Printing

In order to print from your laptop at the Oden Institute, you will need to configure it to communicate with the CUPS server that hosts our print queues. In addition, you will need to be connected via a wired connection (for security reasons). You will not be able to print if you are only connected to the wireless network.

If you have both your ethernet and wireless connection active, it is advised that you either disconnect from the wireless network, or disable wi-fi. Otherwise, your device may not be able to communicate with any printers.

To see a list of our printers, go to

http://cups.oden.utexas.edu:631/printers/

This is a comprehensive listing of all printers at the institute. Please note that some printers were purchased for use by a particular individual or group. Please do not use a group printer if you are not a member of that group.

There are no quotas placed on the number of pages or jobs sent to printers Sysnet manages, use your best judgement and avoid sending large jobs or print excessively. We ask you not print a thesis, yours or for anyone else. If you need to print a thesis, we suggest you contact Document Solutions on campus.

Note

Sysnet periodically reviews printer statistics and does reserve the right to enforce banning users if we feel they are printing an excessive amount. Paper and toner are expensive items to replace, they are consumables along with other service items like drums, fusers, waste toner bottles, etc… Please consider printing to a PDF file and saving to review when necessary.

Linux

All workstations should be able to see the entire list of printers. All you will need to do when printing is to select the appropriate printer from the print dialog box.

For setting up Linux printing on laptops, follow these instructions:

You will need to edit (or create) the /etc/cups/client.conf file. The files should have the following (and only) line:

ServerName cups.oden.utexas.edu

After that, you will need to restart CUPS on your system. For example:

/etc/init.d/cupsd restart

If that command does not restart cups on your system, please consult the documentation for your particular Linux distribution.

macOS

IMPORTANT: You must be connected to the network via Ethernet; printing will not work via wi-fi. It is recommended that you turn off wi-fi to ensure the Ethernet connection is being used.

We advertise all of our print queues using DNS-SD. Apple’s implementation of the protocol is called Bonjour. If you have Bonjour disabled on your Mac, you will need to re-enable it to print at the institute.

To connect to a printer, first make sure that you’re connected via an Ethernet cable. Then, go to the Apple menu, open System Preferences, and select “Printers & Scanners”. Click the + button near the bottom-left to add a new printer to your local list. If the + button doesn’t work at first, you may need to click the lock to make changes.

All printers should be listed under the “Default” tab in the Add Printer dialog. Select the printer you wish to use from the list and click the Add button. You will need to wait a bit as macOS attempts to configure the printer automatically. Eventually, the window will change and present you with various options. You will only need to make sure the “duplex” option is checked; all others can be left as they are.

Note: Most printers should work just fine using the “Generic PostScript Printer” driver. If you have issues printing, you may try downloading the printer-specific driver from the printer manufacturer’s website. All printers are manufactured by either Lexmark or Xerox.

Windows

To connect to a printer at the institute from a Windows machine, do the following:

  • Add a printer (Control Panel ‣ Hardware and Sound ‣ Devices and Printers ‣ Add Printer).

  • Alternatively, you may be able to search for this control panel option by clicking the Window menu and typing “add printer” in the search box. These steps may vary depending on your version of Windows.

  • Select ‘Add a network, wireless, or Bluetooth Printer.’

  • Click on ‘The printer that I want isn’t listed.’

  • Under the ‘Select a shared printer by name’ box, type the following (Replacing PRINTERNAME with your desired printer): http://cups.oden.utexas.edu:631/printers/PRINTERNAME

You may also browse for printers on Windows using Apple’s Bonjour protocol. You must first download and install Bonjour Print Services for Windows from http://www.apple.com/support/bonjour/

After launching the Bonjour Printer Wizard software, you simply select your desired printer and the appropriate driver to add the printer to your local machine.