printers and login scripts

[rocknrollstar]

Hi everyone, I'm after a little confirmation that I do things in a sensible way! The longest part of the login script is the time it takes to add the printers. This is how we do it:

A System variable is set on each machine, called Location, and this helps determine which printer to set as the default. The script 'printers.bat', called in the login.bat script, contains the following:

IF %Location% == upstairs CON2PRT /CD \\SERVER\UpperSchool_HP
IF %Location% == upstairs CON2PRT /C \\SERVER\LowerSchool_HP
IF %Location% == upstairs CON2PRT /C \\SERVER\"ICT_Suite_HP_3600"
IF %Location% == upstairs CON2PRT /C \\SERVER\"New_Build_Upper_School"
IF %Location% == upstairs CON2PRT /C \\SERVER\"New_Build_Lower_School"
plus 2 other printers

Is this an efficient way to do it??

Thanks for your help.

[Simcfc73]

Seems an okay way to do it, currently we use 2003 R2 which lets you deploy printers via group policy to rooms which is much easier.

[Nixphoe]

what you might try is

if %locaion% == upstairs call upstairs.bat
goto eof
if %location% == downstars call downstairs.bat
goto eof

etc etc. This way you can setup the whole mapping of printers in a file and have it just a bit more organized.

[Nixphoe]

call %location%.bat

[rocknrollstar]

Cool, thanks. Out of all the things in the logon script, the printer bits take the longest.

Do you think the line

IF %Location% == upstairs CON2PRT /CD \\SERVER\UpperSchool_HP

Will actually try and check the UpperSchool printer over the network? If so, it means that several printers will be checked during each login, slowing things down.

We have Win2k still, until next A pril.

[Nixphoe]

I haven't played with CON2PRT too much, but if it works like a normal network printer map, it will not only connect, but download and install the print drivers to the workstation. The good news with this after the first login it won't take so long as the network printers are already connected for the same user.

[rocknrollstar]

I haven't played with CON2PRT too much, but if it works like a normal network printer map, it will not only connect, but download and install the print drivers to the workstation. The good news with this after the first login it won't take so long as the network printers are already connected for the same user.

I take it the printer drivers are only downloaded if they aren't available? Presumably it doesn't do download each time?

Also, we have roaming mandatory profiles- would this make any difference? Is there a way I can stop the drivers being downloaded?

So many questions!

[Nixphoe]

Drivers are per PC. If the PC already has it, it will not need to download it each time. It would just connect to the printer.
I don't know of a way to make sure the drivers aren't connected. But if the PC doesn't know how to talk to the printer, when you try to print you'll get gibberish.

[ricki]

Hi

I had a few problems with some machines and had to added the following at the start of the script

\\server\NETLOGON\CON2PRT /F

This wipes the printers off the machine and then they get reinstalled every time. I had a problem where I had a bad driver of some machines and it was not updating from the one on the print server.

I also had to put a copy of the con2prt in my netlogon and had to put the path to in in the script.

Richard

[gshaw]

I use VBS scripts that map by OU (linked to location)... used the GPO deployment once... found no setting for default printers then went straight back to scripts

That's a useful switch for the CON2PRT, does it just delete the printers or does it kill the drivers as well, cleanspl style?

[zag]

Just on kind of the same topic, does anyone know how to delete the XPS printer each time someone logs on?

[Nixphoe]

Just on kind of the same topic, does anyone know how to delete the XPS printer each time someone logs on?

This is what I do to remove network printers. You can probably modify it for your printer

cscript %systemroot%\system32\prnmngr.vbs -d -p \\server\HPLJ

[Nixphoe]

Hey Ricki,
Here is what I use
I put this in the login script to call the vbs file

cscript \\serverexch\NETLOGON\printer.vbs //B

In my printer.vbs file I have the following:

Option Explicit
Dim objNetwork, strPrinter1,strPrinter2,strPrinter3

strPrinter1 = "\\Server\Brother"
strPrinter2 = "\\Server\HPLJ1"
strPrinter3 = "\\Server\HPLJ2"

Set objNetwork = CreateObject("WScript.Network") 
objNetwork.AddWindowsPrinterConnection strPrinter1
objNetwork.AddWindowsPrinterConnection strPrinter2
objNetwork.AddWindowsPrinterConnection strPrinter3

WScript.Quit

Seems to work pretty good for me.

[plexer]

If you are using vbs why not just add it as a login script in a gpo?

Ben

[DaveP]

Just on kind of the same topic, does anyone know how to delete the XPS printer each time someone logs on?

This is a VBS script which runs at logon I use to remove:

Microsoft Office Document Image Writer
Microsoft XPS Document Writer
Send To OneNote 2007

The script:

strComputer = "."
Set objWMIService = GetObject("winmgmts:" & "{impersonationLevel=impersonate}!\\" & strComputer & "\root\cimv2")
Set colInstalledPrinters = objWMIService.ExecQuery ("SELECT * FROM Win32_Printer")
For Each objPrinter in colInstalledPrinters
IF objPrinter.Name = "Microsoft Office Document Image Writer" THEN
objPrinter.Delete_
ELSEIF objPrinter.Name = "Microsoft XPS Document Writer" THEN
objPrinter.Delete_
ELSEIF objPrinter.Name = "Send To OneNote 2007" THEN
objPrinter.Delete_
END IF
Next

Hope this helps.