printserver
Printer servers or print servers are servers or computer cards for managing print jobs that are sent from individual workstations or clients to the server via the network and processed at a central location by a network printer. These servers are located between the network and the printer, they adapt the various printer protocols and convert the print data.
A distinction is made between internal and external print servers. The internal one is often a plug-in card in the printer, whereas external ones are stand-alone servers that communicate with the network printer via a parallel or serial interface or via the USB interface.
The physical connection of the print server can be wireless or wired. TCP/ IP and the Internetwork Packet Exchange Protocol( IPX) are used on the network and transport layer, depending on the network operating system. The application layer of a print server can support various printer protocols such as the Line Printer Daemon ( LPD) protocol, Line Printer Remote( LPR), Internet Printing Protocol( IPP), NetBEUI or protocols from the mainframe or AS/400 environment. The data format of the print data also varies. Mainly printer data is transferred in Postscript or in Printer Command Language( PCL). When operating via the Internet, the Internet Printing Protocol (IPP), Simple Mail Transfer Protocol( SMTP) and Post Office Protocol (POP3) are recommended.
The use of print servers makes sense wherever expensive high- performance printers or imagesetters are used by several workstations, where costs are to be saved or administrative tasks and maintenance are to be optimized. An alternative to the print server is a network printer that can be used by all stations connected to the network.