Subject: RE: JetDirect EX print server

From: "Feldman, Robert" <[email-masked]>
Date: Thu Jun 12 15:38:01 2003

I believe I have one at home. I'll check tonight and let you know tomorrow.

Bob

-----Original Message-----
From: chris [mailto:[email-masked]]
Sent: Thursday, June 12, 2003 3:16 PM
To: Classic Computer
Subject: JetDirect EX print server

I'm not sure if this is older than 10 years yet, but people on this list 
have a library of manuals, so I'm asking anyway.

Does anyone have a manual to an HP JetDirect EX print server device? 
Specifically model number J2382.

I'm trying to find out how to default it to factory settings, and how to 
get in and change configurations. Holding the TEST button on power up 
doesn't seem to do default it (or if it is, it isn't clearing the error 
condition, but that might also be because it isn't taking the BootP info 
for its IP address).

I have two doing the same thing, and I tend to doubt both are broken, so 
I'm guessing that the manual HP has on their site for the EX Plus doesn't 
have the right directions for it (not too surprised).

So, anyone have that manual?

-chris
<http://www.mythtech.net>

---

From: "Feldman, Robert" <[email-masked]>
Date: Fri Jun 13 08:28:00 2003

From the manual:

To print a status page (with printer attached): Power on, then press and release Test button.
To print a status page (with Plotter attached): Power on, then press and hold test button 5 seconds (until Status LED starts flashing), then release Test button.

To reset NOVRAM to factory defaults: Unplug unit, press and hold Test button for 2 seconds while replugging DC power cord into interface unit.

LED Indications:

JD State     Status    Activity    Fault    Indication
---------    ------    --------    -----    ----------------------------------------------
Power On      On         Off        Off     At least one protocol is active, 
                                            although unit might not be configured
"      "      ON       Blinking     Off     Unit receiving network activity
"      "      Off        Off        Off     Power fault (no power)
"      "      Off        Off        On      Fault in Self-test or during operation
"      "      Slow       Off        Off     Unit is a. Not configured
              Blink                                 b. Not able to reach network
                                                    c. Running self test
Test button pressed for <3 seconds
              On         Off        Off     Unit will send PCL formatted status page
                                            to printer
Test button pressed for >5 seconds
              Fast         Off        Off     Unit will send HP-GL/2 formatted status page
              Blink                           to plotter

Chris, what OS are you using with the JDEX? The manual mentions IP address only with UNIX. Run hpnpcfg to create the BOOTP configuration files, specifying the IP address. The configuration info is downloaded from BOOTP each time the JDEX is powered on.

Regards,
Bob

-----Original Message-----
From: chris [mailto:[email-masked]]
Sent: Thursday, June 12, 2003 8:37 PM
To: Classic Computers
Subject: Re: JetDirect EX print server

>I don't have the manual, but I thought you had to hold the
>TEST button down for ten seconds while powering up the
>device.

I've tried a number of different lengths of time in holding the test 
button. Its possible that it is in fact resetting, but I see no visual 
indication of it, so I can't tell.

If it is resetting, it still isn't taking a BootP assigned IP, and is 
erroring out when I connect it to the network. If it was one unit, I 
would assume its broken... but two units doing the exact same thing, I 
think I am doing something wrong, and I hope a manual may tell me what 
that is.

-chris

---

From: chris <[email-masked]>
Date: Fri Jun 13 09:13:00 2003

>You are using a bootp server or a DHCP server set to support bootp?

I have a DHCP server running, and its logs indicate that it is responding 
to the BootP request and issuing an IP.

>Does the status page show that it's receiving an IP address?

I can't print a status page if I connect to the network. So the only 
status page I can print shows no IP address assigned (naturally, since it 
isn't on the network yet).

As soon as I connect the box to the network, it's activity light blinks 
for a few seconds, and then the Fault light comes on. If I also have the 
box connected to a printer, it dumps out a "Reboot" page to the printer, 
and gets stuck cycling like that (Goes to Ok, then fault, prints a page, 
repeat until I disconnect from the network).

The first one of these, I got a while back from someone who knew nothing 
about it, so I assumed it was probably just broken. But the other day I 
bought one on ebay for $5 (missing the power supply, which was fine since 
I had a power supply already), and it too does the exact same thing. That 
kind of makes me think there is nothing wrong with the unit, but rather 
something wrong with either the settings, or I just need to upgrade the 
firmware. Alas, I can't upgrade the firmware without an IP address 
because for some reason the HP Downloader software on my Win2k machine 
won't find any of my JetDirect devices until I specify their IP address 
(it couldn't find the 3 internal ones I have on the network that work 
just fine).

-chris

---

From: chris <[email-masked]>
Date: Fri Jun 13 09:20:00 2003

>Anyway.  When revamping that place later, I took a bunch of
>em home, obviously.  So, I have the manuals for both the
>standard JetDirect (white-ish box), the 1-port EX (brown
>box) and 3-port EX (larger brown box.)
>
>Lemme know which one you need - I dont have the HP numbers
>handy here...

The one I have is marked JetDirect EX, is a white-ish box about the size 
of a betamax cassette, and has a single Parallel port on the back with 
RJ-45 and BNC ethernet connections.

