The Linux Printer Policy deploys CUPS printer queues on Linux devices enrolled in Swif. Each printer entry defines a queue name, connection method, and driver method.

Use the policy to configure USB printers, network printers, or printers shared through a Windows or Samba server. You can include multiple printer queues in one policy.

The policy supports both company-owned and BYOD Linux devices.

Prepare required printing packages, driver files, and credentials before deployment. A PPD path or model ID refers to a resource on the Linux device; entering it does not upload a driver from the administrator’s computer.

Only the details for the selected connection or driver method are displayed.

Queue names must not contain spaces, tabs, /, or #. For example, use Office_Color as the name and Office color printer, second floor as the description.

CUPS treats queue names as case-insensitive, so do not use capitalization alone to distinguish printers. See CUPS printer configuration.

Use consistent queue names across a deployment, and avoid assigning competing definitions for the same queue to one device.

Select usb for a directly connected printer. Swif builds a usb:// URI from these fields:

Inspect the device’s CUPS printer discovery results before entering these values:

Use the identifiers reported for the printer rather than guessing from its marketing name. If you need to preserve an exact discovered URI, use rawUri.

The USB Model identifies the connected device. It is separate from the Driver > Model ID, which selects a CUPS driver.

Select ipp for Internet Printing Protocol. The TLS switch determines whether Swif builds an ipp:// or ipps:// URI.

An explicit port must be an integer from 1 to 65535.

Set the port to match the printer’s actual endpoint. Swif’s TLS default of 443 is a policy default, not a requirement for IPPS. An IPPS printer can use port 631. The resource path can also differ, especially for print-server queues.

For compatible network printers, prefer IPPS with a working certificate configuration. CUPS documents IPP/IPPS URI formats in Using Network Printers.

Select socket for an AppSocket or JetDirect connection. Swif builds a socket:// URI.

Example destination:

AppSocket does not provide transport encryption. Use it where required by the printer and network design. See CUPS network protocol guidance.

Select smb for a printer shared by a Windows or Samba server. Swif builds an smb:// URI.

Optional authentication fields may still be necessary for a particular server. Confirm the share’s access requirements and the device’s SMB printing support.

When configuring Password, select one of these methods:

Enter the variable name or file path, not the password itself. Provision the secret separately on every targeted device.

For env, the variable must be available to the process applying the policy. A variable exported only in an interactive terminal may not be available to a background service.

For file, ensure that the policy process can read the file and that unrelated users cannot. The reference does not itself create the file or encrypt its contents.

Select rawUri when you need to supply a complete CUPS device URI. URI is required.

Examples:

The URI must use a backend available on the device. You must still choose a driver method.

Raw URI means a complete connection address. It does not select a raw, unfiltered print queue.

Use driverless with a compatible IPP/IPPS endpoint. No separate vendor PPD file is needed.

Do not assume driverless printing works with a socket://, smb://, or direct usb:// connection. CUPS’s IPP Everywhere configuration queries an IPP endpoint for printer capabilities. See CUPS driver configuration.

Use ppd and specify an existing file, for example:

Use the same path on each assigned device. Verify that the file is readable and that any filters or supporting software it requires are installed.

List the available drivers on a target device:

Copy the appropriate driver identifier into Model ID. Do not enter only the human-readable printer description. Confirm that the same model is installed across the target group.

The lpinfo -v and lpinfo -m commands list available devices and drivers respectively. See CUPS lpinfo reference.

This example assumes the printer supports driverless IPPS on port 631 at /ipp/print.

Replace the hostname, port, and path with the printer’s verified endpoint. Port 631 is entered explicitly because enabling TLS otherwise uses Swif’s default of 443.

Deploy a compatible PPD and its dependencies before assigning the policy.

The example paths and hostnames are placeholders. Create the password file separately and confirm that the account can print to the share.

After deployment, review the policy result in Swif. Then run these commands on the Linux device:

These checks show whether CUPS is running, the queue’s enabled and accepting states, and its connection URI. Replace Office_Color with your queue name. See CUPS lpstat reference.

Print a non-sensitive test document from a desktop application, selecting the configured queue. Confirm the physical output, including layout and any required color or duplex behavior. A configured queue alone does not prove that the printer can successfully process a job.

Review command output before sharing it with Support, especially for authenticated printer connections.

For IPPS failures, first verify the endpoint rather than disabling TLS. For SMB failures, do not include the password or secret-file contents in support logs.

The policy exposes printer names, descriptions, connections, and driver selection. It does not provide fields for a default printer, paper size, duplex defaults, color restrictions, or print quotas. Configure those separately where needed.

When removing a printer entry or unassigning the policy, verify the resulting CUPS queue state. Do not assume that unassignment automatically deletes queues or restores previous printer settings. Coordinate any required cleanup with the device administrator, including pending jobs.