On Saturday 02 February 2008, Grant wrote: > > > I thought CUPS was *the* way to print on Linux. Is there > > > another solution that would work better with Net::Printer? > > > > CUPS is the latest in a long string of different print systems, > > all trying to solve this infernally difficult problem called > > putting dots on the right place on a bit of paper. And all > > systems seem to fail at it. > > > > Admittedly, CUPS is better than most and to my mind best suited > > to modern printing needs. What amuses me is what kind of project > > would recommend you not use CUPS, and what is their reasoning? > > What they've suggested is that using lpr on the remote system and > opening port 631 to the world is a bad idea and that it's much > better to use Net::Printer. Would you agree?
I don't know Net::Printer, but if it prints over the network - as the name implies - it has to use a port. So you have to open that port. That's how TCP/IP works. No way around it. Certainly, the organisation you are working in is behind a firewall that allows pretty little from the outside to the inside. (If not so, their network administrator or external consultant or or or should be beaten over his head until he can spell "Bruce Schneier".) So you are *not* opening port 631 to the world. You are certainly opening it to your organisation. I have messed up my CUPS configuration right now and can't look it up for sure but I remember CUPS being able to listen only to certain hosts (IP addresses) other than localhost. If if this is not so, you can still set up a firewall on the client box (the one that is supposed to do the printing) that allows only your server to connect to port 631 on it. If someone then argues about source IP spoofing, just let him. If someone in your organisation is able to do it, make him your network admin. ;-) Uwe -- Informal Linux Group Namibia: http://www.linux.org.na/ SysEx (Pty) Ltd.: http://www.SysEx.com.na/ -- gentoo-user@lists.gentoo.org mailing list
