FH Web Printer Configuration

Printer Configuration

When FH Web Edition clients connect to a host, proxy printers are automatically created on the host and serve as an interface for printing to the client printer. Proxy printers are printers FH Web Edition sets up on the host as a bridge between the applications running in a FH Web Edition session and the client printers. Proxy printers can be configured automatically or manually.

Native printer drivers are preferred when configuring proxy printers — if they are available and if settings allow them to be used. Alternatively, the Universal Printer Driver can be used when the native driver is not available. There are several methods an administrator can use to manage which printer drivers should be used when creating proxy printers. Settings from client printers are replicated in their proxy printer counterpart. A session's proxy printers are removed when the session ends. Proxy printers are not removed when a session disconnects. All proxy printers on the system are removed when the Application Publishing Service starts.

When a proxy printer is configured, there is a hierarchy of preferences when selecting a native printer driver. If the Windows Printer Drivers option is disabled in the FH Web Edition Connection Manager, this hierarchy is not applied. Native drivers are selected in the following order:

Printers Applet. A user's manual selection of a printer driver in the Printers Applet takes precedence over all other driver selection methods.
Mapped Printer Drivers. MappedPrinterDrivers.xml contains a list of driver names that can be used for each driver. This file is generated by the Application Publishing Service, but can also be manually edited by administrators.
Client driver name. The driver with the exact name of the driver that is installed on the client is used to configure the proxy printer.

Mapping Printer Drivers

Administrators can map printer drivers by editing MappedPrinterDrivers.xml. For most FH Web Edition deployments, administrators will not need to edit this file. It is used for specifying which driver to use when a host's driver name does not identically match the client's, or when the administrator wants to override native drivers and force clients to use a different printer driver or the Universal Printer Driver

To specify a different printer driver

Locate MappedPrinterDrivers.xml in C:\ProgramData\ACSXerox or C:\Documents and Settings\All Users\Application Data\ACSXerox.
Open the file in Wordpad and search for the client printer driver name, for example, <property id="HP LaserJet 2100 Series PS" type="STRING"> <value>HP LaserJet 2100 Series PS</value> </property>
Delete the driver name from the value field. In the example above, delete HP LaserJet 2100 Series PS and replace with the desired printer driver.
Save the file.

This change will take effect the next time the user starts a FH Web Edition session. In the example above, <property id="HP LaserJet 2100 Series PS" type="STRING"> is the driver that is used on the client. <value>HP LaserJet 2100 Series PS</value> is the driver that should be mapped to on the host.

Mappping printer drivers can also be used to force printers to use the Universal Printer Driver.

To force the printer to use the Universal Printer Driver

Locate MappedPrinterDrivers.xml in C:\ProgramData\ACSXerox or C:\Documents and Settings\All Users\Application Data\ACSXerox.
Open the file in Wordpad and search for the client printer driver name, for example, <property id="HP LaserJet 2100 Series PS" type="STRING"> <value>HP LaserJet 2100 Series PS </value> </property>
Delete the driver name from the value field. In the example above, delete HP LaserJet 2100 Series PS and replace it with Universal Remote Printer, as follows: <property id="HP LaserJet 2100 Series PS" type="STRING"> <value>Universal Remote Printer</value> </property>
Save the file.

The next time users connect to the host, their printer will be configured using the Universal Printer Driver.

Multiple drivers can be specified in the <value> field by delimiting them with a semicolon.

To designate an additional driver

Locate MappedPrinterDrivers.xml in C:\ProgramData\ACSXerox or C:\Documents and Settings\All Users\Application Data\ACSXerox.
Open the file in a text editor and search for the client printer driver name, for example, <property id="HP LaserJet 2100 Series PS" type="STRING"> <value>HP LaserJet 2100 Series PS</value> </property>
Specify an additional driver. For example, add HP LaserJet 2100 Series PS to the list, as follows: <property id="HP LaserJet 2100 Series PS" type="STRING"> <value>HP LaserJet 2200 Series PS;HP LaserJet 2100 Series PS</value> </property>
Save the file.

Administrators can add an unlimited number of driver names to the value. FH Web Edition attempts to configure client printers using the drivers in the order they are specified. The semicolon-separated drivers specify the preferential order of drivers to be used when installing a proxy printer.

To remove printer driver mapping

Open MappedPrinterDrivers.xml in a text editor and delete the entire modified line. For example, delete: <property id="HP LaserJet 2100 Series PS" type="STRING"> <value>HP LaserJet 2100 Series PS</value> </property>
Save the file.

The MappedPrinterDrivers.xml file can be deleted to remove any prior changes. The file is recreated when users sign in to the host.

Client printers are temporarily installed on the FH Web Edition Host for the duration of the client's session. Printer drivers are installed permanently. Administrators can view the list of printers and drivers in the Printers folder on the FH Web Edition Host.

To add a default printer for all new users, consult the following article: http://support.microsoft.com/support/kb/articles/Q252/3/88.ASP