Best way to add a printer to a network?

[K. Abit]

In a small office environment with a W2003 DC, what is the best way to add a
network attached (ethernet based) printer? What steps do I take?

It would be really nice if I could somehow load the drivers onto the DC, and
it could make the right drivers available to clients automatically when the
client goes to add the printer. Is this possible? Or does each user have
to run the manufacturer's printer setup software, which can get a bit
technical and prone to error?

 

[Myweb]

Hello K. Abit,

On your server go to start, settings, printers and faxes. Add printer, Next,
local printer attached to this computer, uncheck automaic detection, Next,
change to create a new port and choose Standard TCP/IP port, Next, Next and
fill in the IP address from the printer. After that choose the hardware from
the list or add the drivers from cd/dvd. Then configure a name for it, check
list in Active directory and print a testpage at the end. Should be all.

Best regards

Myweb
Disclaimer: This posting is provided "AS IS" with no warranties, and confers
no rights.

 

[K. Abit]

It makes me use the setting of "generic network device" before it lets me
add a custom driver. Anyway, the bigger problem here is that I have clients
using XP and Vista and the drivers are different for each. And, the server
OS is Win 2003, and the printer doesn't even have Win 2003 drivers. So now
what?

 

[Myweb]

Hello K. Abit,

Generic network device means , the printer is not configured with an ipaddress
or the connection to the network is not there. You can go on anyway and use
the drivers you have to configure it, and if the connection is good it will
work.

If you don't find the drivers on the vendors website, sorry. You need the
drivers for the special operating systems. Which printer is it?

To install different drivers for printers on windows is no problem, you can
add drivers for different operating systems if you have it installed on your
print server.



Best regards

Myweb
Disclaimer: This posting is provided "AS IS" with no warranties, and confers
no rights.

 

[K. Abit]

The manufacturer definitely doesn't offer Win 2003 drivers so I guess I
can't put the printer on the server itself.

But for my learning, how do I add different drivers for different operatings
systems (either on the server or on a client that shares the printer) so
that clients using that printers won't have to install anything from disk?

 

[Randy Reimers]

"Generic network device" usually means that it cannot find a specific port
or means to talk to the printer - but it still found a device at that IP
address. HP printers, and several other brands, will actually come back
with information for your print server to fill in several fields.

As far as print drivers, with other Windows OS's - When you add a printer in
Win2003, you can specify some type of driver, or search for the closest
match. Once the printer is set up on the server, to add other drivers for
other versions of Windows, right-click the printer, select properties, the
"Sharing" tab, then click "Additional Drivers" button. You can then click
on the versions you want to install, and click OK. If it cannot find the
versions needed, it will ask for an install path, and copy the drivers from
there. If you add a 2nd printer with the same driver as tyour first one, it
will automatically copy the drivers from the first install. Now, when you
connect to this networked printer from a workstation, it will automatically
download and install the driver from the server, and with the correct
version. If you change this driver on the server, WinXP and up will
automatically update the local version of the driver - Win98 won't (too
stupid?).

I have a server at work that has ~250 printers connected via TCPIP- works
QUITE well. We have a few Win98,Win2000, and NT4.0, but mostly WinXP
stations.

Randy Reimers

 

[K. Abit]

Thanks for the detailed reply. But if the printer manufacturer doesn't
have any Win2003 driver (they don't), does that mean I can't use this whole
method and instead I'll have to share the printer from an XP client machine?
It seems the instructions you mention still require at least setting up the
printer first with the server's OS (win2003).

Also, if you have 250 printer connected to one server this way, is that
hurting the CPU performance and potential stability (from stupid driver
problems) or does your way really make the processing occur on the client
with the server just providing the initial share?

 

[Randy Reimers]

If there is no 2003 driver available from the manufacturer, use one that
is similar - a close model number? Try, test, and play with it, see what
happens. Once you have one similar, then do the "Additional Drivers" bit.
You can then add an XP driver, or Win98 if available.
As far as stability on "my" print server with 250+ printers - so far, over
2+ years, it has been rebooted for updats, and to move it. I don't recall
it "blowing chunks" yet - but it does seem like we restarted it once in the
first year, because it became unresponsive. As far as CPU usage - been no
real spikes, it is running on a Compaq with 1.5 Gig Ram, 866 dual CPU -
definitely NOT a high-end server.
The way I understand it - when XP prints, it shoves most of the job to the
server, and lets the server do the grunt work. Win98 does all the work at
the station, then shoves the completed job to the server, and the server
just passes it to the printer. We have HP, Lexmark, Xerox, IBM, Brother,
and Canon printers. Got rid of the Sharp printers - good thing, drivers
sucked.
Try - see what happens. Let us know.

Randy Reimers