How to print from Dos to USB printer

A possible solution: try to use a printer spooler (under DOS) in order to intercept output from program and store it into a file.

Then, once back to Windoze, dump the generated file to the printer.

Thanks for your option. Some users will have a difficulty with thsi solution, because they are not experienced in dos-file handling.
I still hope there is a more general solution.

There's a problem, Jbar: there no drivers for USB devices thought to be executed from DOS applications.

With that fact in front of view, you don't have many choices.


Anyway, check with http://216.46.244.60/ to see if they can do anything for you.

Thanks again. I hoped there would be a solution like in using a network printer: assign locally a LPT-port and connect it to the USB-path.

As far as I can find out in many places on the web, a lot of people are struggeling with thsi issue. So I hope Uncle Bill / M$ will give us all a real solution.

If it where for me alone... no problem. I did it already. The problem is I am the source of information for the Dutch Habo-community (Habo is an old Dos-based accounting program) with thousands of users, gradually going over to USB-printers. So I like to have an easy solution or a solution directly supported by Windows.

So, in general, your suggestion is really not a valid solution.
This is the reason why I previously said a lot of users don't have the expertise to use printing to a file (although Habo does support that) and afterwards using a Win-tool to print the dos-file.

PS
Personally I have several printers installed, LPT1, LPT2, USB, RS232 connected to the same pc and all in a network.

Well... I don't know why you awarded me the points then. Unfortunately, I don't have a way to refund... :(

But thanks a lot, anyway.

Sorry, since I am new on this forum, I wanted to award only the last remark. Not for the whole.
If I get another change, I will surely update.

So this didn't work. Sorry vikiing, I really appreciate You helped in knowing for sure there is currently no other solution then those you suggested to me.
For me this knowledge is worth the total 200. But I dodn't get a chanche to correct myself.

>>I wanted to award only the last remark

You can't award only one comment, but the whole thread (although only the comment you've chosen is that which remains as "answer").

I hope you be lucky with your USB printer !!!

Again, sorry. I learned one more thing already, besides of USB-printing: The reward is indead for the whole tread. Next time I will know and take the correct route. But once it is the first time, and those are the hardest.

Thanks for your good wish.

Print to a USB printer via LPT.

Yes, I've done this on a Windows 2000 Professional PC.  I think it would work on other versions too.

From what I remember, you want to install the printer to the USB port, i.e. USB001.

Then you have to share the printer.  Our printer is shared as HPLJ2000D.

Then use the following commands:

NET USE LPT1 \\COMP_NAME\HPLJ200D /Persistent:YES  (This should all be on the same line.  It basically redirects output on LPT1 to the shared printer HPLJ2000D.)  

NET VIEW \\COMP_NAME  (To see the connection.)

Of course you need to replace COMP_NAME with the name of your computer.

You can delete the connection by using:
NET USE LPT1 /DELETE

I hope this helps!

John

We have same problem. Last week we recently purchased a HP Deskjet 3420 USB (instead of old Epson LX-300) and, obviously, it does not run in DOS.

One guy sent me a very similar syntax:
>   Do something like this:
> NET USE LPT1: \\SERVER\PRINTERSHARE /persistent:YES

But when I  this trick, I get some text and stange symbols on the first page and hundreds pages with nothing on them.

Our DOS program (CardioLine) print cardiograms in graphics mode, could this be a problem?

Any suggestions, please ?

My problem was solved successful today.

I learned of a shareware program that are hooked DOS printing to different kinds of printers. This little program is not a 100% solution, nor is it terribly elegant. But it does work. Even more importantly, in less than seven hours I had a personal e-mail reply to question that I had posed directly to the vendor's support. See it at
http://www.dosprn.com/

BTW, the forum that I have been watching from is:
http://forums.techguy.org/index.php

I just discovered something interesting:

I have been struggling with new USB printers and a requirement to do a "dir > lpt1" which would prove DOS program printing.

I am "sharing with self" on Win2K so that I can do a "net use lpt1 \\computer\printer /Persistent:YES" as documented earlier on this thread.

Still no luck ...   THEN:  (drum roll) ....

(R) click on printer, go to Properties, go to advanced, go to Print processor, change data type = "RAW" to "TEXT".

It works on an HP 3650   ($90 at RadShack)


From Roger, struggling with First Resort (a legacy DOS app) in Hawaii.

Just to confirm that the NET USE LPT1: route works for me on an Epson CX5400 from an old DOS program called Office Manager - I use it to print invoices (quite important!) but they are only text.

This is Windows 2000 and the Print processor property is set to WInPrint &  RAW (the default, I haven't changed it).

Rgrds

Peter

I am trying to use this procedure to direct lpt1 to usb on a standalone XP Pro workstation and it keeps coming back with an error:  The network location cannot be reached
Any help?

I haven't done this on XP but on Win2k to check the status, open a cmd window and type 'net use'. You should see something like this:

N:\temp>net use
New connections will be remembered.

Status       Local     Remote                    Network
-------------------------------------------------------------------------------
OK           Y:        \\bob\prt                 Microsoft Windows Network
OK           LPT1      \\avellana\EPSONcx        Microsoft Windows Network
The command completed successfully.


Here I am redirecting LPT1 to the printer called EPSONcx on avellana. If you don't have ssomething similar, maybe the printer is not shared properly (or maybe XP is different?). Otherwise, USB cards are cheap...

Rgrds

Peter

copy <fle name and path> LTP1

The NET USE redirect command can be made to stay permanent until canceled or to terminate when the DOS program is closed. The is done with the \PERSISTENT:YES  or  \PERSISTENT:NO part of the command.

A good way to launch the DOS program is with a DOS batch file. Place the NET USE command on the first line of the batch file. Use the \PERSISTENT:NO to discontinue the redirect when the DOS program is closed.

Make a shortcut to the DOS batch file and place it on the desktop.

The NET USE command can also be used to redirect the LPT1 port to a printer on the network. This works well for DOS program that can only print to the LPT1 port.

Add the following as the first line to the batch file:

NET  USE  LPT1:  \\MYSERVER\PRINTER  /PERSISTENT:NO

Where: MYSERVER is changed to the name of your server and
Where: PRINTER is changed to the name of your printer.

Kent