Printing and Options

CUPS provides both the System V (lp(1)) and Berkeley (lpr(1)) printing commands for printing files. In addition, it supported a large number of standard and printer-specific options that allow you to control how and where files are printed.

## Printing Files

CUPS understands many different types of files directly, including text, PostScript, PDF, and image files. This allows you to print from inside your applications or at the command-line, whichever is most convenient! Type either of the following commands to print a file to the default (or only) printer on the system:

    lp filename
    lpr filename

### Choosing a Printer

Many systems will have more than one printer available to the user. These printers can be attached to the local system via a parallel, serial, or USB port, or available over the network. Use the lpstat(1) command to see a list of available printers:

    lpstat -p -d

The `-p` option specifies that you want to see a list of printers, and the `-d` option reports the current default printer or class.

Use the `-d` option with the lp command to print to a specific printer:

    lp -d printer filename

or the `-P` option with the lpr command:

    lpr -P printer filename

### Setting the Default Printer

If you normally use a particular printer, you can tell CUPS to use it by default using the lpoptions(1) command:

    lpoptions -d printer

### Printing the Output of a Program

Both the lp and lpr commands support printing from the standard input:

    program | lp
    program | lp -d printer
    program | lpr
    program | lpr -P printer

If the program does not provide any output, then nothing will be queued for printing.

### Specifying Printer Options

For many types of files, the default printer options may be sufficient for your needs. However, there may be times when you need to change the options for a particular file you are printing.

The lp and lpr commands allow you to pass printer options using the `-o` option:

    lp -o landscape -o scaling=75 -o media=A4 filename.jpg
    lpr -o landscape -o scaling=75 -o media=A4 filename.jpg

The available printer options vary depending on the printer. The standard options are described in the "Standard Printing Options" section below.

### Printing Multiple Copies

Both the lp and lpr commands have options for printing more than one copy of a file:

    lp -n num-copies filename
    lpr -#num-copies filename

Copies are normally not collated for you. Use the `-o Collate=True` option to get collated copies:

    lp -n num-copies -o Collate=True filename
    lpr -#num-copies -o Collate=True filename

## Canceling a Print Job

The cancel(1) and lprm(1) commands cancel a print job:

    cancel job-id
    lprm job-id

The job-id is the number that was reported to you by the lp command. You can also get the job ID using the lpq(1) or lpstat commands:

    lpq
    lpstat

## Standard Printing Options

The following options apply when printing all types of files.

### Selecting the Media Size, Type, and Source

The `-o media=xyz` option sets the media size, type, and/or source:

    lp -o media=Letter filename
    lp -o media=Letter,MultiPurpose filename
    lpr -o media=Letter,Transparency filename
    lpr -o media=Letter,MultiPurpose,Transparency filename

The available media sizes, types, and sources depend on the printer, but most support the following options (case is not significant):

- `Letter` - US Letter (8.5x11 inches, or 216x279mm)
- `Legal` - US Legal (8.5x14 inches, or 216x356mm)
- `A4` - ISO A4 (8.27x11.69 inches, or 210x297mm)
- `COM10` - US #10 Envelope (9.5x4.125 inches, or 241x105mm)
- `DL` - ISO DL Envelope (8.66x4.33 inches, or 220x110mm)
- `Transparency` - Transparency media type or source
- `Upper` - Upper paper tray
- `Lower` - Lower paper tray
- `MultiPurpose` - Multi-purpose paper tray
- `LargeCapacity` - Large capacity paper tray

The actual options supported are defined in the printer's PPD file in the `PageSize`, `InputSlot`, and `MediaType` options. You can list them using the lpoptions(1) command:

    lpoptions -p printer -l

### Setting the Orientation

The `-o landscape` option will rotate the page 90 degrees to print in landscape orientation:

    lp -o landscape filename
    lpr -o landscape filename

The `-o orientation-requested=N` option rotates the page depending on the value of N:

- `-o orientation-requested=3` - portrait orientation (no rotation)
- `-o orientation-requested=4` - landscape orientation (90 degrees)
- `-o orientation-requested=5` - reverse landscape or seascape orientation (270 degrees)
- `-o orientation-requested=6` - reverse portrait or upside-down orientation (180 degrees)

### Printing On Both Sides of the Paper

The `-o sides=two-sided-short-edge` and `-o sides=two-sided-long-edge` options will enable two-sided printing on the printer if the printer supports it. The `-o sides=two-sided-short-edge` option is suitable for landscape pages, while the `-o sides=two-sided-long-edge` option is suitable for portrait pages:

    lp -o sides=two-sided-short-edge filename
    lp -o sides=two-sided-long-edge filename
    lpr -o sides=two-sided-long-edge filename

The default is to print single-sided:

    lp -o sides=one-sided filename
    lpr -o sides=one-sided filename

### Selecting the Banner Page(s)

The `-o jobsheets=start,end` option sets the banner page(s) to use for a job:

    lp -o job-sheets=none filename
    lp -o job-sheets=standard filename
    lpr -o job-sheets=classified,classified filename

If only one banner file is specified, it will be printed before the files in the job. If a second banner file is specified, it is printed after the files in the job.

