Step 2: Choose a Computer
Figure 1 shows PMPMgr.hta's main window. It displays the current computer (i.e., the computer on which you installed the application) in the text box. To choose a different computer on which to add or delete per-machine printers, click the Change button and enter a new computer name at the prompt. If the application successfully connects to the computer (it checks whether the computer's print spooler service is running), it changes the current computer and updates the text box.
Step 3: Add Per-Machine Printers from a Print Server or Delete Per-Machine Printers
To add per-machine printers from a print server, click the Print Server button and enter the print server's name at the prompt. PMPMgr.hta retrieves the printers shared from the print server and adds them to the selection list in the middle of the window.
PMPMgr.hta compares the print server's list of shared printers with the list of per-machine printers installed on the current computer. Only the printers that aren't already installed on the computer are shown in the list. If the print server isn't sharing any printers, or if all of the server's printers are already installed on the computer, PMPMgr.hta will display an error message.
Select the printer(s) you want to add and click Apply. You can use the Ctrl and Shift keys on the keyboard to select multiple printers. Click the Clear List button if you want to clear the list.
To delete one or more per-machine printers from the target computer, choose Delete from the dropdown box in the top left corner of the application's window. The Print Server and Clear List buttons aren't available when you choose Delete because they're only meaningful when adding per-machine printers. The list box shows the per-machine printers installed on the target computer, if any. To delete one or more of the listed per-machine printers, select them from the list and choose Apply. You can use the Ctrl and Shift keys to select multiple printers.
Things to Know
If you want to uninstall the application, first unregister the PMPMgr.wsc component. (Right-click it in Windows Explorer and choose Unregister.) Then you can delete the application's files.
Here are some problems you might encounter when running PMPMgr.hta:
- If you get an Automation server can't create object error when starting PMPMgr.hta, then PMPMgr.wsc isn't registered on the computer.
- You must run PMPMgr.hta as a member of the local Administrators group on any computer on which you want to use PMPMgr.hta to manage per-machine printers. PMPMgr.hta will display error messages if you don't have sufficient permissions.
- If you add or delete printers while a user is logged on, the changes won't be visible until the user logs off and someone logs back on or until you restart the computer's print spooler service.
I've found that per-machine printers have solved most of my printer management problems. This script component and HTML application make it even easier to take advantage of per-machine printers on your own network.
Solution Snapshot
PROBLEM:
You need an easy way to manage network printers for all the users of a computer at one shot.
SOLUTION:
The PMPMgr.hta application adds a graphical interface to PMPMgr.wsc, a script component that automates the use of Windows per-machine printer functions.
WHAT YOU NEED:
Windows 2000 or later, the PMPMgr.hta application
DIFFICULTY:
2.5 out of 5
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End of Article
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