Installation of a print server and distribution of printers via GPOs

1. short version

This guide describes how to set up a print server for an AD environment and how to distribute the printers via GPOs.

2. main part

PrintDeployment with GPO's First of all we agreed who would do which part exactly. I'm doing the print server because I already have experience and had to create one for training purposes. Elia is doing the AD server so we have 2 different VM's already running + at least one Win 10 client VM.

Now for my part. Elia had already set up the VM's for me and I just had to install the print server on it and add the specific printer we got available, so I first had to install a new „role“ „Print And Documents Service“ you can then just click on it because you don't need anything more great from the other features. Once that was installed, I then went to „Tolls“, „Print Management“ and then you get into something that looks like an Active Directory. Then you click on your print server and should now go to the printers, after which you should add a new printer.

This can and should look like this.

Then click Next and you will be asked to enter the IP of the printer, which of course you do. If possible you should make sure that the printer gets the right driver where I had some problems because it didn't let me and instead always said it couldn't access the printer, but after I had the opportunity to install the driver (highly recommended to have the right driver for the respective printer) everything worked fine. You can then print a test page and if it looks normal and good then everything must have worked.

The print server is now ready now we have to create GPO's in the domain controller.for this you go to „Group Policy Management „Now comes the creation of the GPO now you right-click on the „Folder“ and then press „New“ Now you call the GPO as you want in the example it is called „AddPrinter“.but it is not ready yet… now you right-click on the GPO and press „Edit“. It should look like this, now you go to „Deployed Printer“ and right-click on it and press „Deploy Printer“. Now comes a step that was a problem for me at first, because you have to enter \\Server\Printername which looks like this for me\\172.16.40.222\PRT-ZH-200-01 Then the printer was found without any problems and was added.

Now you simply have to assign the GPO to the computer. However, there is also another way of assigning the GPO „per user“ rather than just to one computer. The alternative is almost no longer an issue because Windows had a mega security hole and everything has been patched so that it seems rather cumbersome to do this for „per user“. If you have decided in favour of one of the 2 variants, you can try the whole thing on a Win10 test client. If the printer that should appear under „Printers and scanners“ or even a POP UP appears via this printer, then everything seems to be working well. If necessary, you can even print a test page.

This can and should look like this.

You then click Next and you are asked to enter the IP of the printer, which of course you then do. If possible you should make sure that the printer gets the right driver where I had some problems because it didn't let me and instead always said it couldn't access the printer, but after I had the opportunity to install the driver (highly recommended to have the right driver for the respective printer) everything worked fine. You can then print a test page and if it looks normal and good then everything must have worked.

The print server is now ready now we have to create GPO's in the Domain Controller, for this you go to „Group Policy Management“ in Tools, now you create the GPO, now you right-click on the „Folder“ and then press „New“ Now you name the GPO as you want in the example it is called „AddPrinter“, but it is not ready yet… now you right-click on the GPO and press „Edit“.

It should look like this, now go to „Deployed Printer“ and right-click on it and press „Deploy Printer“.

Now comes a step that was a problem for me at first, because you have to enter \\Server\Printername which looks like this for me\\172.16.40.222\PRT-ZH-200-01 Then the printer was found without any problems and was added.

Now you simply have to assign the GPO to the computer. However, there is also another way of assigning the GPO „per user“ rather than just to one computer. The alternative is almost no longer an issue because Windows had a mega security hole and everything has been patched so that it seems rather cumbersome to do this for „per user“. If you have decided in favour of one of the 2 variants, you can try the whole thing on a Win10 test client. If the printer that should appear under „Printers and scanners“ or even a POP UP appears via this printer, then everything seems to be working well. If necessary, you can even print a test page.

3. note

To distribute printers from a print server that is separate from the DC, this must be done via the print server. To do this, the print server must be in the same domain and you must log in to the print server with a domain admin. Before the printers can be distributed, the GPO must be created and added to the domain.

On the print server, select the print server to be distributed and go to Deploy with group policy.

In the window that now opens, click on Browse and then select the previously created GPO.

Now select that the printer is to be distributed to devices and not per account and then click on add.

It should now look like this:

If everything is correct, click on ok and the printer will now be distributed via this GPO.

The settings to whom the printers are distributed are made as normal in the DC.

4. source directory

All sources used in the report are listed.

</ignore>YouTube Print Server Installation Part 1

</ignore>YouTube Print Server Installation Part 2