Bug 29617

Summary: cups refuses to print to Brother HL-L2350DW when using a USB A to USB C converter (but works fine when the printer is connected to another system without needing a converter)
Product: Mageia Reporter: w unruh <unruh>
Component: RPM PackagesAssignee: Mageia Bug Squad <bugsquad>
Status: RESOLVED INVALID QA Contact:
Severity: major    
Priority: Normal CC: doktor5000, marja11, rolfpedersen
Version: 8   
Target Milestone: ---   
Hardware: i586   
OS: Linux   
Whiteboard:
Source RPM: cups CVE:
Status comment:

Description w unruh 2021-11-01 18:02:30 CET
Description of problem: I am trying to print to a Brother printer via cups
Brother HL-L2350DW. I have installed the Brother cups file
hll2350dwpdrv-4.0.0-1.i386.rpm. If I plug the printer in to my Dell xps13 9310 usbc port,  lsusb gives me
Bus 003 Device 005: ID 04f9:009e Brother Industries, Ltd HL-L2350DW series

so the computer is finding the printer. However if I try to print to the printer
I get the error message in /var/log/cups/error_log



[Job 9] libusb_get_device_list=8
D [01/Nov/2021:11:07:06 -0500] [Job 9] STATE: +connecting-to-device
D [01/Nov/2021:11:07:06 -0500] cupsdMarkDirty(---J-)
D [01/Nov/2021:11:07:06 -0500] cupsdSetBusyState: newbusy="Dirty files", busy="Printing jobs and dirty files"
D [01/Nov/2021:11:07:06 -0500] Discarding unused printer-state-changed event...
D [01/Nov/2021:11:07:06 -0500] [Job 9] STATE: -connecting-to-device
D [01/Nov/2021:11:07:06 -0500] cupsdMarkDirty(---J-)
D [01/Nov/2021:11:07:06 -0500] cupsdSetBusyState: newbusy="Printing jobs and dirty files", busy="Dirty files"
D [01/Nov/2021:11:07:06 -0500] Discarding unused printer-state-changed event...
D [01/Nov/2021:11:07:06 -0500] [Job 9] Waiting for printer to become available.

and the file never prints. So something makes cups think that the printer is unavailable

The various files are
l /dev/lp0 /dev/usb/lp0 /dev/bus/usb/003/005
crw-rw-r--+ 1 root lp 189, 260 Nov  1 11:49 /dev/bus/usb/003/005
crw-rw----  1 root lp   6,   0 Nov  1 10:52 /dev/lp0
crw-rw----  1 root lp 180,   0 Nov  1 11:49 /dev/usb/lp0


The /etc/cups/printers file contains
<DefaultPrinter HLL2350DW>
PrinterId 32
UUID urn:uuid:54bda76d-33ce-34b2-4586-5469a0930d05
Info HLL2350DW
MakeModel Brother HLL2350DW for CUPS
DeviceURI usb://dev/usb/lp0
State Idle
StateTime 1635784641
ConfigTime 1635536687
Type 8425492
Accepting Yes
Shared Yes
JobSheets none none
QuotaPeriod 0
PageLimit 0
KLimit 0
OpPolicy default
ErrorPolicy stop-printer
</DefaultPrinter>


The usb line from the printer terminates in a type A plug, which I have added a type A to type C converter, since the Dell only has type C usb ports. I have used two different type A to C converters (one is Dell's and one is an INSIGNIA ) and neither works.

Note that on an older XPS13 machine, which has type A ports, the Brother printer works.

Version-Release number of selected component (if applicable):


How reproducible: Always
Comment 1 Lewis Smith 2021-11-01 20:39:12 CET
> I have installed the Brother cups file hll2350dwpdrv-4.0.0-1.i386.rpm
Did you not simply use (with the printer switched on) MCC-Hardware-Configure printing & scanning to add the printer, which searches for the driver among other things?

I would try this to first clear the print queue, then remove/delete the printer; then re-Add it; it takes a moment to detect & recognise the connected device. The configuration finishes by offering a test print. Check (right-click its icon) that it is 'enabled', it should be anyway.
I have found that stuck printers are brought back to life thus.

Note also that there was a bug (I think fixed) about Mageia not recognising printers already powered on at bootup; i.e. turn them on afterwards!

> on an older XPS13 machine, which has type A ports, the Brother printer works
With the same version of Mageia? That would be significant.

