Print server

A print server, or printer server, is a computer or device that is connected to one or more printers and to a network. It accepts print jobs from client computers, then prints the jobs on the requested printer.

The term can refer to:
 A computer running any of the printing servers software; implementing any of the network printing protocols.
 A dedicated device that connects one or more printers to a local area network (LAN).  It typically has a single LAN connector, such as an RJ-45 socket or a wireless connection,and one or more physical ports (e.g. serial, parallel or Universal Serial Bus (USB) ) to provide connections to printers. Such dedicated device converts network printing protocols from what was sent by client computers to what the printers can understand. 

Notes
The term print server usually refers to (1) above, while print server device or print server appliance usually refers to (2).
Some printers have built-in print server's capabilities and can connect direct to the network.

 References 

Category:Servers
Category:Computer networking