Easy Print in Windows Server 2008/2012

When Windows Server 2008 came out, Microsoft introduced the "Terminal Services Easy Print" technology. In Windows Server 2008 R2 and Windows Server 2012, the Easy Print function has been carried over and further developed under the name "Remote Desktop Easy Print". Prerequisites on the client side for using Easy Print in Windows Server 2008 with XP or Vista clients are Remote Desktop Connection (RDC) 6.1 and the Microsoft .NET Framework 3.0 Service Pack 1 (SP1). With the advent of Windows Server 2008 R2/2012, the .NET Framework is no longer required for the Easy Print function. Clients that are not running Windows 7 (or later), however, still need .NET-Framework 3.0 SP1 to enable Easy Print.

The environments supported are listed here with the system prerequisites:

•Windows 7/8 clients have 100% support; no installation of the .NET-Framework is needed.

•With Windows Vista + SP2 on the client machine, all required components are available and Easy Print is ready to use right out of the box.

•Windows XP + SP3 also supports Easy Print, but requires the installation of .NET Framework 3.0 SP1. RDC 6.1 is included in Windows XP SP3. This feature is not compatible with any other platform.

 

On the server side, .NET Framework 3.0 SP1 must be installed on Remote Desktop Session Hosts that are running on Windows Server 2008. Windows Server 2008 R2/2012, on the other hand, supports Easy Print without the .NET Framework.

Easy Print presents the user with the usual "Print" dialog for configuration of general settings, such as number of copies. The button for printer-specific settings, too, opens a configuration dialog identical to that opened for the printer locally, with all the same configuration options. The settings configured locally for the printer are loaded automatically. The server processes this information in combination with the print data to create an XPS document, which is then sent to the client over RDP. At the client end, the XPS document is converted into a normal print job, and the resulting printout is the same as it would have been if it had been printed locally. With this method, no special printer driver is required on the server, and users at the client machines see only their familiar environment.