Hardware: All => i586
CC: (none) => lewyssmith

Comment 2 w unruh 2021-11-01 21:08:29 CET
Yes, the other machine was the same version Mageia 8.

I will try the clearing and reinstalling.
Comment 3 Lewis Smith 2021-11-06 15:29:52 CET
Am away for a time, signing off.
Can someone else please pick this up?

CC: lewyssmith => (none)

Comment 4 Rolf Pedersen 2021-11-06 16:56:23 CET
I've used Brother inkjet multifunction machines for many years because of, initially, their support of Linux.  The process using Brother software for getting these machines to work has got much simpler, in part due to Mageia/Linux detection, scripts, kernel, configuration files etc. providing better out-of-the-box support, I think.

While I've not used your type of machine and it might well be the Mageia Control Center is capable of setting it up, WRT Brother software, I've come to have relatively consistent, painless success with their "Driver Install Tool", which is a script, run in terminal, as root.  What I find searching for your machine:
  
https://support.brother.com/g/b/downloadlist.aspx?c=us&lang=en&prod=hll2350dw_us_eu_as&os=127

FWIW
Rolf

CC: (none) => rolfpedersen

Comment 5 w unruh 2021-11-06 17:01:51 CET
I spoke too soon. although my clearing and reinstalling caused the printer to print, a couple of days later, the same problem resurfaced.(I am not printing that much). Again it keeps saying that cups is waiting for the printer to respond. 
So, cups is seeing the printer and getting information from it( as evidenced by lsusb) but when it tries to actually print, the printer goes dumb apparently.

And yes, using Mageia 8 on another XPS13 9360 the printer works. The (maybe key) difference is that the xps13 9310 has only usbC/thunderbolt ports and so I have to use a usbc<->usba converter to plug in the printer.
Comment 6 w unruh 2021-11-06 17:05:11 CET
Re comment4-- I originally used the brother script to install the software. And that gave the original problem. I then used the Mageia install to install the brother scripts, and it worked at least once, but now has ceased working again.
Comment 7 Marja Van Waes 2021-11-07 14:55:18 CET
(In reply to w unruh from comment #5)

> 
> And yes, using Mageia 8 on another XPS13 9360 the printer works. The (maybe
> key) difference is that the xps13 9310 has only usbC/thunderbolt ports and
> so I have to use a usbc<->usba converter to plug in the printer.

There have been problems with such converters, but I don't know how to figure out which one would be good for your printer.

You might want to ask in the forums, or, probably better, ask Brother which converter should be okay.

I'll leave this report open for now, even if I don't at all see how the issue you have can be a Mageia problem.

Summary: cups refuses to print to Brother HL-L2350DW => cups refuses to print to Brother HL-L2350DW when using a USB A to USB C converter (but works fine when the printer is connected to another system without needing a converter)
CC: (none) => marja11

Comment 8 w unruh 2021-11-13 19:01:11 CET
OK, I bought a new usb-C to usb-A converter,and now printing works. 
The one I used previously was a Dell supplied converter. Dell seems to have a very bad habit of suppling things that do not work, at least on Linux. On an older Dell xps13 I bought a Dell hub, and Linux also had trouble with it not working. I eventually "lost" it. It might be considered a Mageia (or Linux) problem as I would assume that the converter would work under Windows, although I have not tested it. 

Anyway, I suppose this should be closed as solved, although perhaps an errata would be in order.
Thanks for the suggestion.
Comment 9 Marja Van Waes 2021-11-20 17:42:52 CET
(In reply to w unruh from comment #8)
> OK, I bought a new usb-C to usb-A converter,and now printing works. 
> The one I used previously was a Dell supplied converter. Dell seems to have
> a very bad habit of suppling things that do not work, at least on Linux. On
> an older Dell xps13 I bought a Dell hub, and Linux also had trouble with it
> not working. I eventually "lost" it. It might be considered a Mageia (or
> Linux) problem as I would assume that the converter would work under
> Windows, although I have not tested it. 
> 
> Anyway, I suppose this should be closed as solved, although perhaps an
> errata would be in order.
> Thanks for the suggestion.

Thanks a lot for the feedback,, I'm glad you got it to work :-)

I don't think listing bad converters, bad USB-keys, bad BIOSes and bad whatevers that weren't created by us, belong in our Erratas. CC'ing doktor5000 though, because I value his opinion on this

Closing as invalid, because this wasn't a Mageia issue.

Status: NEW => RESOLVED
Resolution: (none) => INVALID
CC: (none) => doktor5000