blocking parallel port on a HP LaserJet 2430

[TD]

Is it possible to block the use of a parallel port on a HP LaserJet
2430 printer (so the only way to print is through network)?
Some users refuse to use the printserver and connect their machines
directly to the parallel port. :-(

 

[wm_walsh]

Hi!

Take away their parallel cables.

Seriously, disabling the port may not be an option. But what you could
do is disable the port in system setup and the operating system on the
offending PCs.

Why would the users refuse to print over the network? It should be much
faster that way in many cases.

William

 

[TD]

(e-mail address removed) schreef:

Hi!

Take away their parallel cables.

Seriously, disabling the port may not be an option. But what you could
do is disable the port in system setup and the operating system on the
offending PCs.

Why would the users refuse to print over the network? It should be much
faster that way in many cases.

William

William,

They always find other cables!
I don't want to block the ports on their pc's, they might need them for
something else.
They say printing parallel is faster than printing over the network. I
think they just hate sharing a printer with others.

 

[wm_walsh]

Hi!

They always find other cables!

Well, that is an interesting problem then.

I looked around on the HP web site and couldn't find a manual for your
printer. The closest printer I have here on site is the predecessor to
the 2400, the LaserJet 2300DTN. I took a look at its onboard control
panel menus and found

Configure Device > I/O > Parallel Input > Adv. Functions > Off/On

I have my doubts that this will disable the port, as it sounds like
more of a setting for turning off bidirectionality of the port or
something. But it's worth a shot if you haven't already tried it.

I don't want to block the ports on their pc's, they might need them for
something else.

What about the port on the printer? Is it covered by a door or cover?
I've seen some printers shipped with plastic protectors over their 36
pin Centronics parallel ports. If you could find one of those, you
could glue it to the port in some way.

As a last result, perhaps you could move the printer to where no
parallel cable will reach it. I would think that would stop all but the
most determined person. The longest parallel cable I've ever seen was
25 feet long.

They say printing parallel is faster than printing over the network. I
think they just hate sharing a printer with others.

That's probably the case.

William

 

[Jimmy]

Is it possible to block the use of a parallel port on a HP LaserJet
2430 printer (so the only way to print is through network)?
Some users refuse to use the printserver and connect their machines
directly to the parallel port. :-(

Sounds like everyone on your network has administration rights and thus
allowing them to change hardware or software to suit themselves.

What kind of network is this? What OS's are you running on the computers?
If you are running W2K or XP, then you should be able to setup all machines,
printers, etc so that users have no administration rights. Once this is
done, as an administrator, check the connectivity of each computer to the
network printer assigned, then go into the Device Manager and disable the
parallel ports if they are not needed for other devices. Use Printer
Servers (if your model does not include JetDirect) to relocate the printers
to a central location for all users. If the parallel port is removed in the
Device manager, and can not be added because the user does not have admin
rights, even a lengthy parallel cable won't help them.

 

[Warren Block]

Is it possible to block the use of a parallel port on a HP LaserJet
2430 printer (so the only way to print is through network)?
Some users refuse to use the printserver and connect their machines
directly to the parallel port. :-(

There appears to be no way to do it though software, which is odd. I
thought sure there was a way, but have never needed to do it.

As to hardware, it depends on your comfort level and permissions. If
the parallel port connector on the printer is on a ribbon cable you
could just disconnect it inside the printer. It probably isn't on a
cable, though.

Other options require more commitment, like making a metal plate to fit
over the connector (bolted to the back of the printer with security Torx
screws) or filling the connector with silicone. You could cut one of
the internal parallel handshake lines on the connector and add a switch.
Or cut one of the data lines, which would be more interesting.

Finding out why the users are set on using the parallel port and making
it easier to use the right way may be the best fix. Maybe they're doing
something wrong and it really is slower because of that.

 

[George E. Cawthon]

Is it possible to block the use of a parallel port on a HP LaserJet
2430 printer (so the only way to print is through network)?
Some users refuse to use the printserver and connect their machines
directly to the parallel port. :-(

Stocks! or more drastic a cat-o-nine tails.

 

[TD]

(e-mail address removed) schreef:

Hi!


Well, that is an interesting problem then.

I looked around on the HP web site and couldn't find a manual for your
printer. The closest printer I have here on site is the predecessor to
the 2400, the LaserJet 2300DTN. I took a look at its onboard control
panel menus and found

Configure Device > I/O > Parallel Input > Adv. Functions > Off/On

I have my doubts that this will disable the port, as it sounds like
more of a setting for turning off bidirectionality of the port or
something. But it's worth a shot if you haven't already tried it.


What about the port on the printer? Is it covered by a door or cover?
I've seen some printers shipped with plastic protectors over their 36
pin Centronics parallel ports. If you could find one of those, you
could glue it to the port in some way.

As a last result, perhaps you could move the printer to where no
parallel cable will reach it. I would think that would stop all but the
most determined person. The longest parallel cable I've ever seen was
25 feet long.


That's probably the case.

William

I already turned those advanced options off and put the parallel port
to low speed.
That's the most i can do probably.
Thanks!

 

[Richard Steinfeld]

Is it possible to block the use of a parallel port on a HP LaserJet
2430 printer (so the only way to print is through network)?
Some users refuse to use the printserver and connect their machines
directly to the parallel port. :-(

I can't see why this is desirable. My experience in a major corporation
was that the office systems were so unreliable and complicated, each
with its own administrator, that direct connections would be a godsend!
You could never know whether a piece of office equipment would work or
not, especially the heavy-duty printers, due to network problems.

So, I say, to hell with networked printers; give everyone a local
printer and get a more productive business.

Oh, I did a few projects for a major US telephone company. Total
madhouse of inefficiency. I'm still incredulous that our telephones work
at all, let alone so reliably.

Richard

 

[Jimmy]

So, I say, to hell with networked printers; give everyone a local
printer and get a more productive business.

Surely you jest! We have over 4,000 workstations at my place of employment,
so just imagine the expense of equipping and supplying each station with
printers, not to mention the space requirements needed. Add in CATIA
workstations, plotters, large format printers, etc and you would have a
major headache. Networking done piecemeal can be a problem, but a well
designed and implemented network solves many more problems than it creates.

 

[Richard Steinfeld]

so just imagine the expense of equipping and supplying each station with
printers, not to mention the space requirements needed. Add in CATIA
workstations, plotters, large format printers, etc and you would have a
major headache. Networking done piecemeal can be a problem, but a well
designed and implemented network solves many more problems than it creates.

I do not jest. I'm talking from experience. I do a lot of printing in my
work and I need the printer to work right away and every time. The
corporate workplace can be a madhouse of networks, each with its own
administrator interrupting work with sudden password changes, each one
rejecting all but its own rUl7Es8. These networks may or may not work
today, may be back up in 10 minutes. Or 12 hours. Maybe networked
printers are marvelous for some folks, but not for me. I want one on my
desk. How can anyone be productive amidst this techno-insanity?

I've got nothing against networks, but in some workplaces, it seems that
the system administrators are running competing power trips and/or
putting out lots of brush fires. Of course, I'm not talking about
specialty printers; just the ordinary relatively inexpensive ones that
are pretty cheap when you factor in all the overhead and maintenance
costs of large-system networked printers. The space requirement for a
small printer is minimal.

And then, you get the virus attacks that mess up everything on the
entire network.

No thanks.