Tuesday, December 1, 2009

Installing a Samsung SCX-4521F in Linux - Ubuntu Hardy Heron actually

I've seen a lot of comments across the web about this particular printer and getting it and the scanning working in Ubuntu.

It was easy for me - here's my simple checklist
Note I'm using a USB interface.


  1. Get the Samsung Unified Driver version 3
  2. Install it via tar xvzf SamsungXXX.tar.gz && cd cdroot/Linux && sudo ./install.sh. I did it without using X at all, I gather there's a little GUI that doesn't ask anything text install doesn't.
  3. Curse Samsung for putting the freaking icon on your desktop and the root of your applications menu without asking
  4. Clean up the crap you just cursed about.UPDATE forgot to mention the specifics - /bin/Desktop /bin/.gnome-desktop /usr/sbin/Desktop /usr/sbin/.gnome-desktop Yes, that install script has some bugs in it!
  5. Try a test page. Samsung 'helpfully' decided to make the new printer the default, so lpr favourite.pdf should work fine.
  6. Try scanimage -L and see if you can see the printer. If not (bet you can't) try sudo scanimage -L. If that works, it's a permissions problem.
  7. Add all the appropriate users to the lp group. e.g. sudo addgroup joeUser lp. The installer says it's doing something like this, but whatever it does doesn't work. Ubuntu has the handy scanner group as well, but the lp group ends up owning /dev/usb/0. Rather than muck about with updated udev rules, I just added the users to both the scanner and lp groups and it works fine.
  8. Log out of that terminal session and start a new one. A terminal doesn't pick up updated group membership until it logs in the next time. Dunno whether that applies to the 'GUI' users and group tool or not. Let me know....
  9. Use scanimage -L to see if sane can see the scanner.
Posted by   at 3:34 PM
Labels:

6 comments:

  1. DrevneyJanuary 2, 2010 at 10:04 AM

    How do I get the Samsung Unified Driver version 3 ????

    ReplyDelete
  2.  January 2, 2010 at 11:00 AM

    I didn't post a link because I don't remember where I got it - the CD that came with it or a download. Took a quick look this morning and I'll be darned if I can see where to download it now. Geez, you'd think they'd get that right by now wouldn't you?

    There is a copy here. I don't know for how long.

    You may want to review this site for more info - It looks like pretty definitive information.

    ReplyDelete
  3. MareshalJanuary 7, 2010 at 9:06 AM

    http://www.samsung.com/sa_en/support/download/supportDown.do?group=printers&type=printers&subtype=colourlaser&model_nm=CLP-315&mType=&dType=D&vType=R&prd_ia_cd=06010200&disp_nm=CLP-315

    I did all of that, the scanner does not work , although it finds it on sane-find-scanner

    ReplyDelete
  4.  January 7, 2010 at 11:44 AM

    Did you add your user account to the scanner and lp groups?

    What user owns the /dev/usb link to the scanner?

    ReplyDelete
  5.  January 7, 2010 at 11:50 AM

    Just an FYI - I can't believe finding a link to the Samsung driver is so difficult.

    Following the link Mareshal provided shows you a page that claims to link to 3.0065, but when you follow it that page shows you something dated Nov 2009 but called Version 1 ?!? I didn't poke at that one, but it's DR/200911/20091106134900421/UnifiedLinuxDriver_1.00.tar.gz

    ReplyDelete
  6. AnonymousJuly 3, 2011 at 5:31 AM

    Hey,

    the scanner gets listed in sane-find-scanner.

    I added myself to group lp

    but scanimage -L says:

    No scanners identified....

    Any ideas?

    ReplyDelete

Subscribe to: Post Comments (Atom)