8

T

tims

PHXdNelson said:
From Steve (via the newsgroups):
Click to expand...
I tried that on Windows 7, and no luck. All printers disappear completely with print spooler service turned off. I tried adding a printer and got a message - Print spooler service must be on. What Windows was it?


Top Bottom