Examine printer configuration
Like most modern peripherals for a computer, when you attach a printer directly to the device, Windows will automatically discover and download the appropriate driver needed. However, several unique factors related to managing printers require more discussion on the topic.
The most significant factor is that printer usage isn't intended to be used by a single device. In organizations, most printers are attached directly to the network or a printer server and aren't connected directly to the end-user computer. Even in the home with a printer connected to one computer, there's often a desire to enable other devices to print to it.
When you install and share a printer in Windows, you must define the relationship between the printing device, the physical printer, and the Windows-based computer. You can do this by adding a printer in Windows and specifying which driver and port it uses to communicate with the printing device. Typically, locally attached Plug and Play printing devices install automatically. However, when you add a wireless printing device or a network-printing device in Devices and Printers by using the Add printers button, Windows must be able to communicate with the printing device or the print server to which the printing device is connected.
Printing device
A printing device is a physical device available locally, connected to the network, or connected to the print server. You use it to produce the print job output, typically a printed document. By default, Windows supports many printing devices and includes drivers for communicating with those devices. You can add support for more devices if needed.
Printer port
Windows can automatically detect printers when you connect them to your computer and install the printer driver without interaction if available in the driver store. However, the Windows operating system might not detect printers you connect using older ports, such as serial (COM), parallel (LPT) ports, or network printers. In these cases, you must configure a printer port manually.
Printer and printer driver
A printer is a Windows representation of a physical printing device. Like other devices, it's associated with a driver, which is used to communicate with a print device and render print jobs. Without a printer driver, the printing device that connects to a computer won't work correctly.
Another consideration for printers is that third-party software is often installed for managing the printer. While the driver is usually all that’s required for basic printer capabilities, you often need extra software to take advantage of the printer’s advanced functions, such as selecting a paper tray or viewing ink or toner status. While the manufacturer may bundle the management software and driver as one app, installing just the driver is typically an option.
Note
The Add Printer Wizard presents you with some basic drivers. You can select the Windows Update button to download a more exhaustive list. However, if your printer is not on the list, you must get and install the necessary driver.
Methods for installing a printer
Note
The Add Printer Wizard provides an extensive list of currently installed printer types. However, if your printer is not listed, you must get and install the necessary driver. You can pre-install printer drivers in the driver store and make them available on the printer list using the Pnputil.exe command-line tool.
Note
Some USB printers require you to install the printer driver before attaching it. Failure to follow this procedure can cause the printer not to function correctly. Check the product documentation before attaching the printer to your computer.
Installing printers on client computers is one of the most important tasks when configuring network printing. There are several ways to install printers on Windows client computers:
- Add a locally attached printing device automatically: Windows automatically detect locally attached printers and install them if their driver is available. Standard users can't install the printer if Windows doesn't find an appropriate driver in the driver store. To allow a standard user to install the printer, you could add an appropriate printer driver to the driver store using the Pnputil.exe command-line tool. Alternatively, you can edit the local security policy to allow standard users to load and unload device drivers.
- Manually browse for a shared network printer: Users can install network printers on a Windows client computer by browsing to a print server, and then double-clicking the icon for the shared printer. The drawback to this method is that it relies on users knowing which print server is sharing the printer, which isn't the case in most companies.
- Find a printer in the directory: When sharing a printer in an AD DS environment, the print administrator has the option to publish the printer in AD DS. Users can search the directory to locate the printer based on the location or printer feature. That makes it easier to locate an appropriate printer. You can search only among printers available at the same location and support the required features, such as support color printing.
- Deploy printers by using Group Policy settings: When you deploy printers using Group Policy, you can centrally deploy printers to users and computers, making them available when users sign-in. You can use Group Policies to deploy printers based on different criteria, such as group membership, or the organizational unit of the user account or computer location. One way to deploy printers using Group Policy is to right-click a printer in the Print Management console and select the Deploy with Group Policy option.
- Deploy printers by using Group Policy preferences: You can use Group Policy preferences to distribute printers to users and computers. Group Policy Preferences are more flexible than Group Policy Settings. You can deploy printers based on other criteria, such as whether users are using laptops, the IP address range of computers, time ranges, or Lightweight Directory Access Protocol (LDAP) queries. You can use Group Policy preferences to create, update, replace, or delete a printer.
Manual printer installation methods aren't scalable in medium-sized organizations. It's time-consuming to manually add and remove required printers to users’ computers.