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lpfilter(1M)

lpfilter -- administer filters used with the LP print service

Synopsis

lpfilter -f filter-name -F pathname
lpfilter -f filter-name -
lpfilter -f filter-name -i
lpfilter -f filter-name -x
lpfilter -f filter-name -l

Description

The lpfilter command is used to add, change, delete, and list a filter used with the LP print service. These filters are used to convert the content type of a file to a content type acceptable to a printer. One of the following options must be used with the lpfilter command: -F pathname (or - for standard input) to add or change a filter; -i to reset an original filter to its factory setting; -x to delete a filter; or -l to list a filter description.

The argument all can be used instead of a filter-name with any of these options. When all is specified with the -F or - option, the requested change is made to all filters. Using all with the -i option has the effect of restoring to their original settings all filters for which predefined settings were initially available. Using the all argument with the -x option results in all filters being deleted, and using it with the -l option produces a list of all filters.

Adding or changing a filter

The filter named in the -f option is added to the filter table. If the filter already exists, its description is changed to reflect the new information in the input.

The filter description is taken from the pathname if the -F option is given, or from the standard input if the - option is given. One of the two must be given to define or change a filter. If the filter named is one originally delivered with the LP print service, the -i option will restore the original filter description.

When an existing filter is changed with the -F or - option, items that are not specified in the new information are left as they were. When a new filter is added with this command, unspecified items are given default values.

Filters are used to convert the content of a request into a data stream acceptable to a printer. For a given print request, the LP print service will know the following:

It will use this information to find a filter or a pipeline of filters that will convert the content into a type acceptable to the printer.

Below is a list of items that provide input to this command, and a description of each item. All lists are comma or space separated.

Input types: content-type-list
Output types: content-type-list
Printer types: printer-type-list
Printers: printer-list
Filter type: filter-type
Command: shell-command
Options: template-list


Input types
This gives the types of content that can be accepted by the filter. (The default is any.)

Output types
This gives the types of content that the filter can produce from any of the input content types. (The default is any.)

Printer types
This gives the type of printers for which the filter can be used. The LP print service will restrict the use of the filter to these types of printers. (The default is any.)

Printers
This gives the names of the printers for which the filter can be used. The LP print service will restrict the use of the filter to just the printers named. (The default is any.)

Filter type
This marks the filter as a slow filter or a fast filter. Slow filters are generally those that take a long time to convert their input. They are run unconnected to a printer, to keep the printers from being tied up while the filter is running. If a listed printer is on a remote system, the filter type for it must have the value slow. Fast filters are generally those that convert their input quickly, or those that must be connected to the printer when run. These will be given to the interface program IP to run connected to the physical printer.

Command
This specifies the program to run to invoke the filter. The full program pathname as well as fixed options must be included in the shell-command; additional options are constructed, based on the characteristics of each print request and on the ``Options'' field. A command must be given for each filter.

The command must accept a data stream as standard input and produce the converted data stream on its standard output. This allows filter pipelines to be constructed to convert data not handled by a single filter.


Options
This is a comma-separated list of templates used by the LP print service to construct options to the filter from the characteristics of each print request listed in the table later.

In general, each template is of the following form:

keyword-pattern=replacement

The keyword names the characteristic that the template attempts to map into a filter specific option; each valid keyword is listed in the table below. A pattern is one of the following: a literal pattern of one of the forms listed in the table, a single asterisk (*), or a regular expression. If pattern matches the value of the characteristic, the template fits and is used to generate a filter specific option. The replacement is what will be used as the option.

Regular expressions are the same as those found in the ed or vi commands. This includes the \( . . . \) and \n constructions, which can be used to extract portions of the pattern for copying into the replacement, and the ``&'', which can be used to copy the entire pattern into the replacement.

