Summary

Chapter 14: Advanced Printers and Scanners 13Network Print Server DevicesNetwork print server devices allow many users on a network to access a single printer. Anetwork print server device can manage network printing through either wired or wirelessconnections. Figure 14-7 shows a wired print server. You should consider the advantagesand disadvantages of a dedicated PC print server before you install one:■■An advantage of using a network print server is that the server accepts incoming printjobs from computers, and then frees the computers for other tasks. The print server isalways available to the users, unlike a printer shared from a user’s computer.A disadvantage of a network print server is that it might not be able to use all the functionsof an all-in-one device.Figure 14-7Network Print Server DeviceDedicated PC Print ServersA dedicated PC print server is a computer dedicated to handling client print jobs in themost efficient manner. Because it handles requests from multiple clients, a print server isusually one of the most powerful computers on the network. Dedicated PC print servers canmanage more than one printer at a time. A print server needs to have resources available tomeet the requests of print clients:■■■Powerful processor: Because the PC print server uses its processor to manage androute printing information, it needs to be fast enough to handle all incoming requests.Adequate hard disk space: A PC print server captures print jobs from clients, placesthem in a print queue, and sends them to the printer in a timely way. This requires thecomputer to have enough storage space to hold these jobs until completed.Adequate memory: The server processor and RAM handle sending print jobs to aprinter. If server memory is not large enough to handle an entire print job, the harddrive must send the job, which is much slower.