remove devices from colorsync

The profiles for most devices are located in ./Library/ColorSync/Profiles. If you view the profile in ColorSync, the 'Profile information:' details the location of the respective profile in the Path column.

You can also get profiles from the respective vendor folder in ./Library/Printers. Again, if you view the profile in ColorSync, it should give you details about its location.

PaHu

Thank you for the screen grab. I can see you are looking in Devices column of ColorSync.

I found that once I remove the printer from Print & Fax, the entry in the Devices list disappears also. No need to manually remove the entry.

If your devices are already removed from Print & Fax, and yet still showing in the Devices list, then you might have to check your CUPS printer view to see if these printers are still showing here ( http://127.0.0.1:631/printers)

PaHu

There is a colorsync API that should unregister a device if you can work out how to use it. Sorry but I do not have any experience of calling such APIs manually ? via terminal:

CMUnregisterColorDevice
CMError CMUnregisterColorDevice
(
CMDeviceClass deviceClass,
CMDeviceID deviceID
);
Parameters
deviceClass
The class of the device (e.g., 'scnr', 'cmra', 'prtr', 'mntr')
deviceID
Unique identifier per class (Class + ID uniquely id's device)
When a device is no longer to be used on a system (as opposed to being offline), it should be unregistered. If a device is
temporarily shut down or disconnected, it need not be un-registered unless the device driver: a) "knows" that it will not be
used (being de-installed) b) cannot access the device profiles without the device. If either of these are true, the device should
be un-registered.
CMSetFactoryDeviceProfiles

Hi Michael,

I am also wondering how to clean up registered devices.

This looks like a C function and would probably have to be used as part of C program which would take some Mac programming skills.

I am searching other resources to try to find a solution. I will post back here if I find anything useful

-louie

Hi Michael,

I found where these are stored and how to remove them. It took a little digging in the file system but they are being stored in a hidden preference plist file. Here is where it is and how to get rid of the unneeded devices.

The file is /Library/Preferences/.GlobalPreferences.plist

If you are not Unix savvy the dot makes it a hidden file in Unix and it is not seen by Finder. Since the easiest way to edit plist files is Property List Editor you will need to get that tool. It is installed when you install the Mac OS development tools. If you haven't done so already it is on OS install cd or dvd.

Second you will have to make this file visible in Finder and change the file permissions so that the Property List Editor can open the file and write to the file. You do this by using the unix ln command. Open Terminal window and do the following.

cd /Library/Preferences
sudo chmod a+w .GlobalPreferences.plist
ln -s .GlobalPreferences.plist GlobalPreferences.plist
ls -l .GlobalPreferences.plist
-rw-rw-rw- 1 root admin 3602 Jan 4 16:47 .GlobalPreferences.plist
ls -l GlobalPreferences.plist
lrwxrwxr-x 1 lsherwin admin 24 Jan 4 16:42 GlobalPreferences.plist@ -> .GlobalPreferences.plist

The ln -s command makes a Unix symbolic link, like an alias. You will see all the files and hidden files in the Preferences folder. You should now see both .GlobalPreferences.plist and later in the list GlobalPreferences.plist.


Now open the Property List Editor and open /Library/Preferences/GlobalPreferences.plist. You will get a window and in the top section will be "Root". Click on the triangle in front of "Root" and then click the triangle on "ColorSyncDevices". There will be a number of devices listed under "ColorSyncDevices". The ones you are interested in all begin with "Device-prtr-nnn" where nnn is a number.

Open each one by clicking on the triangle and see if there is a "DeviceName" entry. Open that to see the name associated with the device entry. If the name is one of the defunct printers that you want to delete click the "Device-prtr-nnnnn" line that contains the name you wish to delete and then click the "Delete" button at the top.

When you are done be sure to save the changes and then you can open the ColorSync Utility and you will see that defunct printers are now gone.

Let me know how it goes.

