[cups.general] Difference CUPS <-> Windows Spooler

[Michael R Sweet]

Volker Jordan wrote:
> Hi,
> 
> why can I print a large PDF (about 100.000 pages) with the acrobat reader at a windows plattform without any delay? I read, that cups has to filter the whole document first because of the various resources in the pdf, but why can windows start the print job immediately and CUPS not? Are there any alternatives to the windows spooler ?

On Windows, all of the print options are handled by the application
and driver, and spooled jobs can start printing immediately upon
receipt if there is no other job queued up.  This direct coupling has
some serious downsides, as print drivers can crash applications or
(depending on the driver) the entire operating system.

With CUPS, an application will send either a PDF or PostScript file
which is spooled in a temporary file (/var/spool/cups/dNNNNN-NNN)
before printing - that is the main source of delay with large print
files.  Depending on how the printer is connected, printing will
then start immediately or wait for the filters to generate the print
data - direct connected (USB, parallel, etc.) and JetDirect/socket
queues print faster than LPD or IPP queues.

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Michael R Sweet                        Senior Printing System Engineer