server-error-internal-error while adding printer

[Murray Cumming]

When adding a networked lexmark E120N printer, after specifying the PPD file, I see a "CUPS Server Error" dialog, with the text "server-error-internal-error". This stops me from adding the printer.

This is in Ubuntu Hardy.

[spiceisland (graham-hudspith)]

Never came across this in Hardy, but have had it ever since I did a fresh install of Jaunty Alpha 5 and it is still this today in Jaunty Beta.

So, boot up. Switch on my printer (Kyocera FS-1020D attached via USB cable). Bring up system-config-print 1.1.3. New Printer. It give me the option of "Kyocera FS-1020D" ("A printer connected to a USB port.". Select this and hit Forward. It fills in the fields for me (Printer Name, Description and Location all look sensible). Hit Apply. Up pops a dialog:

    CUPS server error

    There was an error during the CUPS operation: 'server-error-internal-error'.

    OK

Not okay, really.

/var/log/cups/error_log contains:

E [27/Mar/2009:20:19:37 +0000] CUPS-Add-Modify-Printer: Unauthorized
E [27/Mar/2009:20:19:40 +0000] [CGI] Could not determine driver name for Kyocera-FS-1020D-gutenprint.ppd!
E [27/Mar/2009:20:19:40 +0000] copy_model: empty PPD file!
E [27/Mar/2009:20:19:40 +0000] PID 3341 (/usr/lib/cups/daemon/cups-driverd) stopped with status 9!

/var/log/cups/access_log contains:
localhost - - [27/Mar/2009:20:19:14 +0000] "POST / HTTP/1.1" 200 411 CUPS-Get-Printers successful-ok
localhost - - [27/Mar/2009:20:19:14 +0000] "POST / HTTP/1.1" 200 411 CUPS-Get-Classes successful-ok
localhost - - [27/Mar/2009:20:19:14 +0000] "POST / HTTP/1.1" 200 72 CUPS-Get-Default client-error-not-found
localhost - - [27/Mar/2009:20:19:14 +0000] "POST / HTTP/1.1" 200 409 CUPS-Get-Printers successful-ok
localhost - - [27/Mar/2009:20:19:14 +0000] "POST / HTTP/1.1" 200 411 CUPS-Get-Printers successful-ok
localhost - - [27/Mar/2009:20:19:14 +0000] "POST / HTTP/1.1" 200 411 CUPS-Get-Classes successful-ok
localhost - - [27/Mar/2009:20:19:14 +0000] "POST / HTTP/1.1" 200 72 CUPS-Get-Default client-error-not-found
localhost - - [27/Mar/2009:20:19:14 +0000] "POST / HTTP/1.1" 200 177 CUPS-Get-Printers successful-ok
localhost - - [27/Mar/2009:20:19:14 +0000] "POST / HTTP/1.1" 200 2003 CUPS-Get-Devices -
localhost - - [27/Mar/2009:20:19:16 +0000] "POST / HTTP/1.1" 200 2154451 CUPS-Get-PPDs -
localhost - - [27/Mar/2009:20:19:24 +0000] "POST / HTTP/1.1" 200 155 Get-Notifications successful-ok
localhost - - [27/Mar/2009:20:19:22 +0000] "POST / HTTP/1.1" 200 2154451 CUPS-Get-PPDs -
localhost - - [27/Mar/2009:20:19:29 +0000] "POST / HTTP/1.1" 200 203 CUPS-Get-PPD -
localhost - - [27/Mar/2009:20:19:37 +0000] "POST /admin/ HTTP/1.1" 401 283 CUPS-Add-Modify-Printer successful-ok
localhost - root [27/Mar/2009:20:19:37 +0000] "POST /admin/ HTTP/1.1" 200 283 CUPS-Add-Modify-Printer server-error-internal-error

/var/log/messages contains:
Mar 27 20:18:21 graham-desktop kernel: [ 92.957855] usblp0: USB Bidirectional printer dev 2 if 0 alt 0 proto 2 vid 0x0482 pid 0x000E
Mar 27 20:18:21 graham-desktop kernel: [ 92.957881] usbcore: registered new interface driver usblp
Mar 27 20:19:16 graham-desktop python: [3315]: warning: CUPSEXT could not be loaded. Please check HPLIP installation.
Mar 27 20:19:22 graham-desktop python: [3328]: warning: CUPSEXT could not be loaded. Please check HPLIP installation.

/var/log/syslog contains:

Mar 27 20:18:16 graham-desktop kernel: [ 87.720025] usb 4-2: new full speed USB device using uhci_hcd and address 2
...

[spiceisland (graham-hudspith)]

Trying to add the printer via Firefox (http://localhost:631/) does not get you any further. It finds the printer but fails at the last step with "Unable to copy PPD file!".

On the plus side, I am able to add my Canon Pixma iP3000 (also attached via USB) quite happily. This seems to involve downloading the PPD file from somewhere instead ...

