Joy of Print Servers; USB success

Question

I administer a Netware 4.11+sp9 network, small by most standards. We
also have Internet capability, using a commodity-quality Linksys router
as a DHCP server, for most IP addresses. Our Netware server, however,
runs IPX exclusively.
I have read some of Peter Kuo's advisories that extol the virtues of lpr
(unix) printing, methods I have scarcely ever employed for any Netware
purposes. I suppose there is virtue in that, for interfacing to USB
printers. It's a point I should investigate.
However, I prefer to use "external print servers." I have done so for
years, satisfying the needs of both Netware printing and Windows
printing. This was always done by connecting said print servers to the
PARALLEL ports of various laser printers.
Meanwhile, I have long avoided the tactic of sharing printers attached
to workstations. I want my printers to work without that crutch.
My print server strategy has been threatened, however, by the
disappearance of parallel-printer-port-equipped printers from the
marketplace. USB is everywhere, at low cost. (Integrated internal
print servers are declined for cost reasons.)
I have used convenient, small StarTech.com print servers, which have
attached directly to the parallel connector inside the case of an HP 6
Laser printer; that's how small those print servers are. But the best
thing about this item is the software; PS Admin has worked reliably and
easily, unlike software I've used to get earlier Netware-compatible
external print servers to work. (Linksys had a bad example in its
EFSP42 print server.)
So I was delighted to happen upon a USB2.0-compatible print server,
available at NewEgg.com for less than $50USD, that used PS Admin for
configuration purposes. I installed the print server, connecting it to
my old NEC1400 Superscript printer, which probably only complies with
the early USB standard. It all works, both for Netware and Windows
printing.
For the first time, I have actually printed a conventional Netware print
job to a USB printer. This worked, despite the absence of provision in
NDS administration to configure the "printer" for USB. In fact, said
"configuration" seems to have been completely ignored, fortunately.
I am using conventional queue-based printing. PS Admin made it easy. I
even got to use my own names, for devices, queues, etc. And those same
names showed up in my NDS tree, upon later inspection.
I don't have the invoice in front of me right now, which reveals the
make and model of this print server. I'll post that later, when I
return to my business office.
Hopefully, this "USB success story" will help some other Netware
enthusiasts.

Answer 1

Thanks for this definitive answer.
Given Vista's antipathy for IPX, a sense of finiteness..., ensues.
Assuming there is a "desire" for Vista, is an upgrade from Netware 4.11+sp9
to 5, or 6, a remedy? I recall that 5 is "IP only."
Needless to say, if the existing system has *applications* that require IPX,
then we cannot dispense with this protocol, unless we replace those
applications. So, for this hypothetical case, let us assume no such
IPX-dependent applications exist.
Does queue-based printing still work in 5? I don't manage a large enough
network to justify NDPS.
Sent via OE by John, from MERCURY
"Barry Schnur" <[email protected]> wrote in message
news:[email protected]..
> John, you emailed me with this (please lets keep this here in the
> newsgroups)
>
>
> >>Thank you for this astute warning.
>
> >>Isn't IPX optional with 4.11+sp9?
>
> >>I mean, one might say that IP is optional, but then again, if IP can
> >>do everything (That's a big IF...) that IPX can do, then I should be
> >>able to dispense with IPX and SPX, altogether.
>
> The answer here is no -- that is, you need *native* IP (Netware 5.0 and
> up), which you *can't* get in NW 4.11/4.2. So with all prior versions
> (4.2 and less), you must have IPX. With Vista, there is no IPX stack
> to work with (Novell has used the Microsoft OS stacks with Windows NT
> and up).
>
>
> --
> Barry Schnur
> Novell Support Connection Volunteer Sysop