Printing to RPM from OpenVMS

Wed, 06/19/2019 - 19:35 By Dave Brooks

Q: How do I set up the LPR/LPD service in OpenVMS to print through RPM Remote Print Manager®?

A: OpenVMS stores printer configuration in the SYS$SPECIFIC[TCPIP$LPD]:TCPIP$PRINTCAP.DAT. This file is similar in syntax to a UNIX /etc/printcap file. You also need to add the hostname of the computer to the UCX$HOST.DAT file.

First, the LPD services must be enabled using the UCX utility. To do this, follow these steps.

  1. From the system account, start the configuration utility for UCX using the @ucx$config command.
  2. Select Client Components and verify whether or not LPD is enabled. If not, enable it now.
  3. Exit back to the main menu and select Server Components. Once again, if LPD is disabled, enable it now.
  4. Restart UCX by rebooting or restarting it from the main menu.

Next, the RPM host's DNS name must be entered in the UCX$HOST.DAT file. This tells OpenVMS that the RPM host is a valid printer on the network.

  1. Start the UCX utility using the UCX command.
  2. Add the DNS name of the RPM host in the UCX host database using the following command: set host "print1" /address=192.168.1.1 /alias="PRINT1"
    • print1: The DNS name of the RPM host
    • 192.168.1.1: The IP address of the RPM host
    • PRINT1: An alternate DNS name of the RPM host

    Note that VMS is not case sensitive, but UCX is. In UCX, PRINT1 and print1 are different.

Finally, create a printer.

  1. Start the LPR utility using the following command: run SYS$SYSTEM:UCX$LPRSETUP.EXE
  2. When LPRSETUP starts, select Add to add a print queue. The utility will prompt you for the following information.
    • Printer name to add: The name of the print queue in VMS.
    • Printer Type (remote / local): Choose remote for an RPM printer.
    • Printer Synonym: Synonyms are alternate names for the printer. When finished entering synonyms, press return on a blank line to continue.
    • Spool Directory: We suggest accepting the default directory.
    • Remote System Name: The hostname entered in the ucx database
    • Remote Printer Name: The name of the RPM queue.
    • Log File: The location where log files will be stored.
  3. You are next prompted to modify any symbol. Review to determine if any errors were made during LPRSETUP. If not, select q to quit.
  4. When prompted to start the print queue. Select yes.

If the lpd_startup.com file is included with your version of UCX, include it in the sys$manager:ucx$lpd_startup.com file. This allows the print queues to start automatically when restarting the OpenVMS system.