Print service commands

A summary of the print service commands available to all users is provided.

Command Description
cancel Cancels a request for a file to be printed
lp Sends a file or files to a printer
lpstat Reports the status of the print service

The administrator can give users the ability to disable and enable a printer so that if a printer is malfunctioning, the user can turn the printer off without having to call the administrator. (However, in your printing environment, it might not be reasonable to allow regular users to disable a printer.)

The Administrative Print Service Commands Table lists print service commands available only to the administrator. To use the administrative commands, you must be logged in as root user.

The administrative print service commands are located in the /usr/lib directory. If you use these commands frequently, include /usr/lib in your PATH variable.

Administrative print service commands

Command Description
accept reject Permits jobs to be queued for a specified destination Prevents jobs from being queued for a specified destination
cancel Cancels requests to a line printer
enable disable Activates the named printers
lpadmin Sets up or changes printer configurations
lpc Provides (BSD) line printer control
lpfilter Sets up or changes filter definitions
lpforms Sets up or changes preprinted forms (use /usr/sbin/lpadmin to mount a form)
lpmove Moves output requests from one destination to another
lpsched lpshut Starts the print service Stops the print service
lpsystem Registers remote systems with the print service
lpusers Sets or changes the default priority and priority limits that the users of the print service can request