Bonjour printing error in console.log and cups error_log

Question

Hi everyone,
I have a client who has been successfully printing to an HP LaserJet 4000 over his home LAN for some time now. However, this evening he was no longer able to print, with the print queue stopping immediately when he would try.
iMac (Intel) Core Duo, Mac OS X 10.4.8, connected through a D-Link DI-524 wired/wireless router. There is a D-Link DP300U print server connected to one of the LAN ports on the router, to facilitate printing to a printer that has not been connected to the LAN recently.
After using Printer Setup Utility to reset everything, repair permissions, etc., the system still would not print. No updates have been installed since the last week of January 2007, and printing has been fine since then.
The only clue I was originally able to come across was found in console.log:
~ ~ ~ ~ ~
No log handling enabled - turning on stderr logging
snmpInk: Unknown host (SMB-Maui\0321.local.)
~ ~ ~ ~ ~
Then, I looked under /var/log, under the cups disclosure triangle, at error_log:
E [14/Feb/2007:20:50:44 -0800] [Job 2] Unable to locate printer 'SMB-Maui\0321.local.' - Unknown host
E [14/Feb/2007:20:50:44 -0800] PID 282 stopped with status 1!
~ ~ ~ ~ ~
There is only the one Mac on the LAN, which is not named "SMB-Maui"-anything. I was able to get printing to function via AppleTalk once it was enabled, but the client has been printing successfully via Bonjour for some time and so there seemed no reason why this should simply "happen". No new software has been installed, as he's really quite good about leaving the system alone to do its thing.
Disk Utility repaired multiple print-related permissions errors before I began using Printer Setup Repair.
I'm looking for troubleshooting steps to take beyond this point. While the client is satisfied that he can now print via AppleTalk, I am not and would very much like to resolve the lower-level problem. Please advise?
Thanks much for your time,
MBJ

Answer 1

Hi Phil,
Thanks much! I think you might be on the right track, as I got some unexpected results from Bonjour Browser.
First of all, there's no Internet Printing Protocol (IPP) entry at all—in fact, several others I have present on my own, local system are not to be found on the remote iMac. What the iMac does show is the following:
local - 3
Apple Remote Desktop (net-assistant.udp.) - 1
iMac
(IP address):3283
[(IPv6 MAC address)]:3283
Remote Frame Buffer (rfb.tcp.) - 1
iMac
(IP address):5900
[(IPv6 MAC address)]:5900
Workgroup Manager (workstation.tcp.) - 1
iMac [MAC address]
[(IPv6 MAC address)]:9
(IP address):9
I have reapplied the 10.4.8 Combo Update, with no effect to the problem itself, nor to what is showing in Bonjour Browser.
One other possible clue: A visitor on the home LAN did attempt to print from Virtual PC 7 on a portable they had brought with them. They were unable to do so from Windows XP, but could print properly from Mac OS X. There is no known, causal relation to the problem at hand here - I mention it to be thorough, no more or less.
I'll standby for your further thoughts!
Thanks much for the assist,
MBJ
Hi Mike,
Bonjour is a service discovery system. It doesn't
print. For
that you use ipp or lpr, etc. The reason why
Appletalk works
is that it has its own discovery system. It's older
and
apparently more reliable. Bonjour uses muticast ip
but
unless muticast requests are forwarded can't get
outside
a local subnet.
Once on your net was a machine - probably a samba
server -
named "maul". Must have been, it's in a mib
somewhere. Oh
wait - maybe it's cached in the dlink from its old
days on
the dark side!
Judging from the direction of the slash it was a
Windows
machine (I don't think that's an octal 321). CUPS
thinks
that's where the printer is. Normally cups discovers
the
printers via bonjour, and bonjour must be coming
back
with the wrong info!
But bonjour isn't that smart, something must be
tricking it.
There's a wonderful free utility called "Bonjour
Browser"
which will show you which services are being
announced.
Give it a try:
http://www.versiontracker.com/dyn/moreinfo/macosx/2162
2
Let me know what it shows under ipp.
-Phil
Powerbook G4, iMac
(Intel), and tons of hardware sitting in the closet
  Mac OS X (10.4.8)  
Power Mac G4 (QuickSilver 2002), 20" Cinema Display (ADC)   Mac OS X (10.4.8)   Dual 1.0 GHz G4/1.5 GB RAM/2x160 GB HD/SuperDrive/GeForce4 Ti/PCI USB 2.0&FW400