[Pkg-cups-devel] Bug#399911: cupsys: Prefer a debconf question to enable remote administration

[Phil Endecott]

Package: cupsys
Version: 1.2.5-1
Severity: normal

I'm installing CUPS on a print server for a LAN.  I want to be able to 
administer the CUPS setup and submit print jobs from anywhere on the 
LAN.  Initially, CUPS is configured to allow access only from localhost.

There are two ways to enable remote administration: you can do it via 
the web interface, or by editting cupsd.conf manually.  In my case the 
server on which CUPS is running is a Linksys NSLU2, which is not able to 
run a conventional web browser.  It is not unusual for print servers to 
be stripped-down machines without X installed. I was eventually able to 
access the web interface by installing lynx, but this was a rather 
painful process.  Not quite as painful as manual editting would have 
been though...

I therefore suggest that debconf would be the better way of selecting 
whether CUPS is accessible from other machines.

I'd also suggest that the options are extended from two to three:
- localhost only
- any address
- LAN IP range, e.g. 192.168.* (new)

An alternative would be to put a suitable cupsd.conf file in the 
documentation examples directory.

I'm submitting this bug because, in most respects, CUPS is a 
user-friendly application.  This is an exception.

Phil.