HowTo: HP Printer Setup

[altair4]

ATTENTION: I wrote this HowTo many many years ago. I have no idea at the moment if the packages or the commands referenced here still exist or are even required any more. Please start a new topic if you have issues with your HP Printer.

When I installed Mint it automatically installed my HP970 Printer. The problem was that duplex - 2 sided printing - was disabled. I changed the printer driver using the utility in the Control Center to CUPS + Gutenprint and although duplex was now enabled it still refused to print on both sided of the paper. This is what I did to correct this issue:

Go to Synaptic and install the following packages:
hpijs
hplip
hplip-data
hpijs-ppds
hplip-gui - this isn't required but it does give you the HP Toolbox so you can check ink levels and such.

Open Terminal
Type sudo hp-check
This might output some dependency problems that you will have to resolve before you go to the next step. You may get an error about "sane" - ignore those for the time being.

Type sudo hp-setup
This brings up a small applet and will eventually ask what driver you want to install. I chose the one that starts with
dvr:///hpijs.dvr/hp-deskjet_970c-hpijs.ppd

If you go to Menu > Administration > Printing > Select the newly installed printer > Printer options > Double Sided Printing
it works. In fact I used the same method to install the same printer 4 times each with a different name and different default settings so I could just choose print quality by choosing the printer name:

HP970D - Print Mode: Draft
HP970N - Print Mode: Normal
HP970H - Print Mode: High Quality
HP970P - Print Mode: Photo

I've had issues with printing in other disros and have even resorted to going to the source by bringing up CUPS Server (localhost:631) but have always had problems installing and configuring HP printers. hp-setup works every time.

[proxima_centauri]

You can also use the HP GUI to set up a printer instead of using the command line.

[katya]

Thanks, finally I can print!

[dnmint]

good one

[mommabean83hp]

I am having an issue with my HP printer as well, i am a complete newbie and not sure what to do, it recognizes my printer is here but when i go to print to it, it prints blank pages?! any suggestions?

[altair4]

Did you go through the steps in my original post?

[mzsade]

The fact that you get something at all out of your printer, even if blank pages suggests that the OS is detecting your printer and your drivers are installed. You should check the hardware, i.e the printer and it's cartridges, and whether you have enough ink in them.

[mommabean83hp]

hello, i did go throught the steps on the original post and i am still having the same issue. I tried installing hplip-3.9.10 following the installation instructions and after set up recieved this out put..i am not sur eif it is useful in any way but i will post it

HP Linux Imaging and Printing System (ver. 3.9.10)
Printer/Fax Setup Utility ver. 9.0

Copyright (c) 2001-9 Hewlett-Packard Development Company, LP
This software comes with ABSOLUTELY NO WARRANTY.
This is free software, and you are welcome to distribute it
under certain conditions. See COPYING file for more details.

QGtkStyle cannot be used together with the GTK_Qt engine.
Qt: Session management error: None of the authentication protocols specified are supported
Searching... (bus=usb, search=(None), desc=0)
/
Done.

It is a brand new ink cartridge so i am sure the ink levels are fine as well as my printer works perfectly if i use it to make copies off of the device alone, unplugged from my lap top... When trying to print the test page, the printer looks and sounds liek its printing but the page comes out completely blank. If i unplug it from my laptop and print a test page straight off teh device it will print it fine.

thank you for helping me:)

[mzsade]

I did a google search on your error message and found this: https://bugs.launchpad.net/hplip/+bug/405864, hope it helps, or at least points you in the correct direction.

[mommabean83hp]

thank you:) It looks as though that patch will work, like i said, i am a complete newbie and I am not sure how I apply the patch to fix things, are you aware of how?

Thank you

[mzsade]

Found this: http://hplipopensource.com/hplip-web/index.html, perhaps if you download this directly and install as per their instructions, you might not have to apply the patch. As to the patch, all i know is that you have to copy/paste it in a text editor, save it as a .py file and paste it somewhere; where, i have no idea. May i suggest you sign up there and ask? or maybe someone else here will help you with it. Sorry, but this is as far as i can help, not really a pro myself.

