HP Jetdirect 250M User Manual page 25

NETWORK PRINTING
Peer-to-peer topology
There are two standard layouts for network
printing using a print server. The first is the peer-
to-peer topology, in which a computer sends
print jobs directly to the printer.
In peer-to-peer printing, each computer manages
the print jobs that it generates. It checks to see
whether the printer is ready to accept the print
job, and sends the job if the printer is free. If the
printer is not free, the computer stores the job
and keeps checking the printer until it is ready to
accept the job. If several computers send jobs to
a printer at the same time, printing for some of
the computers may slow down as they spend
time checking the printer and waiting for it to be
available.
Peer-to-peer printing works well on networks
with few users. It is appropriate for small and
medium offices, as well as large offices that do
not have heavy printing requirements.