Installing the Hawking PN7127P

I have been running two printers from Red Hat 8.0 on a Gateway Pentium II MMX 200 mHz. This server also functions as a file server, an intranet web server, and a mail server. I want to move the machine from my office to the basement but cannot do so while I am serving printers from it.

I have been considering standalone print servers with an eye to offloading the print server function. Last Monday, 03-10-03, I found the Hawking PN7127P at Microcenter for $79.99. I have installed it on my hp LaserJet 1200 and am no longer using my Gateway as a print server.

The Hawking package stated that the PN7127P supports Linux; this was the deciding factor in my selection. I want to print from both my Windows and Linux machines and I want to print in native format from each OS.

Research and Setup

I went to the Hawking web site at http://www.hawkingtech.com/ and found my way to downloads for the PN7127P. I found a firmware update and installers for Windows XP and Win2000 (also works with 95, 98, nt4).

I searched the web with Google and found Hawking PN7127P Print Server - OS2, which details the author's effort to use the server on a mixed OS/2 - Windows network. From this page, I determined to use arp to set the IP of the print server to 192.168.0.14 and to use the PH7127P's MAC address, printed on a sticker on the unit as Node ID: 00400120BFA7. This is consistent with the PN7127P User Guide, Chapter 7, pp. 7-8 to 7-12. I was able to add the print server's IP/MAC set to the internal table of both Linux and Windows with arp but, unfortunately, I was still unable to ping the printer or open the built-in web server to configure it.

Under Linux, the command to associate the print server was

$ arp -s 00:40:01:20:BF:A7 192.168.0.13

Under Windows, the command to associate the print server was

> arp -s 00-40-01-20-BF-A7 192.168.0.13

Nevertheless, the print server remained unreachable and none of the suggestions in the PN7127P's User Guide, Chapter 9, troubleshooting, pp. 9-7 to 9-10 were of help.

Next, I dug into the PN7127P's User Guide, Chapter 3, PSAdmin Utility for Windows installations. Using the floppy disks included with the PN7127P, I installed PSAdmin and Network Print Monitor. I started PSAdmin, which found the print server at the specified MAC address. I assigned the LAN address and my Gateway address and completed the setup.

Next, I added the print server's name to my Windows hosts file at c:\WINDOWS\hosts and Linux hosts files at \etc\hosts:

192.168.0.13 oscar

I was now able to ping the print server with ping oscar and to open it's web tool at http://oscar/. I set up a password from the web tool. When I opened setup on the web tool again, I was asked for a username and a password. admin worked for the username. The password was also requested before opening setup with PSAdmin, but no username was needed.

Configing on Windows

I configured the printer under Windows Me using the PN7127P's User Guide, Chapter 6, pp. 6-3 to 6-9. From the Windows Control Panel, Printers, I opened properties for the HP LJ1200 and from the Details tab I selected Add Port. On the Add Port page, I selected Other, Network Print Port. From the next dialog, I selected the TCP/IP tab; a search discovered the Print Server and identified the printer by device name, IP address, and MAC address. I selected that device. The Printer Properties then determined that the printer Port name = LPT:PSBFA7-2, which seems rather cryptic. I pressed [Apply] and then, from Properties' General tab selected Print Test page, which worked! I then added a comment in the comment field and was done.

I used a similar technique on my Windows 98 machines. I installed Hawkings's Network Print Monitor from Setup floppy disk1 and modified the configuration for the printer attached to the PN7127P from the Windows Control Panel as I did above.

After I set up the PN7127P on Windows, I probed around Hawking's web site and found a reference on their Print Server Download page to Microsoft's Internet Print Services page. That page, supporting Windows 95, includes a broken download link to wpnpins.exe. Eventually, I found Microsoft's instructions to run wpnpins.exe from the Windows Me install CD, addons folder. I did this on my Windows Me machine and rebooted. This added native support for IPP. I was then able to add the printer attached to the PN7127P using the Add Printer dialog, selecting Network attachment, and entering http://oscar/lp1 as the network address. Windows Me found the printer and successfully printed a test page. This procedure was far easier than the roundabout method used before. However, it is unclear whether this can be done for Windows 95 or Windows 98 since the Microsoft web link to wpnpins.exe is broken and there appears to be no way to get the file from the Microsoft web site.

Configuring on Linux

As root from an xterminal, I invoked redhat-config-printer. I selected the affected print queue(s) edit. In the Edit Queue dialog, I selected the Queue Type tab. From there, for Queue Type, I selected UNIX Printer (lpd Queue). Two configuration fields opened; I entered Server: oscar and Queue: lp1. I selected [OK].

From the Red Hat Printer Config dialog I selected Apply. Then, from the test menu, I printed both text and Postscript successfully.

Removing the printers from my Linux Server

After I had reconfigured all the clients to use the affected printer on its new server, I powered down the Linux server and unplugged the old cables. When I rebooted, the hardware configuration changes were detected and I followed the prompts, authorizing the printers to be removed from the configuration.

I opened Red Hat Printer Config and verified that all print queues using the PN7127P were still configured correctly.

Comments

The firmware in the PN7127P was of a later revision than the version on the Hawking web site, so I did not attempt to update the PN7127P. The Windows 2000 installer on the web site also appeared to be older than that on the floppies that came with the PN7127P, so I used the installer that came on the floppy disks.

I have yet to configure our Windows XP machine but expect it to proceed in a similar fashion to the Windows Me and Windows 98 configurations.

I have ordered additional PN7127P's from PC Connection for $60 each. I will configure them on our remaining printers and will distribute the printers closer to where they are needed.

The Microsoft Windows Update web site did not offer the Windows Internet Printing update to my Windows Me or Windows 98 machines. The Microsoft Windows Update web site's View Installation History did not show that Internet Printing had been installed.