I have to admit to being a total noob to Artix; I had been using Mint Since Bianca, but let Mint get away from me such that I was still on 17.3 and I decided I wanted to try something else.
Artix is very snappy, but I am finding difficulty because I always start typing the old syntax in Konsole.
Anyway, I am trying to get my Xerox Phaser 6510DN working, When I Add Printer, Artix "sees" it but I cannot get it configured. I did download the driver, but I've clearly done something wrong.
Any ideas?
Hello and welcome,
Which init: openrc, runit or s6?
What graphic environment?
I guess plasma ...
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I assume you have cups installed and are in the sys or wheel group?
For openrc :
pacman -Sy cups-openrc
rc-update add cupsd
rc-service cupsd start
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Check if the user is part of the wheel or sys group:
groups user
To add a user to sys or wheel:
sudo usermod -a -G wheel user
sudo usermod -a -G sys user
And in case you are using runit as your init system:
pacman -Sy cups-runit
ln -s /etc/runit/sv/cupsd /run/runit/service
CUPS should start immediately after creating the symbolic link.
Can you tell where did you get drivers?
I am asking because company is providing driver in DEB and RPM package, these can't be install directly on Artix Linux.
I found this packages from AUR xerox-workcentre-6515-6510 (https://aur.archlinux.org/packages/xerox-workcentre-6515-6510/) , this can be helpful.
https://wiki.archlinux.org/title/CUPS/Printer-specific_problems#Xerox_or_FujiXerox
https://wiki.archlinux.org/title/CUPS/Printer-specific_problems#Phaser_6125N
A reminder to read the Wiki.
I am the only user. I don't know what a wheel/sys group is. I did download the open RC .iso; I read about the different version, but frankly I couldn't see why I would want one over the other. BTW, the guy who recommended Artix to me did so because he told me how bad systemd was/is. I never knew about systemd and it's apparent "evils" before.
I admit to being not knowledgeable at all, but I thought maybe I could download a Software Manager similar to what I had with Mint to help. Probably a silly assumption, I should just learn to do these things properly. Artix was recommended to me by a distro hopper, but he was a programmer, I am not. I usually to get Mint working by looking for packages in the SM or adding via Konsole.
If I am the only user, should I be doing things differently? Even though I am really the only one using this system here, anyone has access to it in the family, and I'd like to give them the opportunity to print without the Konsole, which nobody would be arsed to do.
I am using KDE, Plasma, BTW.
I downloaded the drivers from Xerox specifically for the 6510, but I have clearly not done something right. The system "sees" the printer, but I expect something is missing. My apologies on late replies, I have been busy with our air con install.
I'm not sure how to work with the AUR package. I found something that tells me how to install using Packer. I will try that tomorrow and see if I can figure it out. Hopefully I have not already done too much to break anything.
Software manager alternative = Pamac ? But it's usually preferred to manage packages in a terminal due to more easily seeing the error messages and output. There are various aur helpers. Pamac will also work with the AUR. If you get the printer to work it should work like anywhere else, file - print, Ctrl P in browser, the browser may already offer to print to file even now.
You'll probably need to learn what a group is.
I read postscript printers don't need a driver, just a ppd file, and if you install it you should end up with this file:
/usr/share/ppd/xerox/xrx6510.ppd
(from the PKGBUILD)
https://aur.archlinux.org/cgit/aur.git/tree/PKGBUILD?h=xerox-workcentre-6515-6510 (https://aur.archlinux.org/cgit/aur.git/tree/PKGBUILD?h=xerox-workcentre-6515-6510)
There might be some desktop menu settings stuff for printers you need to do too.
If you use the aur package and an aur helper it should get updated if needed, although you can use pacman and update it manually too.
The answer is here :
https://wiki.archlinux.org/title/users_and_groups#User_groups
systemd is a kind of "Windows" which drives your Linux system in the background :-/
For KDE Plasma you can add octopi:
sudo pacman -Sy octopi
However pamac is also very good and can be used:
sudo pacman -Sy pamac-gtk
In these two graphical utilities, you can enable AUR repositories.
