Print Server Home Server Selection for Network Traffic Reduction
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Solution Overview
Problem
In large organizations with multiple offices, the cost of printing increases and print speed decreases due to the need for long-distance data transmission of print jobs across remote print servers.
Innovation Solution
A print apparatus and method that dynamically selects a user's 'home server' based on their usage patterns, allowing local printing and reducing data transmission costs by pre-fetching print jobs and synchronizing user lists across connected print servers, thereby minimizing remote data transfers.
Engineering Contradictions & Design Principles
Engineering Contradiction Analysis
1Ease of operation
If a central print server is used in one office for all offices, then printing between different offices can be easily managed, but the cost of data transmission increases and print speed decreases due to remote access
Solution Approach 1:
The system divides the centralized print server into multiple distributed print servers located at different offices. Each print server manages local printing independently, eliminating the need for all print jobs to travel to a single central server. This segmentation resolves the contradiction by maintaining ease of operation through distributed management while improving print speed through local processing.
Solution Approach 2:
The system introduces a new dimension of spatial distribution by placing print servers at multiple office locations rather than concentrating them in one place. This dimensional change allows users to access local print servers in their own offices, reducing transmission distance and improving print speed while maintaining centralized control capabilities.
2Ease of operation
If a central print server is used in one office for all offices, then printing between different offices can be easily managed, but the cost of data transmission increases due to remote access
Solution Approach 1:
The system segments the centralized print server into multiple distributed print servers at different office locations. This segmentation allows print jobs to be processed locally at each office, eliminating the need for long-distance data transmission to a central server and thereby reducing transmission costs while maintaining ease of printing management.
Solution Approach 2:
The system creates copies of the print server functionality at multiple office locations. Each office has its own print server that can independently handle print jobs, copying the essential printing management capabilities from a central server to distributed locations. This reduces the need for data transmission over long distances while maintaining operational simplicity.
3Adaptability or versatility
If print jobs are stored on remote servers, then users can print from different offices, but the user waiting time increases due to data retrieval from remote locations
Solution Approach 1:
The system segments the print server resources to be distributed across multiple office locations rather than centralized in one place. This allows users to access and print jobs from local servers in their current office, maintaining the ability to print from different offices while eliminating waiting time associated with retrieving jobs from remote central servers.
Solution Approach 2:
The system performs preliminary actions by pre-positioning print jobs and user profiles on local print servers at different office locations before users need them. This preliminary distribution of printing resources ensures that when users arrive at any office, their print jobs are already available locally, eliminating retrieval waiting time while maintaining adaptability to print from different locations.
Data Source
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AI summary
A print server (1) is provided for connection to a network (2) including at least one other server (1) and at least one printer (3). The print server (1) stores a list of users (4) including for each user a server (1) associated with that user. The server (1) is that if a request is received from a user, the server (1) refers to the list (4) to determine which server (1) the user is associated with. The print server (1) is configured to request print jobs from and to send jobs to the print server (1) with which the user is associated in order to minimise long distance traffic over the network (2).