cups-driverd(8) Apple Inc. cups-driverd(8)NAMEcups-driverd - cups driver daemon
SYNOPSIScups-driverd cat ppd-name
cups-driverd list request_id limit options
DESCRIPTIONcups-driverd shows or lists PPD files. It is run in response to CUPS-
Add-Modify-Printer or CUPS-Get-Devices requests. The first form
("cups-driverd cat ppd-name") writes the named PPD file to stdout. The
output format is an uncompressed PPD file.
The second form lists the available manufacturers or PPD files to std‐
out as indicated by the options argument. The output format is an IPP
response message. The request_id argument is the request ID from the
original IPP request, typically 1. The limit argument is the limit
value from the original IPP request - 0 means no limit. Finally, the
options argument is a space-delimited list of attributes ("name=value
name=value ...") that were passed in with the request. Currently cups-
driverd looks for the ppd-make and requested-attributes attributes and
tailors the output accordingly.
DRIVERS
Drivers can be static PPD files under the /usr/share/cups/model direc‐
tory or programs under the /usr/lib/cups/driver directory. Static PPD
files must conform to the Adobe PPD File Format Specification version
4.3 and may be compressed using the gzip(1) program. Driver programs
must implement the command-line interface shown in the next section.
DRIVER PROGRAMS
Driver programs provide a interface to dynamically-generated PPD
files. The following arguments are currently defined:
drivername list
Lists the supported PPD files to stdout.
drivername cat ppdname
Writes the named PPD file to stdout.
Driver programs MUST NOT query hardware or make other long-term opera‐
tions that would delay the return of a driver list. See the NOTES sec‐
tion below for specific recommendations.
LISTING FILES (drivername list)
When run with the single argument "list", the program must list the
available PPD files it can generate to stdout using the following for‐
mat:
"drivername:ppdname" language "make" "make and model"
"drivername:ppdname" language "make" "make and model" "1284 device id"
"drivername:ppdname" language "make" "make and model" "1284 device id" "(PPD product)"
"drivername:ppdname" language "make" "make and model" "1284 device id" "(PPD product)" "PostScript version"
"drivername:ppdname" language "make" "make and model" "1284 device id" "(PPD product)" "PostScript version" "type"
Drivername is the name of the driver program. Ppdname is the name used
to select the given driver. Language is the locale associated with the
default language of the PPD file, typically "en". Make is the Manufac‐
turer name from the PPD file. Make and model is the NickName name from
the PPD file. 1284 device id is the 1284DeviceId from the PPD file, if
any. (PPD product) is the Product string as it would appear in the PPD
file or from a PostScript query. PostScript version is the PSVersion
string as it would appear in the PPD file or from a PostScript query.
Type is "postscript" for PostScript printers, "pdf" for PDF printers,
"raster" for raster printers, or "fax" for facsimile devices.
WRITING FILES (drivername cat ppdname)
When the driver program is run with the "cat ppdname" arguments, it
must write the named PPD file to stdout, uncompressed. If the named PPD
file does not exist, the driver program must not write any output to
stdout and report the error to stderr instead.
DRIVER ERROR MESSAGES
Error messages can be relayed back to cupsd by writing them to stderr.
The following prefixes are recognized:
DEBUG: [drivername]
Debugging messages
ERROR: [drivername]
Error messages
INFO: [drivername]
Informational messages
NOTES
Due to performance considerations, driver programs have been officially
deprecated and should not be used for new development. Currently only
the CUPS web interface and lpinfo(8) command will request lists from
all driver programs.
SEE ALSOcupsd(8), cupsd.conf(5), cupstestppd(1), lpinfo(8),
http://localhost:631/help
COPYRIGHT
Copyright 2007-2011 by Apple Inc.
6 January 2011 CUPS cups-driverd(8)