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Printer job "On hold (authentication required)"

My set-up:

2 x iMac running 10.6.2 attached to AEBS via ethernet
1 x MacBook running 10.6.2 attached to AEBS via wireless
1 x HP PSC 1600 printer/scanner USB atached to one of the iMacs

Printer sharing is enabled: everyone can print can print from either iMac.

On the MacBook I can add the printer easily enough but, when I try to print, the job is held with the status: On hold (authentication required):

!http://idisk.me.com/charlie.whitfield/Public/Pictures/Skitch/HP PSC_1600_series_%40_bucky_%281Job%29-20100120-122550.jpg!

What's happening here. I've found the same problem in networks involving Windows machines, but I'm all OSX.

iMac: 2 GHz Core 2 Duo, 4 GB RAM. MacBook: 2.13 GHz Core 2 Duo, 4 GB RAM, Mac OS X (10.6.2)

Posted on Jan 20, 2010 4:26 AM

Reply
109 replies

Sep 21, 2017 10:56 AM in response to caw35slr


In short words:

  1. Try to print something to this printer. Then open the print queue for the printer, and click on the refresh icon to the right of the job name. It should prompt you for your username and password for the print server, and then revert to "Hold for authentication". This is really important. If you don't try to send a print job and have it stuck in "Hold for authentication" first, strange things can still happen after following the procedure below.
  2. Open a terminal window. Find out the name of the printer: lpstat -s
  3. Force the mac to use "username,password" authentication for this printer: sudo lpadmin -p YOUR_PRINTER_NAME -o auth-info-required=username,password
    Change YOUR_PRINTER_NAME to your real printer name found at step 2, and leave the rest of line as is (don't put your real username and password instead of words username,password). When you hit return after typing this command you will be asked for your mac password.
  4. Attempt to print using the printer. It should now work. If it doesn't try deleting the printer and following the sequence again. If the print queue keeps pausing itself and saying the print job is "ready to print", read the important note on step 1.

Mar 27, 2017 10:08 AM in response to matthewdebeyer

I have a home network with an ancient HP LaserJet 4 hardwired to a Windows7 computer, so I must be logged on to that computer through my network before trying to print from my Mac.


On my Mac, I press command-k to "Connect to Server".

I use SMB to connect to my Windows computer called MyWinServer, so my server address is smb://MyWinServer



Note: The Windows username you use to connect must have a password associated with it—a blank password won't work.

Jun 29, 2017 6:02 AM in response to caw35slr

This worked for me:1. Send anything to print. Open your Keychain Access.app and delete the entry for the print queue in question (it's going to be the name of your printer).2. Go to the printer, and where's says "Hold for authentication" press on the REFRESH icon and use this:User: guestPass: guestYou are going to be able to print, and is not going to "hold" anymore in the future.

Jan 23, 2010 10:49 AM in response to caw35slr

I have the same problem -- iMac attached to AEBS via ethernet, with HP c5180 attached to iMac via USB. Printer sharing is turned on for all users. But when I try to print from MacBook, I get the same error message as you. I have tried deleting and re-installing the printer to no avail. I have no problems printing from iMac to printer, only when I try to send print job via the network.

Notably, I did not have this issue prior to my upgrade to Snow Leopard, even though equipment set-up was exactly the same as current.

Jan 23, 2010 12:13 PM in response to ACA4134

An update ... I was able to resolve this problem, although I am not sure exactly how. I disconnected the printer from the iMac and hooked it up to the AEBS via USB (side note: I know this works to share my printer, but don't use this as my default printing system, as then I can't make use of the scanning function on my printer). On the MacBook, I deleted the old printer, and installed the new set-up via AEBS. Successfully printed. I then disconnected printer from AEBS, and reconnected it to iMac via USB, and reinstalled the printer to the iMac, and ensured that printer sharing was turned on. Went back to MacBook, reinstalled printer connected to iMac, but did NOT delete the printer via AEBS option; this meant that the same printer showed up 2x on the MacBook just in different locations; made the option via the iMac default. Was then able to successfully print from MacBook w/out the error message problem.

I don't know why this worked, but it did. Perhaps will be helpful to you.

Mar 15, 2010 4:08 PM in response to caw35slr

I had a similar problem, but my HP 7310 is connected directly to my imac (intel core2 duo) and shared through that machine via airport express to my two macbooks.

I deleted the printer from all the machines, and then set it back up from the imac system prefs. Then, set it up on the macbooks printer system prefs. Worked like a charm. Took all of 2 minutes, but oh the frustration.

Mar 24, 2010 5:48 PM in response to Eric Anderson

This solution did not work for me. I have two MacBook Pros networked via Time Capsule to an iMac with a Canon Pixma IP5200 connected via USB. I can print from one MacBook over the network without a problem. From the other I get the "authentication required" message. All three Macs are running 10.6.2. I tried removing and reinstalling the printer driver from all three Macs to no avail.

Any one have any other ideas

Mar 31, 2010 6:38 PM in response to OrangeKid

I solved my "authentication required" printing problem. I changed my printer setup so that my printer is connected to my network through the Apple Time Capsule. I had to remove and reinstall the printer driver on all three computers. All three computers now print to my Canon Pixma IP 5200.

I still do not know why I had the "authentication required" on one MacBook but not the other with my previous setup where the printer was connected directly to my iMac and shared from there.

Apr 8, 2010 12:52 PM in response to caw35slr

We had a similar problem and it was self inflicted:
I deleted and re-installed a printer and shared it using the same name (that was on a Mac Mini running 10.6.2).
After that my wife got that same error message (authentication required).
Deleting the printer on her MacBook did NOT resolve the problem. I had to delete the printer on the "server" (the Mac Mini) and reinstall it using a different name. Then delete and re-install it on my wife's computer (the MacBook). Now printing works again = wife happy.

Apr 11, 2010 8:56 AM in response to caw35slr

After much frustration with the "on hold (authentication required)" message, I read this thread. Just deleted the printer from its host computer by clicking the minus sign then added it back by clicking the + sign. No more message!

The only thing we did which might have caused this to happen after years of successful sharing was to update the Airport software. I'm thinking the printer problem was caused by this update.

Printer job "On hold (authentication required)"

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