Print server

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A print server, or printer server, is a computer or device to which one or more printers are connected, which can accept print jobs from external client computers connected to the print server over a network. The print server then sends the data to the appropriate printer(s) that it manages.

The term print server can refer to:

1. A host computer running Windows OS with one or more shared printers. Client computers connect using Microsoft Network Printing protocol.
2. A computer running some operating system other than Windows, but still implementing the Microsoft Network Printing protocol (typically Samba running on a UNIX or Linux computer).
3. A computer that implements the LPD service and thus can process print requests from LPD clients.
4. A dedicated device that connects one or more printers to a LAN. It typically has a single LAN connector, such as an RJ-45 socket, and one or more physical ports (e.g. serial, parallel or USB (Universal Serial Bus)) to provide connections to printers. In essence this dedicated device provides printing protocol conversion from what was sent by client computers to what will be accepted by the printer. Dedicated print server devices may support a variety of printing protocols including LPD/LPR over TCP/IP, NetWare, NetBIOS/NetBEUI over NBF, TCP Port 9100 or RAW printer protocol over TCP/IP, DLC or IPX/SPX. Dedicated server appliances tend to be fairly simple in both configuration and features. However these are available integrated with other devices such as a wireless router, a firewall, or both. ^[1]
5. A dedicated device similar to definition 4 above, that also implements Microsoft Networking protocols to appear to Windows client computers as if it were a print server defined in 1 above.

The term print server normally has the meaning defined in 1 or 2 above, while the term print server device or print server appliance usually refers to definition 4.

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