[spiceisland (graham-hudspith)]

This morning's updates to cups have vastly improved the behaviour of the webgui (http://localhost:631/). I can now delete all of the dodgy partly created printers and start again. I can then go on to successfully create a new Kyocera printer (using the "Kyocera Mita" PPD rather than the Gutenprint "Kyocera" PPD. The former seems to work better than the latter.

The system-config-print is still a disaster and still gives the same, broken, results.

root@graham-desktop:/etc/readahead# apt-cache policy cups
cups:
  Installed: 1.3.9-16
  Candidate: 1.3.9-16
  Version table:
 *** 1.3.9-16 0
        500 http://gb.archive.ubuntu.com jaunty/main Packages
        100 /var/lib/dpkg/status

root@graham-desktop:/etc/readahead# apt-cache policy system-config-printer-gnome
system-config-printer-gnome:
  Installed: 1.1.3+git20090218-0ubuntu14
  Candidate: 1.1.3+git20090218-0ubuntu14
  Version table:
 *** 1.1.3+git20090218-0ubuntu14 0
        500 http://gb.archive.ubuntu.com jaunty/main Packages
        100 /var/lib/dpkg/status

[Alexander Hartmaier (alex-hartmaier)]

I experience the same since several Ubuntu versions, now I'm on 10.10 x64.
The problem occurs when specifying your own ppd file which can't be copied to /etc/cups/ppd/ because the user isn't allowed to do so.
Either change the rights of /etc/cups/ppd/ or use priviledge elevation.

[Peeter (peeter-pirn)]

I had the problem on a new install of 12.04 LTS with a Lanier LD320d network printer. I tried to add a printer with the "Printing" program in the Dash.

/var/log/cups/access_log:
localhost - - [19/Jul/2012:13:06:16 -0400] "POST / HTTP/1.1" 401 123 CUPS-Get-Devices successful-ok
localhost - peeter [19/Jul/2012:13:06:16 -0400] "POST / HTTP/1.1" 200 1864 CUPS-Get-Devices -
localhost - peeter [19/Jul/2012:13:06:19 -0400] "POST / HTTP/1.1" 200 480 CUPS-Get-Devices -
localhost - - [19/Jul/2012:13:07:00 -0400] "POST / HTTP/1.1" 200 4676061 CUPS-Get-PPDs -
localhost - - [19/Jul/2012:13:12:56 -0400] "POST /admin/ HTTP/1.1" 401 347 CUPS-Add-Modify-Printer successful-ok
localhost - peeter [19/Jul/2012:13:12:56 -0400] "POST /admin/ HTTP/1.1" 200 347 CUPS-Add-Modify-Printer server-error-internal-error

/var/log/cups/error_log:
E [19/Jul/2012:13:13:30 -0400] copy_model: empty PPD file
E [19/Jul/2012:13:13:32 -0400] Returning IPP server-error-internal-error for CUPS-Add-Modify-Printer (ipp://localhost/printers/copier) from localhost

From the GUI point of view, the program found the printer and a dialog appeared momentarily that said, "Searching for drivers." As you can see from access_log, there's a 6-minute delay between Get-PPDs and the report that something was successful-ok. From the GUI point of view, I was at the "New Printer" dialog (Describe Printer: Printer Name, Description, Location) and after I clicked "Apply," the program was grinding for about 6 minutes before error_log reports "empty PPD file," and another couple of minutes before the dialog appears: "CUPS server error: There was an error during the CUPS operation: 'server-error-internal-error'.

[Peeter (peeter-pirn)]

Here's the manual workaround for the problem I described earlier.

When adding the printer with the "Printer" program, I manually entered the URI (ipp://192.168.2.202:631/ipp). That gave me a dialog that gave me the option to supply the PPD. I had downloaded Lanier-MP_2000_LD320d-pxlmono-Lanier.ppd from http://www.openprinting.org/printer/Lanier/Lanier-MP_2000_LD320d and had copied that into /usr/share/ppd/cupsfilters/. I browsed for the PPD, selected it, and everything went smoothly from that point.

[Launchpad Janitor (janitor)]

Status changed to 'Confirmed' because the bug affects multiple users.

[Christian Mertes (cmertes)]

This happened to me when I tried to add a PPD that was already installed in /usr/share/cups/model/Dell/. This should definitely be handled more gracefully.

[Johannes (johannes-obermueller)]

Same happend to me right now when adding a Brother HL-5340D.
I downloaded the ppd file from http://welcome.solutions.brother.com/bsc/public_s/id/linux/en/download_prn.html#HL-5340D and provided it to system-config-printer. When I click on "Apply" I get the same "CUPS Server Error" dialog, with the text "server-error-internal-error".

$ cat /etc/issue
Ubuntu 12.04.1 LTS \n \l

[Till Kamppeter (till-kamppeter)]

Johannes, can you attach the PPD file to this bug report. Thanks,

[Launchpad Janitor (janitor)]

[Expired for system-config-printer (Ubuntu) because there has been no activity for 60 days.]