But be careful when adding AUR packages: it can become a mess if you don't know what you're doing!
Personally, I installed a few Aur packages, but then as a precaution I disabled this repository in octopi and in pamac
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"As of June 2021, all Arch repositories are disabled by default. To enable them, install artix-archlinux-support and follow the on-screen instructions to activate the Arch repositories you want, most likely extra, community and multilib, which contain packages not yet in Artix repositories. Do not enable community alone as it contains packages dependent on others in extra."
https://wiki.artixlinux.org/Main/Repositories#Arch_repositories
If you want to install packages that are not in the artix repositories, you add the TWO extra and community repositories in /etc/pacman.conf:
sudo nano /etc/pacman.conf
And you add this:
# ARCHLINUX
[extra]
Include = /etc/pacman.d/mirrorlist-arch
[community]
Include = /etc/pacman.d/mirrorlist-arch
Update the system:
sudo pacman -Syyu
"Personally, I installed a few Aur packages, but then as a precaution I disabled this repository in octopi and in pamac"
But then they won't get updates, and depending on what they are, eventually they may stop working because everything else is getting updated? If there were some you didn't want updated, perhaps because they take a long time to build, you might be better to add those to "IgnorePkg =" in /etc/pacman.conf. If you only have 1 or 2 AUR packages then git clone / makepkg is probably fine, it's only if you have several that are getting regular updates an AUR helper becomes important I think.
And if you have the lib32 repo enabled then you might want the Arch equivalent multilib.
Right, I forgot to mention that from time to time I activate the AUR repository and update the applications linked to this repository.
I still have about ten ...
But your proposed solutions are relevant and will interest fixrman.
I am not concerned, but I note 8)
Thanks for the very helpful replies and instructions! I will read the Wiki first, so I am familiar with the background, and then I'll do the suggestions.
I had been finding problems with help that I searched for, in that most of the advise was no longer appropriate because it was too old. I am going to try the suggestions tomorrow; I find it helpful to be without distractions and to be well-rested, else I am prone to make errors otherwise. Thanks to all for the help, and I will post the hopeful success.
:)
Per the wiki, I think I need to be in the Wheel group. Since I am really the only user of the system (other than for someone using a browser to look something up, or to print - which currently they don't have the ability to do) I could really have full Administrator or Root privileges throughout.
No one is going to use the Terminal; I had taught my son years ago how to update Mint (I still find myself typing sudo Apt -get update), but he hasn't done it since I taught him a long time ago. Security is not a concern, because I am really the only one who uses it, certainly the only one who maintains the system.
I don't recall having to set up a Group; did I miss something in the install routine?
If you look in /etc/group you can see what groups you are in, lp is the printer group, you want to be in that one for printing.
https://wiki.artixlinux.org/Main/Configuration (https://wiki.artixlinux.org/Main/Configuration)
You probably don't need all those groups, some don't even exist on my system for example. But make sure you use -a with usermod ;D
Running as root might be OK if you never plan to connect to the internet and are sure you won't ever issue any wrong commands by mistake...
Puppy Linux runs as root but is designed differently, like an immutable live OS with persistence.
This is a bad idea on a Unix-like system, regardless of if anyone else is going to use your system or only you. Not all programs are well-written and using the system as root is just inviting trouble. Some programs outright refuse to run as root, and rightly so.
This is simply not true on a GNU/Linux system, regardless of whether you prefer GUI or not. Many system configuration and administration tasks can only be done from a text console or a terminal emulator.
I have to do more reading on this. You guys are way above my pay grade. tintin, I ran the nano command and was looking at a screen that made no sense to me, so I got out of it before I wrecked something. :o
>>This is simply not true on a GNU/Linux system,<<
I know what you mean - that would be true in most environments, but nobody in my house is going to use Terminal but me. hey don't know what it is, and wouldn't find it anyway. They'd have to know that it was Konsole, and they don't.
