12.1. Print Services

In Windows Server 2008, Microsoft has enabled the print administrator to set down policy and procedures for using printers. This is achieved with the Print Services subsystem. Print Services and its interface, the Print Management console, were given to us in Windows Server 2003, so it's a robust and well-oiled product of the last generation. It is now even better tuned to the management of printers over wide area networks, as well as printers that reside at branch offices and remote locations. (The Print Management console is shown later in the chapter in Figure 12-4.)

The Print Management console gives you a central portal that encapsulates all the printers connected to all the print servers on your network, no matter how remote. You can use the console to manage printer errors, and assist users in connecting to printers closest to them or at remote locations. The console also enables you to discover and install printers on local branch office subnets, and can even execute installation scripts you provide.