Patent ID: 7940407

Claim:
A system including an image forming apparatus connected to a terminal apparatus via a network, the system comprising: an input device, at the terminal apparatus, configured to receive an instruction to initiate a printing operation; a first processor, at the terminal device, configured to launch a printer driver and automatically generate a request for a plug-in list based on the instruction to initiate the printing operation; a first transfer unit, at the terminal device, configured to transfer the request for a plug-in list to the image forming apparatus; a receiving unit, at the image forming apparatus, configured to receive the request for a plug-in list from the terminal apparatus; a second transfer unit, at the image forming apparatus, configured to transfer the plug-in list in the image forming apparatus to the terminal apparatus in response to receiving the request for the plug-in list; the first processor, at the terminal device, configured to compare the plug-in list received from the image forming apparatus with functions of the printer driver of the terminal device; the first transfer unit, at the terminal device, configured to transfer a request for a plug-in to the image forming apparatus based on a result of the comparison; the receiving unit, at the image forming apparatus, configured to receive the request for the plug-in from the terminal apparatus; a second processor, at the image forming apparatus, configured to determine whether the plug-in is stored at a memory of the image forming apparatus in response to the received request for the plug-in; a download unit, at the image forming apparatus, configured to download the plug-in from a management apparatus connected to the image forming apparatus when the second processor determines that the plug-in is not stored in the memory of the image forming apparatus without notifying the terminal apparatus that the plug-in is not stored in the memory of the image forming apparatus; and the second transfer unit, at the image forming apparatus, configured to transfer the plug-in received from the management apparatus to the terminal apparatus as a response to the received request for the plug-in.