First :
sudo pacman -Sy artix-archlinux-support
And then:
sudo nano /etc/pacman.conf
Nano is a console mode text editor.
Once you've edited the text, you type Ctrll + X and confirm the changes.
You can also use mousepad, but you better get used to using nano:
sudo mousepad /etc/pacman.conf
Once your file is open in mousepad, you add these lines at the end (you can create a blank line before inserting this text.):
# ARCHLINUX
[extra]
Include = /etc/pacman.d/mirrorlist-arch
[community]
Include = /etc/pacman.d/mirrorlist-arch
Save and exit.
You will see your two new repositories appear when you synchronize:
sudo pacman -Syy
And do not forget :
sudo pacman -Sy cups-openrc
sudo rc-update add cupsd
sudo rc-service cupsd start
I'm not sure what is going on, but I am sure I am not understanding the install syntax properly. I have been pretty busy, so I have not had time to work on this until today.
When I check in Add a New Printer, I get the following message: 'The name org.fedoraproject.Config.Printing was not provided by any .service files'
I searched that, and found a solution from 2019, but the link to the solution was a 404 error.
I think, rather than asking endless questions here, I really need to get more in depth understanding of the nuts and bolts of Linux. I chose a distro that is really above my level of competency, so if I am to continue with it, I should try to learn more about being a system admin. Mint was only easier because it was so much more like Windows, which I detest.
The Wiki as also mostly above my level, because other than updating the system, I am just not familiar with basic Linux functions as experienced users are.
Did you launch the three commands that I indicated to you?
Check if the user is part of the wheel or sys group:
groups user
To add a user to sys or wheel:
sudo usermod -a -G wheel user
sudo usermod -a -G sys user
Then if you have openrc:
sudo pacman -Sy cups-openrc
sudo rc-update add cupsd
sudo rc-service cupsd start
Restart the system for the user's new wheel privilege to take effect.
There is a xerox-workcentre-6515-6510 package in the AUR repositories.
You must first install trizen or temporarily activate the AUR repositories in pamac if you are using it.
To install both applications:
sudo pacman -Sy pamac trizen
To see what trizen has to offer about xerox:
trizen xerox
There is here (n ° 24) a package that will interest you:
24 aur/xerox-workcentre-6515-6510 5.662.0.0-2 [0+] [0.00%] [26 Jul 2021]
Xerox WorkCentre 6515 / Phaser 6510 printer driver for CUPS
But for you, it would be easier to use pamac (a graphical utility to manage packages) and activate the AUR repositories just for this occasion. You have to go to pamac preferences.
Indeed, Manjaro would be easier for you, but configuring an exotic printer can be complicated on "user friendly" distributions.
If you follow the wiki instructions and those given here, you will also be able to administer your Artix Linux system.
I am neither a maths nor a computer expert and when I came to the linux forums a few years ago, I was sick of ms windows.
I had said that it would be pointless to learn tons of magic formulas which would not be valid any more in some time.
Well, I wrote down and learned a few commands that are still valid and needed today. 8-)
It is entirely a manageable thing to do and not rocket science. However, it requires patience and perseverance to read the documentation and sources of information, and to try.
pamac isn't well updated, and lately there has been a number of issues with it. Alternatives are highly preferable.
pacman isn't that hard to learn. Its wiki page (https://wiki.archlinux.org/title/Pacman) lists forms of calling it in most common use cases. For AUR, there's a wiki page (https://wiki.archlinux.org/title/AUR_helpers) as well.
Many users started at this level. It´s a thing of volition and like
@strajder wrote patience and perseverance. If you go back to an "easier" distribution like Mint, Manjaro you get a similar effect as with Windows. You will not know what a configuration tool does in the background and so you will never understand and learn what to do trying it without a tool.
Yes, the learning curve is steep when starting from the ground but the result will worth it.