Solved Need help finding drivers to out of service printer

[daveb30]

I am in the process of switching from Windows to Linux (Cinnamon/Ubuntu). I have an old printer that works just fine on my windows machine, its a Dell 1320C. I have spent hours, maybe 10 hours, searching for the help I need and I I have come up empty handed. I hope someone here can help. The driver is no where to be found on Dell's website. I found a few comments that I can use the Fuji Xerox C525A. But when I open CUPS and go to Fuji Xerox the C525A is not an option, and I can not find it anywhere to download. So I tried the Generic PostScript and that doesn't work either. When I print a test page I see the printer led flashing but nothing prints. I have the optional Ethernet card installed, so I have tried numerous setting (different PostScripts and different PCL versions) using both the USB and Ethernet connections. None work. Some say job completed, some say exited with no errors and some say filter failed. I've looked in the /var/log/cups.error_log but I don't see anything there that helps.
If anyone can help I would be forever thankful.
Thank you,
Dave

 

[Alexzee]

Hi! daveb30 & Welcome to Linux.org.

To clarify, is this your printer in the link below?

https://www.printerbase.co.uk/spec/pdf/dell-1320c.pdf

I didn't see Linux support on the Dell site for your laser printer.

Supported Operating Systems | Dell US

Not to worry tho as getting this printer under Linux has been successful.

Dell 1320C on Ubuntu 18.04 + – Lee Porte – Tech experiements

A Linux Arch user had success here:

CUPS driver for the Dell 1320C Printer on Arch

Drivers can be a pain in the caboose at times so let's see what @GatorsFan and our moderator @Brickwizard have to say.

 

[Brickwizard]

Welcome to the forums,
this will be a suck it and see answer
you could try the Xerox universal drivers https://www.support.xerox.com/en-us/content/111461# [these are very old and 32 bit]
Slightly newer, you could try the linux Fujixerox drivers [ in the software manager of most Debian based distros]

or from a Debian distro terminal in order...
sudo apt update && apt-get -y install print-driver-fujixerox
apt update &&apt -y install print-driver-fujixerox

​

​

 

[daveb30]

The steps outlined by "Lee Porte – Tech experiements" woked GREAT with 1 small tweak. When I ran the install.sh (as root) I got an error "unable to locate libcups2:i386". I ran the follow to see if it was installed. "sudo dpkg --print-foreign-architectures". nothing was returned - So i ran "sudo dpkg --add-architecture i386". Another check returned i386. I re-ran install.sh
The printer was discovered automatically and it now prints.
Thank you all so much!!
Dave

 

[Alexzee]

The steps outlined by "Lee Porte – Tech experiements" woked GREAT with 1 small tweak. When I ran the install.sh (as root) I got an error "unable to locate libcups2:i386". I ran the follow to see if it was installed. "sudo dpkg --print-foreign-architectures". nothing was returned - So i ran "sudo dpkg --add-architecture i386". Another check returned i386. I re-ran install.sh
The printer was discovered automatically and it now prints.
Thank you all so much!!
Dave

So by pulling in the i386 architecture with dpkg your printer is now working.
Glad to hear the success!

Have a nice weekend daveb30.

 

[Alexzee]

When you have the time could you mark your thread solved?

To do that, go to your first post and click the edit button and type in "Solved".

 

[hasser33]

I am in the process of switching from Windows to Linux (Cinnamon/Ubuntu). I have an old printer that works just fine on my windows machine, its a Dell 1320C. I have spent hours, maybe 10 hours, searching for the help I need and I I have come up empty handed. I hope someone here can help. The driver is no where to be found on Dell's website. I found a few comments that I can use the Fuji Xerox C525A. But when I open CUPS and go to Fuji Xerox the C525A is not an option, and I can not find it anywhere to download. So I tried the Generic PostScript and that doesn't work either. When I print a test page I see the printer led flashing but nothing prints. I have the optional Ethernet card installed, so I have tried numerous setting (different PostScripts and different PCL versions) using both the USB and Ethernet connections. None work. Some say job completed, some say exited with no errors and some say filter failed. I've looked in the /var/log/cups.error_log but I don't see anything there that helps.
If anyone can help I would be forever thankful.
Thank you,
Dave I’ve integrated https://ocrstudio.ai/bank-card-scanner/ into a prototype, and it noticeably improves user experience. On-device scanning is fast, secure, and privacy-friendly, handling reflections and varied card layouts well. Rare misreads happen under extreme glare, but overall it’s far better than manual typing. Great choice for fintech apps prioritizing speed and security.

I ran into the same issue with the Dell 1320C on Linux, and sadly it’s a known dead end. Dell never released Linux drivers, and the Fuji Xerox C525A workaround no longer ships with modern CUPS. Generic PCL/PS usually fails because this printer relies on proprietary firmware. The only semi-reliable workaround I found was running it through a Windows VM or using a print server on a Windows machine. Otherwise, replacement is unfortunately the realistic option.

 

[MikeWalsh]

Drivers can be a pain in the caboose at times

Oh, sweet Jesus.....tell me about it. Printers in particular; these and wifi probably generate more issues for Linux users than all other hardware combined. (Everything else is in the kernel, and has been for years.)

My elderly Epson Stylus SX218 - an early home-user "preview" of the upcoming WorkForce series, back in 2010 - had no 'official' drivers available on their web-site when first launched. In later years, Epson's driver supplier - Avasys - went under, and handed over responsibility for all Linux driver building to Epson themselves.....and THEN they became available through normal channels.

(Epson, despite supplying an entire range of Linux drivers take the official position that "We don't DO Linux (anything)". Their customer service reps have, apparently, even been trained to stress this point to callers. Heaven above knows why. If you want Linux drivers for Epson gear - and they ARE available, trust me! - then YOU, the user, have got to do the digging yourself..)

C'est la vie, guys.....

In the early days, I eventually discovered suitable drivers for the SX-series on openprinting.org.....or just OpenPrinting (as they are now).


Mike.

 

[Alexzee]

Oh, sweet Jesus.....tell me about it. Printers in particular; these and wifi probably generate more issues for Linux users than all other hardware combined. (Everything else is in the kernel, and has been for years.)

My elderly Epson Stylus SX218 - an early home-user "preview" of the upcoming WorkForce series, back in 2010 - had no 'official' drivers available on their web-site when first launched. In later years, Epson's driver supplier - Avasys - went under, and handed over responsibility for all Linux driver building to Epson themselves.....and THEN they became available through normal channels.

(Epson themselves, despite supplying an entire range of Linux drivers take the official position that "We don't DO Linux (anything)". Their customer service reps have, apparently, even been trained to stress this point to callers. Heaven above knows why. If you want Linux drivers for Epson gear - and they ARE available, trust me! - then YOU, the user, have got to do the digging yourself..)

C'est la vie, guys.....

In the early days, I eventually discovered suitable drivers for the SX-series on openprinting.org.....or just OpenPrinting (as they are now).


Mike.

Your right about the wifi printers.
If the ISP went down or if there was a major power outage (3 times lasting for days) I couldn't print jack!

The HP Envy (wireless only) that I had, almost every time I needed to use it I would have to go to the cups website, remove it, reinstall it and find the driver for it in order to print a page.

Thinking before throwing it into the local dumpster, I gave it to someone who really needed a printer.

Not my circus and not my monkeys anymore.