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plpd8.exe
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PLPD8.TXT
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1995-09-11
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NOVELL TECHNICAL INFORMATION DOCUMENT
TITLE: PLPD8.EXE; PLPD 1.2C Maintenance Patch
README FOR: PLPD8.EXE
NOVELL PRODUCTS and VERSIONS:
NetWare FLeX/IP 1.2C
NetWare NFS 1.2C
ABSTRACT:
This patch includes all bug fixes to date for PLPD.NLM and
PLPDCFG.NLM. Not supported for 1.2b or other version previous to
1.2c.
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DISCLAIMER
THE ORIGIN OF THIS INFORMATION MAY BE INTERNAL OR EXTERNAL TO
NOVELL. NOVELL MAKES EVERY EFFORT WITHIN ITS MEANS TO VERIFY
THIS INFORMATION. HOWEVER, THE INFORMATION PROVIDED IN THIS
DOCUMENT IS FOR YOUR INFORMATION ONLY. NOVELL MAKES NO EXPLICIT
OR IMPLIED CLAIMS TO THE VALIDITY OF THIS INFORMATION.
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SYMPTOM:
1. Printing has ceased with a PKERNEL error message of "t_look()
failed after t_rcv()".
2. PLPD may fail to release buffers when print jobs complete
which eventually leads to malloc() failures.
3. Upon unloading PLPDCFG, "Module did not release xxx
resources" displays on the console.
4. User needs one of the PLPD enhancements. See SOLUTION for
details.
SOLUTION:
This patch consists of PLPD.NLM, PLPDCFG.NLM (configuration
utility), and PLPD128.TXT (this document).
This PLPD.NLM is the socket version which replaces the TLI
interface to the network with SPX socket connections. The
change was needed for enhancements made to the TLI state logic,
which made it more robust but adversely affected the dependent
module PLPD.NLM. This PLPD eliminates all TLI-related problems.
Additional enhancements are described below:
1. The way in which NetWare connections are used has been
optimized. Previously, a new NCP connection was made for every
print job accepted by PLPD, and later closed when the print job
completed. This incurred some computational expense, especially
under NetWare 4.0x where NDS authentication takes place. This
enhanced version logs in only once per queue using the Default
User account, and that connection stays active as long as PLPD is
loaded. The connection is made the first time a queue is used.
If the NetWare System Administrator has set up the PLPD (using
PLPDCFG.NLM) with individual user accounts mapped, the algorithm
works as before, i.e. log in for each print job.
The first time a queue is used and successful login has
occurred, a message will appear on the PKERNEL screen saying:
"Default user <username> for queue <queue number> is using
connection <connection number>"
This is not an error, but an informational message.
2. The queues can now be configured to suppress banner and form
feed using the enhanced PLPDCFG.NLM.
3. PLPD.NLM now does disk capacity checking. If an incoming
spool job will fill the NetWare disk, the print job is rejected
with -2 returned to the print client. Most LPR clients
understand -2 to mean "disk full", which follows the Sun
convention. Previously when the spool directory became full, 0
(success) was returned to the client, effectively clearing the
job from its queue. With -2 returned, the LPR client will hold
onto the job for retry later. Administrators need to add
capacity to the SYS: volume when space is low. Since customers
automatically submit very large jobs from mainframes without
human attendance, disk full is still possible even with added
space. A debug message prints on the PKERNEL screen if a disk
full is detected.
Usage suggestion: If acceptable to users and administrator,
configure PLPD to use a single user for default mapping rather
than mapping of individual user accounts. Otherwise, the
software will have to examine the configuration file to determine
identity of user sending the print job, and then create a server
connection, causing some delay. PLPD protocol always sends both
a data file and a configuration file. The configuration file has
the user's name which must be read by PLPD to check that the
user's disk space limitations. If default mapping is used, PLPD
already knows who the user is.
4. PLPD now checks to see if the client is attempting to use a
non-reserved port. Previously, the client could communicate with
PLPD on any TCP/IP port. This could be a security concern in
some installations. It also violates the RFC for the LPD
protocol.
Port checking can be disabled. If experiencing the error "Login
failed: Attempt to use reserved port", use the command line
option "ANYPORT" when loading PLPD.
Example: LOAD PLPD.NLM ANYPORT
5. Performance has been improved for NetWare 4.02 and newer
versions of CLIB and TCP/IP. If performance is slow or packet
traces show that the TCP/IP window size is going down to zero,
buffer allocation can be increased. Optional load parameters
allocate additional buffers for each queue. The default
configuration will allocate 4KB per queue. Typically you should
increase the size and number of buffers if you print many large
jobs.
Usage: LOAD PLPD.NLM [number of buffers] [size of buffer] [delay
interval] [debug level]
number of buffers - default value 2
size of buffer - default value is 2KB units in 1K increments
delay interval - default value is 55 milliseconds
debug level - default value is 0 = no debug
1 = summary statistics
2 = every read/write displayed
When PLPD loads, it displays the number of data buffers, size of
data buffers, and delay interval that the PLPD threads wait after
a thread switch. If debug level is 2, the number of messages
going to the system console will be large.
Examples:
LOAD PLPD.NLM 3 16 100 - 3 buffers per queue, 16k bytes each,
delay interval 100
LOAD PLPD.NLM 10 1 - 10 buffers, 1K bytes each, delay 55
6. Expanded the "Protocol Error" PKERNEL messages to be more
descriptive.
7. PLPD now checks if the printdef database exists before
trying to open it. This causes a 15 second delay for each print
job when the printdef does not exist. This affects customers
using NetWare 4.02.
Self-Extracting File Name: plpd8.exe
Files Included Size Date Time
..\
PLPD8.TXT (This file)
PLPD.NLM 63448 7-31-95 1:17:00 pm
PLPDCFG.NLM 50128 2-17-95 2:46:06 am
Installation Instructions:
1) Backup PLPD.NLM and PLPDCFG.NLM, as a precaution.
2) Expand the file PLPD8.EXE into its components,
PLPD.NLM
PLPDCFG.NLM
PLPD8.TXT
3) Copy program files PLPD.NLM and PLPDCFG.NLM into the
SYS:SYSTEM subdirectory of the Flex/IP or NetWare NFS server.
4) If any of the new command line parameters will be used, add
them to the load command for PLPD in the file
SYS:SYSTEM/UNISTART.NCF.
5) Unload the old PLPD and reload the new.
6) Load NFSADMIN to review the new options in printer
configuration. NFSADMIN launches PLPDCFG.NLM.
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Any trademarks referenced in this document are the property of
their respective owners. Consult your product manuals for
complete trademark information.
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