Deployment Solution

If you are not using print servers to manage printer installs and need to script the install of networked workgroup printers, you can use these two simple commands to get the job done. We use the combination of these two commands in a single Deployment Server job with great success. (Note that these work for Windows XP (not 2000) and have not been tested with Vista):

1. To create the printer port:

   cscript //NoLogo %SYSTEMROOT%\system32\prnport.vbs -a -r IP_192.168.1.100 -h 192.168.1.100 -o raw -n 9100
   
   

   Notes:

   • Substitute your printer's IP address in place of 192.168.1.100.
   • 9100 is the port.
2. To install the printer driver on this port use:

   RUNDLL32 PRINTUI.DLL,PrintUIEntry /if /b "Lab Printer HP2300" /f \\%DSSERVER%\express\printers\HP\2300\hpc2300b.inf /r "IP_192.168.1.100" /m "HP LaserJet 2300 Series PCL 5e"
   
   

   Notes:

   • "Lab Printer HP2300" is a descriptive name you choose for the printer.
   • You must supply the path to your printer driver, in our case it is on our deployment server: \\%DSSERVER%\express\printers\HP\2300\hpc2300b.inf
   • Also, "HP LaserJet 2300 Series PCL 5e" is the exact name of the printer as it shows up in the driver. You will want to go through a manual install of the printer to verify this information.

In Altiris Deployment Solution, create a job with two Run Script tasks, one for each of the above steps. Copy in the text of each command into the "Run this Script" sections. This works for us using all the job defaults, but you may want to add more to the job like testing for XP before installing.