topic Re: OpenVMS V8.4 & Virtual Printer in Operating System - OpenVMS

OpenVMS V8.4 & Virtual Printer

Bushytea — Thu, 25 Jun 2015 19:21:23 GMT

Hello All,

Is there a way to setup a virtual printer in OpenVMS? Typically I need to use an IP address for any printer that I setup but for this printer I do not need one. This is just a printer for users to print unnecessary documents to.

Thanks in advance

Re: OpenVMS V8.4 & Virtual Printer

Mike Kier — Fri, 26 Jun 2015 15:13:53 GMT

Take a look at EXECSYMB from the VMS freeware collection.

It will allow you to create queues that do whatever you want - send the file to the NLA0: device, convert it to PDF (with the appropriate text2pdf program), encrypt it, or zip it; whatever you can put into a program or script.

I've used it at multiple sites for at least 15 years - great stuff.

I'm using it where I work to slap on some <HTML> headers, copy the file across the network to a Windows directory and send an email to a distribution list with the URL of the file.

Re: OpenVMS V8.4 & Virtual Printer

Hoff — Thu, 25 Jun 2015 23:18:56 GMT

Mike's EXECSYMB suggestion can and will work here, but a null symbiont is a slightly more direct path to nowhere. Beyond EXECSYMB and a null symbiont, there are other options, too.

Re: OpenVMS V8.4 & Virtual Printer

John Gillings — Wed, 08 Jul 2015 04:32:07 GMT

From my archive, a very simple null symbiont, with instructions

.TITLE NullSymbiont

;

; Module implements a null symbiont - jobs entered on a queue using this

; symbiont will complete without producing any output.

;

; Author: John Gillings, Systems Software Consultant

; Digital Equipment Corporation

; Customer Support Centre

; Sydney, Australia

;

; Translated from C example by John COMEUP:: Simmonds for use on systems

; which have no C compiler.

;

; Build:

; $ MACRO NULLSYMB

; $ LINK NULLSYMB /EXE=SYS$COMMON:[SYSEXE]NULLSYMB

; $ INITIALIZE/QUEUE/START queue-name /ON=(node::NL:)/DEVICE=PRINTER -

; /PROCESSOR=NULLSYMB

;

.LIBRARY 'SYS$SHARE:LIB'

$PSMDEF ; print symbiont symbols

$SSDEF ; system status symbols

.EXTERNAL PSM$REPLACE,PSM$PRINT

.PSECT code,EXE,NOWRT ; printing routine, does nothing

.ENTRY null_output_routine,^M<>

MOVL #SS$_NORMAL,R0 ; and always succeeds

RET

.ENTRY Start,^M<>

PUSHAB null_output_routine ; use null printing routine

PUSHAL #PSM$K_OUTPUT ; for output

CALLS #2,G^PSM$REPLACE

BLBC R0,1$ ; abort on error

PUSHAL #2048 ; buffer size

PUSHAL #16 ; accept 16 streams

CALLS #2,G^PSM$PRINT ; Start the symbiont

1$: RET

.END Start