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I’ve read some other posts about printing, but still not getting all my questions answered….forgive my long-windedness please.
We are PS4 with rollup 3, windows server 2003 sp2. Using new code 5.2.053 on S10.
We are a large hospital with many devices and users. My preference has been to leave printer configuration defined locally on the device rather than via .ini files, since devices tend to move around a little bit etc…..our field techs can just quickly update the printer(s)–most often SMB defined printers (we use windows print servers to host our print queueus). For our basic config which is just pnlite authentiation and autolaunches a published desktop with smooth roaming, this works fine. As long as extra care is spent making sure syntax for printer driver name, printers autocreate and are functional. Though sometimes I do see a printer here or there that fails to autocreate.
1. Is SMB my only option or can i also try LPD? All of our regular PC’s just have network printer installed with usual \serverqueuename syntax so I assume SMB is what I need to use with WTOS.
2. In a new WNOS setup I am playing with i am doing a hybrid setup where the device autologs in to pnlite with a special generic domain account and then displays a few ICA connection icons. One is a published desktop to which the user has to authenticate to the app server with their actual domain credentials–printer autocreation in these sessions works generally well as described above. The other connections connect to some clinical apps and pass $un and $pw credentials (the same as the autologon credentials) to the app servers to cut out that layer of authentication to the clinicians though they still have an application logon to provide some security. In these sessions there are some issues to watch out for:
a. multiple sessions on multiple servers with the same username can cause printing problems. What I am seeing is failure for WTOS device to autocreate the printer defined via SMB, and instead it shows printers from other sessions (from PC clients where I do the equivalenet setup) per citrix KB CTX106744. ANy suggestions to better define printing to these published application sessions that have the same user name associated with them? Session printing is not an option because I would need to setup a hundred different policies to satisfy all users and devices.
b. Inappropriate roaming behavior per CTX102345 when I don’t want it. This is another topic and can be mitigated by not allowing disconnected sessions for these published apps.Appreciate any suggestions, thanks! Let me know if further elaboration needed…
Hi EBH,
Thanks for using the site, you have some interesting questions! I will throw in my 2 cents here but these are only my opinions and an am sure others will have there own.
1. Printers
I really am not a big fan of client side printers, I have seen print applications that allow users to chose their own printers in the session rather than setting them on every machine, it may be time to review.For client printers on WTOS you are correct, \serverprinter is SMB (Server Message Blocks). You can also use Unix printing and this is very reliable, most commercial printers support this and you use the LPR option to set it up. Given you login to the device you could use an include= to remotely set up the printers but you will end up with a lot of text files, you could also use WDM Enterprise to do it. I don’t normally use WDM with WTOS but in your case it could be worth it, no matter what there will be lots of setup time so you may just stick with what you currently do.
2. With generic logins I don’t like doing these with the one account as they always cause issue like the ones you have had plus other problems. For the username use a variable like username=$TN, you can script the creation of the user accounts in AD and this will mean that each login will be unique so you dont have the roaming, disconnect issues.
I hope this helps,
Cheers,
-TTThanks TT!
Could you elaborate more on the use of WDM Enterprise for printer management? We do currently have this which i use for V90 management and am planning on using for WTOS management with DDC very shortly. Are you referring to just using DDC to manage multiple WNOS files for different departments, for example, to determine where they print to? Or are you referring to some other functionality that I am not aware of as related to controling printing?
Also, is setting the printer definition (regardless of LPD or SMB, etc.) via .ini file equivalent functionally to setting it manually on the device as we currently do–with all of the limitations and common problems of client side printing in general? I believe this to be the case, but would like that validated…. Yuck, maybe I will give session printing a look and just bite the bullet setting up potentially a few policies in the short run, though many many more longer term if it proves to be effective.
Hi,
Yes, I simply mean to use DDC to push out the wnos.ini. The idea is at least a help desk person could drop devices into a folder to give them the printer. This would save the local setup but means someone (read you) would have to set up all the different configuration files.
If you have the Enterprise licences great as DDC works well with WTOS, the WDM section of this site has a document on creating views and WTOS DDC.
I still think session printers are easier to manage and perform better, maybe DDC and session printers are for you. Set up the main printers via the session and for the odd printer one user has use a client printer set up via DDC. I like deploying printers as when you manually set them up there is always mistakes,
Cheers,
-TTthanks again TT. Yes I have decided to do session printing as you are correct it’s more reliable…even if it means I have a bunch of policies in my citrix console to add and manage. It’s the easier thing to do and will likely provide a better experience for my users.
I have just started to attempt to use DDC for wtos (using the download on this site as a guide), but am having problem if you’d care to put your 2 cents in…see the post i just submitted on WDM forum…hopefully i provided enough info.
I found on my shop that it’s easier to setup the network printer locally on the Citrix sever, and assign permissions on each printer per terminal (I use $TN in the config for AD Logon name). By doing this everything is centrally managed and there’s nothing to configure on the device. Works great.
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