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Update and Manage Printer Drivers

Applies To: Windows 7, Windows Server 2008 R2

The following sections provide information about how to use the Print Management snap-in to manage printer drivers on a print server:

Add drivers for client computers running 32-bit or 64-bit versions of Windows

To support client computers that use different processor architectures than the print server, you must install additional drivers. For example, if your print server is running a 64-bit version of Windows and you want to support client computers running 32-bit versions of Windows, you must add x86-based drivers for each printer.

noteNote
You can add printer drivers that are up to 2GB in size. You will not be able to back up printer drivers that are larger than 2GB.

To add client printer drivers to the print server

  1. Open Print Management.

  2. In the left pane, click Print Servers, click the applicable print server, and then click Printers.

  3. In the center pane, right-click the printer to which you want to add additional printer drivers, and then click Manage Sharing.

  4. Click Additional Drivers. The Additional Drivers dialog box appears.

  5. Select the check box of the processor architecture for which you want to add drivers.

    For example, if the print server is running an x64-based edition of Windows, select the x86 check box to install 32-bit version printer drivers for client computers running 32-bit versions of Windows.

  6. If the print server does not already have the appropriate printer drivers in its driver store, Windows prompts you for the location of the driver files. Download and extract the appropriate driver files, and then in the dialog box that appears, specify the path to the .inf file of the driver.

    noteNote
    You might not be able to extract some printer drivers without installing them. If this is the case, log on to a client computer that uses the same processor architecture as the printer drivers that you want to add to the print server, and install those printer drivers. Then use Print Management from the client computer to connect to the print server, and add the additional drivers from the Additional Drivers dialog box. Windows automatically uploads the drivers from the client computer to the print server.

Update or change printer drivers

To update or change the printer drivers for a printer, use the following procedure. Client computers automatically download and install the updated printer drivers the next time they attempt to print to the printer.

noteNote
When installing printer drivers that are provided by the device manufacturer, follow the instructions provided with the printer driver instead of using this procedure.

To update or change printer drivers for a printer

  1. Open Print Management.

  2. In the left pane, click Print Servers, click the applicable print server, and then click Printers.

  3. In the center pane, right-click the printer with the driver that you want to change or update, and then click Properties.

  4. Click the Advanced tab.

  5. Select a new driver from the Driver box, or click New Driver to install a new printer driver.

Remove printer drivers

When you install a printer driver on a computer that is running Windows 7 or Windows Server 2008 R2, Windows first installs the printer driver to the local driver store, and then installs it from the driver store.

When removing printer drivers, you have the option to delete only the printer driver or remove the entire printer-driver package. If you delete the printer driver, Windows uninstalls the printer driver, but leaves the printer-driver package in the driver store to allow you to reinstall the driver at some point. If you remove the printer-driver package, Windows removes the package from the driver store, completely removing the printer driver from the computer.

To remove printer drivers from a server, use the following procedure:

To remove printer drivers

  1. Open Print Management.

  2. In the left pane, click Print Servers, click the applicable print server, and then click Printers.

  3. In the center pane, right-click those printers that use the driver that you want to delete, or change the driver that is used by each printer to another driver.

  4. In the left pane, click Print Servers, click the applicable print server, and then click Drivers.

  5. In the center pane, right-click the driver and do one of the following:

    • To delete only the installed driver files, click Delete.

    • To remove the driver package from the driver store, completely removing the driver from the computer, click Remove Driver Package.

Additional considerations

  • To open Print Management, click Start, point to Administrative Tools, and then click Print Management.

  • You must have administrative credentials to perform this task.

Additional references

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Annotations FAQ
Print Management does indeed exist in Windows Server 2008 R2 and Windows 7

Because of the modular structure of Windows Server 2008 R2 and Windows 7, Print Management may not be readily visible. It must be enabled through the corresponding feature or role.

In Windows Server 2008 R2, the following page describes the procedure for enabling Print Management- either as a "stand-alone" feature or as part of the Print and Document Services role: http://technet.microsoft.com/en-us/library/cc731058.aspx

In Windows 7, Print Management is available as part of the feature Print and Document Services.

History
RE: client does not automatically update
"After updating a print driver, the client DOES NOT "automatically download and install the updated driver". It just fails with an error message that the printer no longer exists. Thanks!"

If this happens it is most likely due to the printer being renamed to the name of the driver (ie. HP Universal Driver PCL 6 instead of HP 4200 etc), it will not tell you it is doing this and it will break the link to the clients. Rename it to the original name, I'm talking printer name NOT share name. If after renaming to the correct original name it still doesn't work you may have to delete the printer and reconnect on each client PC.
History
Print Server Windows Server 2008 R2 - asks the driver update for all customers
I have a print server with Windows 2008 R2 with several shared printers! when installing a new printer with a different driver, the other printers are affected and all customers with windows 7 the message that "you must update the driver," as users are not administrators have a big problem with that. to solve we have to go from station to station and log in as administrator to apply the update.

Indicating how they could help us solve this problem?
History
How do client preferences get updated?
We are running two print servers right now, Windows 2003 and Windows 2008. We are trying to figure out how the clients get updates with preferences.
  • When updating the driver on the server with options like duplexing and tray designation, does that automatically update the client driver preferences?
  • If the client changes their preferences, does it "stick" or does it get refreshed from the server at some point? If it does, what is the interval?
  • If an admin to the print server makes a change to their client driver, does it update the driver on the print server?
  • ______________
  • The Solution is to configure the printer defaults for the print queue. The printing preferences on the print server are for the logged on user, not the print queue.
History
Printer Driver Management Software
This software can manage printer drivers in a Windows environment and make sure problems discussed here never occur:


Can for example update drivers in the entire enterprise with a few clicks, help with migration from 32 bit to 64 bit architectures (printer and driver related problems), update the settings in all printers from a central point etc.

Regards, Chad
History
To add client printer drivers to the print server on Windows 7 acting as a print server.
I red the instructions and want to add client drivers to my server but the instructions say " Download and extract the appropriate driver files, and then in the dialog box that appears, specify the path to the .inf file of the driver." But it doesn't gibve ma a clue where to find these files. Pleae help.
History
error while changing the driver
While changing the driver of HP printerson a Windows server 2008 R2 x64 server, the system blocks and does not change the driver making me kill the process to be able to work in the server... Any ideias abouty why this is happening?

Regards,
History
I want to add XP drivers to a Win2k8R2 server.
Setting up and maintaining Win7 drivers is easy. It's ADDING the XP drivers that I am having issues with. What a PITA!! You'd think after 15+ years with Windows interfaces, MS would have gotten this *** right by now, AND made it easy to do.
History
2008 R2 print server: how to change driver (from 5.1 to 5.2) for 50 printers in one shot ??
with 2003 server it was easy to upgrade HPD PCL6 printer driver in one shot for multiple printers.
with 2008 server I have to change for each printer, as we have about 150 printers it's fastidious....
Is there an easy way to replace a HPD v5.1 PCL driver by the new one V5.2

( sorry for my poor english but i'm french...nobody is perfect)
History
Removing printer drivers
I'm not sure whether I should ROFLMAO or cry my eyes out. Your information on how to remove printer drivers is hopelessly incorrect, you should name it, this is how we wish you could remove a printer driver.

On every 2008 (R2) server I ever tried to remove a printer driver (and that's quite a lot) I always get that the driver is in use. Even after removing all printers. The internet is filled with people with these issues and nobody seems to have a descent solution for it. How about telling us how to actually do it?
History
Windows Server 2008 R2 getting Print Management
http://blog.meetsworld.org/2010/03/windows-2008-r2-print-drivers-and-vmware-thinprint/
History