Allow users to add network printers from workstation

[Tom]

Hi,

Is there a way to allow a "normal" user to add network
printers without making the user a member of local
administrators or power users?


Tom

 

[Bruce Sanderson]

By default, "Normal users" on Windows 2000 and XP can add network printers..

However, in some cases, an administrator has to add a printer of the same
make and model first to get the printer driver installed correctly.

What make and model of printer is involved?

 

[Guest]

Hi Bruce,

When a normal user logs on to an XP PC which do not have
the printer driver concerned installed on the PC yet and
he/she tries to connect to that network printer, the
following message appears.

<<<you don't have sufficient access to your computer to
connect to the selected printer>>>

I found that this happens when the printer driver
concerned has not been installed on that PC yet. When
the normal users who tries to connect to the printer, the
system will attempt to copy the printer files to
C:\WINNT\system32\spool\drivers\w32x86\3 folder which
the 'normal' user has only read access rights. I overcame
this problem by giving the built-in PC local users group
write and modify rights to C:\WINNT\system32
\spool\drivers\w32x86\3. Not sure this is a good solution.




Tom

 

[Bruce Sanderson]

Another, perhaps better, solution is to "globally" add the printers to the
workstations so that user's don't have to add them; see
http://members.shaw.ca/bsanders/NetPrinterAllUsers.htm.

Printers tend to be relatively static and people need/want to print on
printers that are near the computer, so I think of them as more computer
specific than user specific; adding the printers globally remotely is a
good fit for this situation.