My guess is, it would be the same one as the 1-port EX brownish one 
mention.

>And: yes, keep the TEST button depressed for 12 seconds while
>powering it up, and it SHOULD reset.  I said "should", because
>many of the earlier firmware versions were buggy as hell.

I tried for 2, 5, 10, 12, 15, 30, and all sorts of other lengths of time. 
Should the status lights change to tell me it is resetting? I can't tell 
from the test page if it has or has not reset (the test pages are the 
same no matter what I do, so maybe it is resetting each time and I'm just 
seeing the page that is printed with default info).

In any case, it errors when I connect it to my network. Again, one unit I 
would think it was broken, but two I tend to think I'm doing something 
wrong.

-chris

---

From: "Feldman, Robert" <[email-masked]>
Date: Fri Jun 13 09:57:00 2003

The flashing _Activity_ LED (middle one of the 3), with the Status LED On (Left one of 3, also green) should indicate that the unit is receiving network activity.

If it is the _Status_ LED that is flashing, then the unit is either not configured, not able to reach the network, or running a self-test.

In its ever-helpful way, the manual says that if the yellow Fault light is on, disconnect and reconnect the DC power to the unit. If the Fault LED again lights, "then replace the unit." :) 

-----Original Message-----
From: chris [mailto:[email-masked]]
Sent: Friday, June 13, 2003 9:08 AM
To: Classic Computer
Subject: Re: JetDirect EX print server

<snip>

<snip>

---

From: chris <[email-masked]>
Date: Fri Jun 13 10:43:00 2003

>The flashing _Activity_ LED (middle one of the 3), with the Status LED On 
>(Left one of 3, also green) should indicate that the unit is receiving 
>
>network activity.
>If it is the _Status_ LED that is flashing, then the unit is either not 
>configured, not able to reach the network, or running a self-test.
>
>In its ever-helpful way, the manual says that if the yellow Fault light is 
>on, disconnect and reconnect the DC power to the unit. If the Fault LED 
>again lights, "then replace the unit." :) 

In order of what happens.

I connect the printer to the JDEX, connect power. I get Status Light 
blinks slowly. I connect network, Status light goes solid, network blinks 
a few times, Status light goes out, Fault light blinks, error page prints 
on printer. Status light returns to solid, Act light blinks, Status light 
goes out, Fault On, error page... repeat until I disconnect from network.

As soon as I disconnect from the network, Status light starts blinking, 
error pages stop. If I disconnect the printer but leave connected to 
network, Fault light stays on solid all other lights off.

When I run this on a "private" network, everything works just fine. I can 
even print to the printer normally from my Mac (haven't tried the PC). 
However, the HP firmware downloader still can't locate the JDEX.

So it looks like it is getting an error due to something on my network. 
My guess would be it doesn't like the BootP info my DHCP server is 
sending. So I am going to try getting a different BootP server for my 
Win2k box, one that also handles downloading of config files, and then 
run that on a "private" network. I'm hoping once I give it an IP address, 
I can get to it via the HP firmware downloader and upgrade the firmware 
and the error problem will go away.

-chris

---

From: chris <[email-masked]>
Date: Fri Jun 13 12:11:00 2003

>	You mean you can see it in the Chooser, right? But not in JetAdmin on
>the Mac? If you can see it in JetAdmin you should be able to configure
>it right there.

I can see it in the Chooser, but also, I have an HP LaserJet utility for 
the Mac, and it gives you 4 types of printer/devices you can look for. 
Postscript printers, JetDirect EX devices, DeskJet printers, and 
AppleShare hosted printers. 

The printer connected to it shows up when I look for Postscript printers, 
and I can configure the printer. But the JDEX doesn't show up when I look 
in the JetDirect EX device list, so I can't cofigure it directly.

But since I can send a print job and configure the printer connected TO 
it, then it looks like the JDEX is at least doing its job.

All this may wind up being abondonded and I may toss these things... if I 
understand the info I just found out, I can't upgrade the firmware on 
them anyway because they need a flash simm card to do that, and they 
don't have it and HP no longer sells them. If this is a problem with 
interaction with my DHCP server (which is what it is looking like) then 
if I can't upgrade the firmware and fix the bug, then these become pretty 
useless to me.

And when you figure for $60 I can buy a brand new NetGear print server, 
it doesn't become worth much more effort (and certainly not worth much 
more cost)

-chris

---

From: chris <[email-masked]>
Date: Fri Jun 13 13:58:01 2003

For those that helped... I found my problem, and solution (sort of).

It seems that the HP JetDirect EX's BootP client doesn't agree with 
Sustainable Softwork's DHCP server built into IPNetRouter.

Once I moved my Win2k machine to a private lan, and setup the DHCP server 
on it, the JetDirect EX came to life quite nicely. It gets its IP address 
and runs very happily doing everything it should do.

I would think that this problem might be fixed in a later firmware 
version, but in order to upgrade the firmware, I need a Flash SIMM for 
the JDEX. So unless someone on this list has one (or two since I have two 
of these things) and wants to give it to me for dirt cheap (free?), then 
I can't use these things on my network, and I just killed a day to find 
that out.

So thanks for all the help everyone gave me.

-chris