Link to home
Start Free TrialLog in
Avatar of somewhereinafrica
somewhereinafricaFlag for Haiti

asked on

server 2008 x64 and 32 bit drivers...

I got a CM2320 HP network printer, and a M3035 network printer. I run these off a printserver running windows server 2008 X64 STD. edition.

How do I make it so that the 32 bit drivers are already on the server and gives them out when someone tries to connect to it.

I followed this guide that made you use a windows xp computer, you found the server on the network and then found a folder called "Printers and faxes", right hand click the printer in question (using a printer admin capable user account), choose properties and then sharing, and through there if I told it to upload winxp 32 drivers it did it beutifully.

Problem is that everyone who already was attached to the printers now had to reinstall the printer driver, which was a windows XP 32 driver (all my computers use Windows 7 except a few that are too weak to run it).

So how do I do the same thing in windows 7?

All my workstations can use the printers fine IF you install the drivers via teh CD and then attach the network printer via the server using the same pre-installed drivers. I would like for the printer to spit out the win7 compatible drivers instead...
Avatar of Adrian Cantrill
Adrian Cantrill
Flag of Australia image

You need to configure the print queue to use additional drivers, instructions are given at the following page http://technet.microsoft.com/en-us/library/cc732946.aspx.
You need to add both the 32 bit and 64 bit drivers to the print server. You can the share the printer using Group Policy Preferences which will save you going to each machine to add it.

I am attachine the notes I wrote the last time I did this, they are for an SBS 2008 server but the steps should be the same or very similar for server 2008.
PrinterSharing-Server2008.pdf
Avatar of somewhereinafrica

ASKER

So this is as far as I got:

You log on with admin credentials to a workstation
You start the printer manager
You connect the print server in the local snap-in
You right hand click on the printer, choose properties and go to the sharing tab
On this tab you click the drivers button and check the x32 driver, and this will start the upload of the driver to the print server.

So now you have a printer on the server with 32 bit drivers. Here's the problem. Now when someone who already has the printer installed tries to use the printer, it now starts installing the printer drivers, Even though the user already has the printer installed, and is using the exact same drivers as the server is trying to push.

How do I make it not push out drivers when the drivers are already installed?
Is it doing it every time ? as in you have updated to 32 bit drivers, they attempt to add it and it pulls the drivers ok... now if they go to print to it tomorrow does it still add them ? if you change the drivers for a print queue, it will always re-push, even if the drivers appear to be the same maybe a .X release ? If its 100% pushing each time they go to print, then thats different... can you confirm ?
Well, here's the step-by-step:

I have the printer(s) installed on the server with the x64 drivers.
I then install the printer using the supplied drivers from the manufacturer
I then go to "printers and devices" and install the network printer off the server (it automatically uses the pre-installed drivers)

So, i just got a batch of new laptops, so i figured - why not get it over with.
So I installed the 32 bit driver as i described in my previous post. So I am using the same set of drivers to do all installs, the drivers ARE the same because they originated from the same install files.

So what happens is that I now try to connect with the new laptop that has no drivers installed. It finds the printer, asks for permission to install the drivers, all works finr. But when another user, who already have the printer installed now tried to print, it asked to install the drivers (for an already existing printer). It demands administrative rights, and refuses to do anything else than to install the new drivers.
ASKER CERTIFIED SOLUTION
Avatar of Adrian Cantrill
Adrian Cantrill
Flag of Australia image

Link to home
membership
This solution is only available to members.
To access this solution, you must be a member of Experts Exchange.
Start Free Trial
Avatar of dsmjeff
dsmjeff

Were running Server 2008 64 and all of the clients are 32 bit variations of XP, Vista, etc. When I download Server 2008 64 and 32 bit drivers, when I install the 32 bit I get a pop up that states this driver is not for the architecture I'm trying to install on. Any ideas?

Thanks