Printing to Network Printer from RD prints elsewhere

[rtengowski]

We are using XP Pro clients with Remote Desktop to connect to a Windows
2003 Server and run a program on there. The clients have a single
network printer configured locally with a static IP address.

When we print from the program running remotely, it will sometimes
print to the correct printer, sometimes print to another printer
configured on the network with a different (static) IP address, and
sometimes we cannot find it anywhere (may have printed on yet another
printer?).

Can anyone shed some light on this?

Some info that may help: The remote server is on a different subnet
and has the print drivers installed for the local printer that is
configured on the client. Some of the printers are the same make
(different models), and some are completely different (make, model,
drivers, etc). All the printers are on the same subnet as the client
machine.

Thanks in advance for any info.

 

[Chris Priede]

Hi,

When we print from the program running remotely, it
will sometimes print to the correct printer, sometimes
print to another printer configured on the network with
a different (static) IP address, and sometimes we
cannot find it anywhere (may have printed on yet
another printer?).

I suspect there is no mysterious technical issue here at all and the users
need to pay closer attention to what (specific, rather than the default)
printer they are printing to.

If the user is in the Administrators or Power Users group on the terminal
server (as well as in some other circumstances), they will be able to see
all the currently connected remote printers. This is probably what is
happening and they are sometimes printing to the wrong printer.

 

[rtengowski]

Hi Chris.

Thanks for the response, however, the only program the users have
access to does not bring up a print dialog box when they click 'print'
in the program. It is a custom developed program that automatically
routes the print job to the users local printer, so they never even
have the option to choose a different printer.

This could actually be part of the problem though. If the program ends
up routing the information in some way to a different printer.

Thanks,
Rob