-louie

Dear Louie

I have the same problem with one device listed twice in the Colorsync utility, which I would like to correct. I am a UNIX newbie, and need some help in interpreting the terminal commands. Could you explain them for me. For example, what do I type for "root admin 3602 Jan 4 16:47" and for "lsherwin admin Jan 4 16:42", which are obvious references to you and your computer? Also, when I have made the changes in the Property List Editor, how do I get the file visibility of .GlobalPreferences.plist and the file permissions back to their original state after the changes have been made? You will understand my reluctance to go into the Terminal without really understanding what I am doing.

I would be very grateful for your help with this, because this problem has been bugging me for some time now

Thanks

Jerome

Louie,

I am sorry for my stupidity. I realise now that the lines "-rw-rw-rw- 1 root admin 3602 Jan 4 16:47 .GlobalPreferences.plist" and "lrwxrwxr-x 1 lsherwin admin 24 Jan 4 16:42 GlobalPreferences.plist@ -> .GlobalPreferences.plist" are Terminal output in response to the ls commands. What I really need to know is how to restore the hidden status of the .GlobalPreferences.plist file after editing it with the Property List Editor, and how to restore the permissions of theis file to their correct default values.

Many thanks

Jerome

Jerome,

I believe that the normal permissions should be as follows.
% cd /Library/Preferences
% ls -la .GlobalPreferences.plist
-rw-r--r-- 1 root admin 3295 Mar 9 15:18 .GlobalPreferences.plist

Note: I use tcsh which uses a "%" as the terminal prompt. You are probably using the default ksh which is believe uses a "$" as a prompt.

I did not do anything to change them back so I suspect that when I made another change to a setting contained in this file the system changed the permissions back. If not you can use the following command to reset them

%sudo chmod 644 .GlobalPreferences.plist

I did not remove the symbolic link that makes this file visible because I want to be able to find it again in the future. There nothing wrong with leaving it there. If you want to delete it, however, simply use a finder window and drag the visible file ( GlobalPreferences.plist) to the trash. It shows up as an "alias" in the finder window. That will just remove the symbolic link but leave the hidden file in place.

-louie

Many thanks, Louie. All done, with your help. The unwanted old printers have now been removed from the Colorsync utility. All is well. I had a little crash course on Terminal and permissions in the process. I must say, I get very nervous playing around in Terminal, but in this case all went well. Once again, thank you

Jerome

Hello Louie,

I'm looking to delete a printer out of ColorSync devices. I followed your instructions (got no error messages) but was only able to create the alias file (GlobalPreferences.plist). The hidden .GlobalPreferences.plist file doesn't show, so I can't access it thru Property List Editor. What am I doing wrong?

MacBook Pro, OX 10.5.6

Thanks,

Ed

Hi Ed,

Double check the symbolic link that you created. It is not obvious but you have to include the dot "." in the first argument to the ln -s command

In Terminal run this command and the output should look like this.

$ ls -l GlobalPreferences.plist
lrwxrwxr-x 1 lsherwin admin 24 Jan 4 16:52 GlobalPreferences.plist -> .GlobalPreferences.plist

If the second file does not have a dot "." at the beginning the symbolic link is not correct.

Try again but using a different name for the alias.

$ ln -s .GlobalPreferences.plist MyPreferences.plist
$ ls -l MyPreferences.plist
lrwxrwxr-x 1 lsherwin admin 24 May 5 13:14 MyPreferences.plist -> .GlobalPreferences.plist
$

Then you can use the Property list editor to make the changes to MyPreferences.plist

-louie

Louie,

Thanks for the reply, but I figured it out a different way. I'm no programmer, but I can search the web.

I opened "username/Library/Preferences/com.apple.finder.plist" in Prop. List Editor. Then clicked on New Child to create "AppleShowAllFiles" with a Boolean "Yes" value. Now the hidden file showed but I still had to click on the file itself; I couldn't access it from the editor.

Offending printer is now gone.

Ed

Could the printer files still be residing in ./Library/Printers/vendor_name and this folder also has ICC profiles?