The replacement can also contain a ``*''; it too, is replaced with the entire pattern, just like the ``&'' of ed(1).

lp Option Characteristic keyword Possible patterns
-T Content type (input) INPUT content-type
N/A Content type (output) OUTPUT content-type
N/A Printer type TERM printer-type
-d Printer name PRINTER printer-name
-f, -o cpi= Character pitch CPI integer
-f, -o lpi= Line pitch LPI integer
-f, -o length= Page length LENGTH integer
-f, -o width= Page width WIDTH integer
-P Pages to print PAGES page-list
-S Character set
Print wheel 		CHARSET
CHARSET 		character-set-name
print-wheel-name
-f Form name FORM form-name
-y Modes MODES mode
-n Number of copies COPIES integer 

 +---------------+-----------------------+---------+-------------------+
 |lp Option      | Characteristic        | keyword | Possible patterns |
 +---------------+-----------------------+---------+-------------------+
 |-T             | Content type (input)  | INPUT   | content-type      |
 +---------------+-----------------------+---------+-------------------+
 |N/A            | Content type (output) | OUTPUT  | content-type      |
 +---------------+-----------------------+---------+-------------------+
 |N/A            | Printer type          | TERM    | printer-type      |
 +---------------+-----------------------+---------+-------------------+
 |-d             | Printer name          | PRINTER | printer-name      |
 +---------------+-----------------------+---------+-------------------+
 |-f, -o cpi=    | Character pitch       | CPI     | integer           |
 +---------------+-----------------------+---------+-------------------+
 |-f, -o lpi=    | Line pitch            | LPI     | integer           |
 +---------------+-----------------------+---------+-------------------+
 |-f, -o length= | Page length           | LENGTH  | integer           |
 +---------------+-----------------------+---------+-------------------+
 |-f, -o width=  | Page width            | WIDTH   | integer           |
 +---------------+-----------------------+---------+-------------------+
 |-P             | Pages to print        | PAGES   | page-list         |
 +---------------+-----------------------+---------+-------------------+
 |-S             | Character set         | CHARSET | character-set-    |
 |               | Print wheel           | CHARSET | name              |
 |               |                       |         | print-wheel-name  |
 +---------------+-----------------------+---------+-------------------+
 |-f             | Form name             | FORM    | form-name         |
 +---------------+-----------------------+---------+-------------------+
 |-y             | Modes                 | MODES   | mode              |
 +---------------+-----------------------+---------+-------------------+
 |-n             | Number of copies      | COPIES  | integer           |
 +---------------+-----------------------+---------+-------------------+
For example, the template 
   MODES landscape = -l
shows that if a print request is submitted with the -y landscape option, the filter will be given the option -l. As another example, the template 
   TERM * = -T *
shows that the filter will be given the option -T printer-type for whichever printer-type is associated with a print request using the filter.

As a last example, consider the template 

   MODES prwidth\=\(.*\) = -w\1
Suppose a user gives the command

lp -y prwidth=10

From the table above, the LP print service determines that the -y option is handled by a MODES template. The MODES template here works because the pattern ``prwidth\=\(.*\)'' matches the prwidth=10 given by the user. The replacement -w\1 causes the LP print service to generate the filter option -w10.

If necessary, the LP print service will construct a filter pipeline by concatenating several filters to handle the user's file and all the print options. (See sh(1) for a description of a pipeline.) If the print service constructs a filter pipeline, the INPUT and OUTPUT values used for each filter in the pipeline are the types of the input and output for that filter, not for the entire pipeline.

Deleting a filter

The -x option is used to delete the filter specified in filter-name from the LP filter table.

Listing a filter description

The -l option is used to list the description of the filter named in filter-name. If the command is successful, the following message is sent to standard output: 
   Input types: content-type-list
   Output types: content-type-list
   Printer types: printer-type-list
   Printers: printer-list
   Filter type: filter-type
   Command: shell-command
   Options: template-list
If the command fails, an error message is sent to standard error.

Files


/usr/lib/locale/locale/LC_MESSAGES/uxlp
language-specific message file (see LANG on environ(5)).

References

lpadmin(1M)
© 2004 The SCO Group, Inc. All rights reserved.
UnixWare 7 Release 7.1.4 - 25 April 2004