Setting up the adapter
PagePrinter Network Adapter: Utilities & Environments 5-9
NetWare
networks
Notes about printing performance:
• Many people prefer to configure their network adapters in PSERVER mode,
because they are used to it, since in early versions of NetWare PSERVER
performance was significantly better than NPRINTER/RPRINTER
performance.
This performance difference is smaller for NetWare 4.x. The actual print job
throughput is affected by many other factors such as topology, job size and
content, and network adapter settings. Under many circumstances, NPRINTER
mode provides an excellent NetWare 4.x NDS solution.
PSERVER mode in NetWare 4.x NDS
Advantages of using PSERVER mode in NDS:
• Does not require that PSERVER.NLM is installed on the NetWare server.
• Performance. Although overall print job throughput is affected by many
factors, file transfer time on the network may be faster using PSERVER mode
because:
– In NPRINTER/RPRINTER mode, NetWare uses SPX to transfer
packets. Packet size for data transmitted in SPX is 512 bytes.
– In PSERVER mode, NetWare uses IPX to transfer packets. Packet
size for data transmitted in IPX is up to 1 Kbyte for Ethernet
networks.
Because of this difference in packet size, PSERVER mode may be faster than
NPRINTER/RPRINTER mode. Please note, however, that the
actual IPX
packet size is negotiated by the client application. This actual IPX packet size is
often less than the maximum because of packet size limitations of gateways and
routers.
If printing is a significant part of your network traffic, and if network traffic is a
proven concern for your network, you may find it better to use the adapters in
PSERVER mode.
Disadvantage of using PSERVER mode in NDS:
• Requires a NetWare server user license for each PSERVER device
RPRINTER versus PSERVER in NetWare 3.x
Adapters are fully supported in NetWare 3.x, using either RPRINTER or
PSERVER mode.
