Common UNIX Printing System (CUPS) is an open source and cross-platform project designed from the ground up to offer a printing layer for UNIX-like operating systems, including GNU/Linux, BSD, Solaris, Mac OS X and Microsoft Windows.
The Common UNIX Printing System project has been developed by Apple, the company behind the Macintosh systems, in order to promote a standards-compliant printing solution for all UNIX/Linux vendors and users.
Supports both local and network printers
It has been engineered to support both local and network printers, thanks to the IP-based protocol called IPP (Internet Printing Protocol), which will also allow the management of print jobs and supports encryption, authentication and access control.
The software will allow users to add printers and classes, change media size and resolution, as well to manage operation policies. In addition, users can learn how to print directly from the command-line.
Offers a modern, tabbed web-based interface
CUPS offers a modern, tabbed interface that can be accessed with any web browser, as long as it is properly configured. This printing administration interface allows users to find and add new printers, manage existing printers, add and manage printing classes, as well as to add printing jobs.
In addition, it lets users to add RSS subscriptions, edit the configuration file, as well as to view the access, error and page logs. It is also possible to enable or disable sharing of printers connected to the system, printing from the Internet, remote administration, Kerberos authentication, and much more.
It comes with a comprehensive documentation that will help developers the ways of CUPS programming (CUPS API, filter and backend programming, HTTP and IPP APIs, PPD API, Raster API, etc.).
It’s supported on all GNU/Linux operating systems
The program can be easily installed from the default software channels of any GNU/Linux operating system. It is comprised of a daemon that will start automatically after the installation, as well as a web-based interface.
