What constitutes using the EMF? Is that used when you are using the UPD for driver mappings, or is it part of importing a print server and assigning users to those printers via Citrix policy, or something else? ________________________________ From: thin-bounce@xxxxxxxxxxxxx [mailto:thin-bounce@xxxxxxxxxxxxx] On Behalf Of Steve Greenberg Sent: Wednesday, November 30, 2005 3:55 PM To: thin@xxxxxxxxxxxxx Subject: [THIN] Re: How ready\stable is MPS 4? I think the distinction is that when using EMF the print job is still in it's raw format when on the server, i.e. much smaller and not driver specific. It is still processed on the server, but the overhead is minimal. The EMF data is then sent down to the client where it is processed by the client print driver, i,e, "unpacked". Think of a PDF file that is 100k on disk and then when you print it the spool file is several megs. The "several megs" part only happens on the client. Does that make sense? Steve Greenberg Thin Client Computing 34522 N. Scottsdale Rd. suite D8453 Scottsdale, AZ 85262 (602) 432-8649 (602) 296-0411 fax steveg@xxxxxxxxxxxxxx ________________________________ From: thin-bounce@xxxxxxxxxxxxx [mailto:thin-bounce@xxxxxxxxxxxxx] On Behalf Of Steve Parr Sent: Wednesday, November 30, 2005 1:45 PM To: 'thin@xxxxxxxxxxxxx' Subject: [THIN] Re: How ready\stable is MPS 4? Don't know Evan as have not used or even tested MPS4 yet. Am hoping someone will enlighten us! I don't think it's UPD as that is still using spooler service. My understanding was new way of printing completely bypasses traditional way of TS or Citrix printing so that nothing is "spooled" on Citrix - the app doing the printing along with Windows OS creates the raw EMF file which gets directly sent down to ICA client were it then gets spooled for first and only time. Maybe I was dreaming. :-) It was too good to be true after all.. -----Original Message----- From: Evan Mann [mailto:emann@xxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxx] Sent: Wednesday, November 30, 2005 3:25 PM To: thin@xxxxxxxxxxxxx Subject: [THIN] Re: How ready\stable is MPS 4? Is "EMF or driverless" is basically using the UPD? I went straight to installing drivers. We had little time to test the Citrix farm, and I couldn't afford lip from users. I tried the UPD on my Dell printers, and a few Savin's, but none worked for much of anything. I'd imagine it would be fairly foolproof on the HP LaserJet 4xxx series printers I use. ________________________________ From: thin-bounce@xxxxxxxxxxxxx [mailto:thin-bounce@xxxxxxxxxxxxx] On Behalf Of Steve Parr Sent: Wednesday, November 30, 2005 3:15 PM To: thin@xxxxxxxxxxxxx Subject: [THIN] Re: How ready\stable is MPS 4? So did you go to "installing the print drivers on Citrix" right away as that is your preference(and has been mine as well) OR did you try to print the new MPS4 way without a driver, the "EMF or driverless" way first and because did not work too well revert to "installing drivers on Citrix"? What I am looking for is feedback from anyone who has tried to go driverless on Citrix with MPS 4 to see how well that works... -----Original Message----- From: Evan Mann [mailto:emann@xxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxx] Sent: Wednesday, November 30, 2005 2:51 PM To: thin@xxxxxxxxxxxxx Subject: [THIN] Re: How ready\stable is MPS 4? Yup, I am installing the actual printer drivers on 1 citrix server, then replicating them to the entire farm, so every printer maps to the actual driver for that printer. I try to use the same driver across all my sites using Citrix, but that's not always the case. My citrix server has the newest versions, but some sites will have an older one. Anyway, I do this because I personally feel it will give me the least amount of problems, and I use a fairly standard set of about a dozen different HP LaserJet's and a Dell 1700/1710/5300's. I do manual printer mappings for random printers people use at home, like DeskJet's to DeskJet 550C, and some older laserjet's to the LJ4. I'm just trying to head off at the pass any potential UPD realted problems, because I had already ran into them when I tried to rely on it for a few printers. ________________________________ From: thin-bounce@xxxxxxxxxxxxx [mailto:thin-bounce@xxxxxxxxxxxxx] On Behalf Of Steve Parr Sent: Wednesday, November 30, 2005 12:25 PM To: thin@xxxxxxxxxxxxx Subject: [THIN] Re: How ready\stable is MPS 4? When you say using all native drivers I assume you are installing the dirvers on Citrix server and letting them map when users log on 1:1 vs. any type of UPD. BUT I thought the promise with MPS4 was(with the caveat that some apps would still fall back to old way of printing if EMF file handling was not possible in the way required) that the EMF print file would be sent directly down to the client effectively doing away with the need to install any drivers on Citrix? -----Original Message----- From: Evan Mann [mailto:emann@xxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxx] Sent: Wednesday, November 30, 2005 12:08 PM To: thin@xxxxxxxxxxxxx Subject: [THIN] Re: How ready\stable is MPS 4? My farm is a clean install of 2003 SP1 with MPS4.0, no upgrades or anything like that. The farm itself is extremely stable. I have 2 zones with 2 servers per zone and a single WI server (I also use CSG). My only issues have been all printing related, but some were fixed by hotfixes (Print Manager crashing) and others appear to be related to an app I use that relies on a kernel mode driver. I use all native drivers, not the UPD, and I don't do any imported network printing, so it's pretty striaght forward on the printing end. I'm most likely going to deploy ScrewDrivers if my testing proves to solve some application specific printing issues. ________________________________ From: thin-bounce@xxxxxxxxxxxxx [mailto:thin-bounce@xxxxxxxxxxxxx] On Behalf Of Steve Parr Sent: Wednesday, November 30, 2005 11:50 AM To: thin@xxxxxxxxxxxxx Subject: [THIN] How ready\stable is MPS 4? How far have things come? If stability is my number one priority should I stick with XP FR3? Also the real attraction for our company would be the apparent ease with which printing in theory is dealt with by MPS 4 - how much has this proven true in practice for others? Also I assume the upgrade path from XP3 to MPS4 is not smooth and possibly not even an option from what I recall reading on the topic last spring? Probably need to be on PS 3 to upgrade to 4? Steve Parr Metroland Printing, Publishing and Distributing Ltd.