The available banner pages depend on the local system configuration; CUPS includes the following banner files:

- `none` - Do not produce a banner page.
- `classified` - A banner page with a "classified" label at the top and bottom.
- `confidential` - A banner page with a "confidential" label at the top and bottom.
- `secret` - A banner page with a "secret" label at the top and bottom.
- `standard` - A banner page with no label at the top and bottom.
- `topsecret` - A banner page with a "top secret" label at the top and bottom.
- `unclassified` - A banner page with an "unclassified" label at the top and bottom.

### Selecting a Range of Pages

The `-o page-ranges=pages` option selects a range of pages for printing:

    lp -o page-ranges=1 filename
    lp -o page-ranges=1-4 filename
    lp -o page-ranges=1-4,7,9-12 filename
    lpr -o page-ranges=1-4,7,9-12 filename

As shown above, the `pages` value can be a single page, a range of pages, or a collection of page numbers and ranges separated by commas. The pages will always be printed in ascending order, regardless of the order of the pages in the `page-ranges` option.

The default is to print all pages.

### Selecting Even or Odd Pages

Use the `-o page-set=set` option to select the even or odd pages:

    lp -o page-set=odd filename
    lp -o page-set=even filename
    lpr -o page-set=even filename

The default is to print all pages.

### N-Up Printing

The `-o number-up=value` option selects N-Up printing. N-Up printing places multiple document pages on a single printed page. CUPS supports 1, 2, 4, 6, 9, and 16-Up formats; the default format is 1-Up:

    lp -o number-up=1 filename
    lp -o number-up=2 filename
    lp -o number-up=4 filename
    lpr -o number-up=16 filename

The `-o page-border=value` option chooses the border to draw around each page:

- `-o page-border=double`; draw two hairline borders around each page
- `-o page-border=double-thick`; draw two 1pt borders around each page
- `-o page-border=none`; do not draw a border (default)
- `-o page-border=single`; draw one hairline border around each page
- `-o page-border=single-thick`; draw one 1pt border around each page

The `-o number-up-layout=value` option chooses the layout of the pages on each output page:

- `-o number-up-layout=btlr`; Bottom to top, left to right
- `-o number-up-layout=btrl`; Bottom to top, right to left
- `-o number-up-layout=lrbt`; Left to right, bottom to top
- `-o number-up-layout=lrtb`; Left to right, top to bottom (default)
- `-o number-up-layout=rlbt`; Right to left, bottom to top
- `-o number-up-layout=rltb`; Right to left, top to bottom
- `-o number-up-layout=tblr`; Top to bottom, left to right
- `-o number-up-layout=tbrl`; Top to bottom, right to left

### Scaling to Fit

The `-o fitplot` option specifies that the document should be scaled to fit on the page:

    lp -o fitplot filename
    lpr -o fitplot filename

The default is to use the size specified in the file.

> Note: This feature depends upon an accurate size in the print file. If no size is given in the file, the page may be scaled incorrectly!

### Raw or Unfiltered Output

The `-o raw` option allows you to send files directly to a printer without filtering. This is sometimes required when printing from applications that provide their own "printer drivers" for your printer:

    lp -o raw filename
    lpr -o raw filename

The `-l` option can also be used with the lpr command to send files directly to a printer:

    lpr -l filename

## Text Options

CUPS supports several options that are only used when printing plain text files. These options have absolutely no effect on PostScript, PDF, HP-GL/2, or image files.

### Setting the Number of Characters Per Inch

The `-o cpi=value` option sets the number of characters per inch:

    lp -o cpi=10 filename
    lp -o cpi=12 filename
    lpr -o cpi=17 filename

The default characters per inch is 10.

### Setting the Number of Lines Per Inch

The `-o lpi=value` option sets the number of lines per inch:

    lp -o lpi=6 filename
    lpr -o lpi=8 filename

The default lines per inch is 6.

### Setting the Number of Columns

The `-o columns=value` option sets the number of text columns:

    lp -o columns=2 filename
    lpr -o columns=3 filename

The default number of columns is 1.

### Setting the Page Margins

Normally the page margins are set to the hard limits of the printer. Use the `-o page-left=value`, `-o page-right=value`, `-o page-top=value`, and `-o page-bottom=value` options to adjust the page margins:

    lp -o page-left=value filename
    lp -o page-right=value filename
    lp -o page-top=value filename
    lp -o page-bottom=value filename
    lpr -o page-left=value -o page-right=value -o page-top=value -o page-bottom=value filename

The `value` argument is the margin in points; each point is 1/72 inch or 0.35mm.

### Pretty Printing

The `-o prettyprint` option puts a header at the top of each page with the page number, job title (usually the filename), and the date. Also, C and C++ keywords are highlighted, and comment lines are italicized:

    lp -o prettyprint filename
    lpr -o prettyprint filename