Prevent Users frm Network printer

[koya]

How can I Prevents users using network printer?

 

[unclerico]

Right-click the printer you are referring to...select Properties...select the Security tab...add or remove the individual/group to/from the list and give them print, manage printers, or manage documents permissions.

 

[koya]

Selecting a printer properties from a PC will change permission for those log-in to PC and using the printer.

My printer is directly connected to network and I wish I will assign permission through policy.

Also we don't have a print Server. All printers are HP printers, some a color & some are B/W. Users are misusing the color printer and I wanted to block them.

 

[fs483]

Correct me if I'm wrong but if the printer isn't shared from the server then applying permissions won't work. I have many HP printers using JetDirect printservers. If I install this printer on the server and share it from the server then I can control the permissions. However nothing prevents the clients from connecting directly to the printer through it's IP address.

 

[kmcferrin]

akwong is correct. If you set up a queue for the printer on a print server then you can can use normal Windows security to set permissions on the queue. If you're printing directly to the printer from the workstation without a print server queue, you won't have a way to restrict access. Even with the server queue, you could still manually install a port on a client PC that points to that network printer and then people can use it to circumvent the security on the queue. Your best bet is to go with a print server and hope that your users aren't technically savvy enough to go the other route.

Alternatively, there may be a setting in the printer's network interface that you can use to restrict hosts that print to the printer. You could conceivably restrict printing by password or IP, but if something like that exists it would be largely dependent on the vendor of the hardware. I just checked my LaserJet 2300 and my Lexmark T420 and neither appears to have such an option.

 

[fs483]

Luckly none of my users are that savvy yet ! I used to share the HP printers from the server and later on discovered that they would intermittently loose connection. I have since installed the drivers from the CD on each workstation printing directly to the printer which caused the lost of restrictions... It's still better than getting calls all day saying the printer is "not ready"...

 

[koya]

Thanks everybody,

I will go with your advice.
Basically we don't have print server.
Printers are dirctly connected to the network & we configur the printer using IP address.
If any one of you have somemore suggestion, pls get back to me.

Thanks & Regards,

 

[djeremyperkins]

If you want to get elaborate, you could seperate the printers with VLANS and set up the routing to only allow traffic from print servers. As a plus, you might see performance boost from the segmentation of the traffic.

Your mileage may vary and other standard disclaimers.