TechSIS Printing Requirements

With the upcoming implementation of TechSIS, several departments have expressed interest in printing TechSIS reports to their departmental printers. There are several configuration alternatives for printing from TechSIS to departmental printers, and the below information is intended to assist departments in determining the alternative most appropriate for them. After selecting a configuration alternative, please follow the below steps to have a printer setup for TechSIS printing.

NOTE: All methods of printing from the existing Student Records System (SRS) will be supported in the new TechSIS system.

If you are not sure what printer configuration you currently have, or if you wish to purchase equipment and need assistance, please call Donna Chafin of AIS at 742-2907.

Configuration	Description	Requirements
LAN-attached printer, PSF/AIX-controlled	In this configuration alternative, a printer supporting PCL4 or PCL5 is directly connected to the network using an internal or external network adapter. The printer has a static (constant) IP address and is defined to the PSF/AIX server at the Computer Center. The purpose of the PSF/AIX server is to convert output destined for the printer to the correct PCL print stream and forward it to the printer. The primary advantages of this type of configuration are: - A more expensive mainframe-compatible printer need not be purchased to print mainframe reports. - PC resources are not consumed to print mainframe reports (i.e. print goes directly to the printer for printing without passing through a PC). - The status of a PC (i.e. powered off, software problem, etc.) will not interfere with the printing of mainframe reports. The primary disadvantage of this type of configuration is: - A network connection and adapter must be purchased for the printer. This configuration alternative is best suited for multi-user or departmental printers and is the best overall attachment method for distributed printing.	The below information is a summary. See Steps to Setup a PSF/AIX Printer for more information. Hardware and Software Requirements: - A printer which supports PCL4 or PCL5 (see the documentation for the printer to determine which data streams it supports). Printers from HP, Lexmark, and IBM have worked successfully. - A network adapter (card) to connect the printer to the network. The adapter may be either external or internal. The adapter must support ether the HP JetDirect protocol or the Line Printer Daemon (LPD) protocol. - A static IP address configured in the printer's network adapter. - A physical network connection (drop) for the printer. - A queue name configured by TOSM for the printer.
PC-attached printer, PSF/AIX-controlled	In this configuration alternative, a printer supporting PCL4 or PCL5 is connected to a PC (or server), and the PC is connected to the network. The PC has a static (constant) IP address and is running any standard Line Printer Daemon (LPD) software. The LPD software receives print from the PSF/AIX server at the Computer Center. The purpose of the PSF/AIX server is to convert output destined for the PC to the correct PCL print stream and forward it to the PC. The primary advantages of this type of configuration are: - An existing PCL4 or PCL5 printer that is connected to a network-attached PC can be used to print mainframe reports. - The LPD software is typically inexpensive and fairly easy to setup. The primary disadvantage of this type of configuration is: - PC resources are consumed to print mainframe reports (i.e. print goes through the PC before reaching the printer). - The status of the PC (i.e. powered off, software problem, etc.) can interfere with the printing of mainframe reports. This configuration alternative is best suited for single-user printers.	The below information is a summary. See Steps to Setup a PSF/AIX Printer for more information. Hardware and Software Requirements: - A printer which supports PCL4 or PCL5 (see the documentation for the printer to determine which data streams it supports). Printers from HP, Lexmark, and IBM have worked successfully. - A working connection between the PC and the printer. - Line Printer Daemon (LPD) software installed and configured on the PC (ex: NIPrint or RPM). - A network adapter installed and configured in the PC. - A static IP address assigned to the PC. - A physical network connection (drop) for the PC. - A queue name configured by TOSM for the printer. NOTE: This configuration alternative is also available for printers connected to other types of computers (ex: Macintosh), as long as standard LPD software is used on the computer.
LAN-attached printer, PSF/MVS-controlled	In this configuration alternative, a printer supporting the mainframe IPDS print stream is directly connected to the network using an internal or external network adapter. The printer has a static (constant) IP address and is defined to the mainframe PSF/MVS software at the Computer Center. The primary advantage of this type of configuration is: - Operators at the Computer Center have a higher degree of control over the output sent to the printer. Print jobs can be interrupted, restarted at a previous point, purged, etc. The primary disadvantage of this type of configuration is: - Printers which support IPDS are typically more expensive than standard PCL laser printers. This configuration alternative is best suited for high volume and/or mission critical printers.	The below information is a summary. For more information about this connection alternative, call the IT Division Help Desk at 742-4357. Hardware and Software Requirements: - A printer which supports IPDS (see the documentation for the printer to determine which data streams it supports). Printers from IBM have worked successfully. - A network adapter (card) to connect the printer to the network. The adapter may be either external or internal. - A static IP address configured in the printer's network adapter. - A physical network connection (drop) for the printer. - A queue name configured by TOSM for the printer.
PC-attached printer, VPS-controlled	In this configuration alternative, any standard personal printer is connected to a PC, and the PC is connected to the network. The PC is running a 3270 emulator package that supports 802.2 connections and host printing. One of the PC's emulator sessions is reserved for host printing, and that session is defined to the mainframe VPS software at the Computer Center. The primary advantage of this type of configuration is: - Almost any standard printer can be used to print mainframe output. The primary disadvantages of this type of configuration are: - One host session is reserved for printing and cannot be used for TechNet access. - VPS-controlled printers can print only plain text output. Reports with special fonts or formatting cannot be printed to a VPS-controlled printer. Some of the TechSIS reports make use of special formatting and would not be printable on a VPS-controlled printer. This configuration alternative is best suited for printing text only output.	Hardware and Software Requirements: - A printer which supports standard text (ASCII). Many different brands of printers have worked successfully, including HP, Panasonic, and IBM. - A working connection between the PC and the printer. - 3270 emulation software which supports 802.2 host connections and host printing (ex: IBM PC/3270). - A physical network connection (drop) for the PC. - A queue name configured by TOSM for the printer.