On Tue, 2008-12-09 at 13:06 -0800, SalinNYC wrote:

> I can't give out too much information as to version numbers because
> I'm not on site but suffice to say running Win 2K server, jBASE
> 3.4.x.  Workstations are mostly old Windows ME machines.  Printers are
> either slaved off the ME machines or one off the server.
> 
> I've not had a single problem with this situation for years at this
> specific client.  Nothing with the footprint has changed either.  All
> of a sudden my client has been experiencing sporadic problems where
> the printers just stop printing.  This is happening at two separate
> locations running two separate jBASE installations for this client.
> JBASE does not report any errors and spools the job successfully so
> I'm fairly confident that its not a pure jBASE issue.  Windows Error
> Log similarly does not report any errors.  The printing issue can last
> for a period of minutes to hours but eventually things start printing
> again as if nothing was wrong...until the next time.
> 
> Does any of this make sense to anyone?


Yes.... OK then, I won't be pedantic for once and won't stop there...

All sorts of things come to mind, (including not to believe anyone when
they say they have not changed anything):

1) If the print servers are busier than they once were, either because
they added some other software, updated patches and so on, then there is
a possibility that they are just getting knocked out of the priority
queue. To see if this is the case, you can try raising the priority of
the Windows spooler:
http://www.pctools.com/guides/registry/detail/1271/ which might do the
trick;
2) If the user spooling the job logs out, then does the print job
suddenly start printing? It could be that you are not closing the
spooler job now (or perhaps before but got away with it), and if
something has changed, such as the print server changing configs from
"Start printing immediately" to "Spool when job is complete", then you
might get something like this.
3) Network. Obviously they have not changed anything at all with their
network right? They haven't added or replaced a PC/Network
card/WAP/DNS/anything? ;-) However, if the DNS servers were wonky, or
the WINS server, or however they are resolving the path to the print
server is messed up, then the Windows client might well keep trying and
trying until it eventually gets through.

My bet is that they have added something to the server. Hopefully it is
something that they SHOULD be adding, such as all the latest system
patches (this is the first thing to get them to do by the way, update ME
and the server with Windows Update). The fact that jBASE spools without
error and the job eventually prints tends to indicate that there is
nothing wrong at the jBASE or application level, though this is not
guaranteed of course.

Assuming patching up to date does not fix it, then I think they should
do a controlled reboot of everything, starting with all the network
equipment, then the server(s), then the clients (and anything else they
have).

Finally, Windows ME has been out of support status since July 2006 and
so eventually I suspect that some patch will come out for the server
that renders the ME clients useless. Though it is a pain in the arse,
they really need to upgrade the clients, at least gradually. They can
probably buy cheap client PCs from Dell, that run Vista faster than
anything they have now.
http://www.microsoft.com/windows/support/endofsupport.mspx 

Jim


> 
> > 



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