Installing a shared network printer in an automated fashion on Windows XP & Vista client workstations
Use this document whenever you are setting up a network printer on a Windows Small Business Server, or Windows 2000/2003 Server network. Until Windows 2003 Server R2, Windows server operating systems did not have the ability for the Network Administrator to deploy network printers through Group Policies, an incredible omission. In Windows 2003 Server R2, however, once you have added the Print Management Console, deployment of network printers is finally possible.
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The method below relies on a little known VBSCRIPT file provided by Microsoft from Windows XP onwards : PRNMNGR.VBS. This VBSCRIPT file allows you to install a network printer onto a PC using a single command line. So, for Windows XP client PCs/workstations …. (see Vista considerations at the end of this document) :
- On your server install and set up the printer to be networked.
- Share the printer. Let’s assume the name of your server is SERVERW2K and that you name its share TopFloor-ColorLaserJet-3700DN.
- Next, to ensure that the printer is automatically installed into a user’s profile when he/she logs on, simply enter the following line in a batch file that gets run by the Logon Script setting of the Group Policy that applies to the user in question :
CSCRIPT %windir%system32prnmngr.vbs -ac -p “\ServerW2KTopFloor-ColorLaserJet-3700DN”
The simple line above will add the specified printer into that user’s profile if it does not exist.
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Tags: shared network printer, vbscript, Windows Vista, Windows XP
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