[meltingman]

hello Y do that (scuse my bad inglish)

Code: Select all

Found this: http://hplipopensource.com/hplip-web/index.html, perhaps if you download this directly and install as per their instructions, you might not have to apply the patch. As to the patch, all i know is that you have to copy/paste it in a text editor, save it as a .py file and paste it somewhere; where, i have no idea. May i suggest you sign up there and ask? or maybe someone else here will help you with it. Sorry, but this is as far as i can help, not really a pro myself.

And my printer HP F4800 Work perfectly,

> Ym use Synaptic to resolve all the dependance dont found by the HP driver
> I use the sheark entri of Synaptic to try to "aptget' all the dependances... Y use similare names exemple :
for Xsane-dev i installe xsane-comon ..
> y retry the procedure and at fine all dependences work good ...

bon, en francais je disais :

j'ai suivi la procedure donné par le lien de chez HP et ça a bien fonctionné pour moi. pour installer les dépendances :
> j'ai utilisé Synaptic pour installer els paquets manquant "liste donné à l'installation du driver HP
> j'ai utilisé des nom approchant ceux marqués manquant par cette procedure. par exemple : pour Python-dev j'ai installé python 2.6-dev...
> j'ai du relancer a chaque fois la procedure donné par HP pour qu'il me donne la suite des libs manquantes et au final ça marche parfaitement.

merci à vous pour vos réponses multiples ++

[linuxviolin]

You can also use the HP GUI to set up a printer instead of using the command line.

Hmm not always. Over the years I have installed several HP Deskjet and All-in-One in different distros and the HP GUI was often, er, just useless, often it didn't work, neither hp-setup in the terminal. But the web interface of CUPS worked every time, no problems, never, although the printer didn't appear in the HP GUI...

I've had issues with printing in other disros and have even resorted to going to the source by bringing up CUPS Server (localhost:631) but have always had problems installing and configuring HP printers. hp-setup works every time.

Not for me! The only thing which works every time is the web interface of the CUPS server, whatever the distro.

[allerjoyce]

HP970H - Print Mode: High Quality
I appreciate your recommendation about the high quality printer. next time I will choose this one.

[Durandal]

The advice 'Go to Synaptic' means nothing to me.

I'm completely new to Linux and Mint, why do so many posts say 'do this' but assuming you know how to do it? So, because I'm having similar problems getting Mint 17.1 to print to my HP printer, could someone please provide easy to follow instructions on how I can fix this, preferably without having to resort to complex terminal window commands - I'm not that sophisticated a linux user ... yet.

I visited the HP Linux Imaging and Printing web site, seems my version of Mint does already contain the HPLIP software, although a newer version is available. They recommend I use the installed version, though I can download the latest. But I don't see how I am to use this software - hence the 'Go to Synaptic' comment above.

Any help for a newbie?

Thanks.

Durandal

[altair4]

First, I wrote this HowTo more than 5 years ago which in Linux years is like 2 generations ago. I have no idea if the packages referenced still exist and for HP printers specifically if it's even required any more.

I would suggest you start a new topic and please tell folks what the issue is and provide the following information:

Make and Model of the printer.
How it's attached: usb, network, etc....
What version of Mint you are using.
What desktop environment you are using: Cinnamon, XFCE, MATE, KDE.....

With that information the folks here can tailor their responses to you.

[Durandal]

Not sure if the above is how to close a thread.

My issue has been solved - is the above notation correct?

Durandal

[Durandal]

Attention Administrators: Problem solved, but I cannot see the edit command on my original post to mark as [Solved]. I'm guessing because I accidentally posted in the Tutorials section of the board. Please can you mark this as solved - thanks.

Durandal