Adobe or Cute PDF printer

[Roger Saffle]

Got fog pint working. Right now we only push printers out to PCs. I want to start setting fog to also delete printers. We have Adobe/Cute PDF printers. How do I get fog to [B][COLOR=#ff0000]not[/COLOR][/B] delete this printers since they are software and not real?

[Jarli]

Well we created a batch file to remove any networked printers as we were restructuring them, since the building and our area expanded.

[CODE]@ECHO off
title Printer System Cleanup

::Stopping the Print Spooler
net stop spooler
ECHO.
ECHO Cleaning up the registry a bit, Please Wait …
ECHO.

::Removing Network Printer Registry Keys
ECHO Y | reg delete HKEY_CURRENT_USER\Printers\Connections
ECHO.
ECHO Registry cleanup completed, starting print spooler.
ECHO.

::Starting the Print Spooler
net start spooler
ECHO.
ECHO Printers are on their way, this’ll take a minute or two.
ECHO.

::Forcing a GPUPDATE
ECHO N | gpupdate /force
ECHO.

::Opening up the devices and printers window, and loading the printers to confirm for the end user.

ECHO Printers are now added, please confirm by checking the recently opened window.
control /name Microsoft.DevicesAndPrinters 
ECHO.
ECHO.
ECHO.
ECHO Make sure to set your DEFAULT printer!!
ECHO.
ECHO Done!
ECHO.

[/CODE]

The above could easily be modified to delete “local” printers rather than networked printers.

[Roger Saffle]

Thanks for the info, but I wanted to NOT delete the fake adobe or cute pdf printers.

[Jarli]

Jaymes likes my method of getting rid of those damned networked printer. It was the only way we could get rid of the GPO enforced printers. Even deleting the GPO won’t remove the printers (which is dumb).

So came the batch file to delete the registry files containing the networked printers.

And as a generic microsoft warning, edit the registry with caution, any damage you cause is on you.

[Jarli]

You could push them using a GPO then (assuming you have a domain controller, and are familiar with GPO’s).

These are extremely difficult to remove, and require editing the registry just to get rid of them.

What is deleting the printers, the end users?

Additionally why not use something like NitroPDF or BullZip PDF.

CutePDF (in my experience contains maleware)

Are you using the printer manager within fog? Or are you using another print management client, and each time you image a machine [U]are you[/U] losing the PDF printers.

If it’s the latter, just install the software and update your image.

[Roger Saffle]

We use fog to deploy our printers. If we choose “add and Remove” for the management, it deletes the pdf printers. I assume this is because they were not installed by fog because they are not actually printers. Fog is the one deleting the pdf printers. IM not looking on how to install the pdf printers, i already have that done.

[Jarli]

Hrm,

So the local host, each time at startup is having the PDF printers deleted by the Fog Print Manager?

Is the software (pdf printer) built into your images, or are you selectively installing it?

I have a feeling you’d have to add the PDF printer as a localhost printer (on the Fog Printer Manager) but I haven’t had to do this yet, we use our domain controller as our print manager, and use GPO’s to deploy them out.

[Roger Saffle]

Yes, its part of the image. How does one add a software only printer that does not have an INF?

[Jarli]

Well every printer has to have drivers.

You simply need to find where CutePDF places them.

[SIZE=12px][FONT=Verdana][COLOR=#000000]%Program Files%\Acro Software\CutePDF Writer[/COLOR][/FONT][/SIZE]

[SIZE=12px][FONT=Verdana][COLOR=#000000]Is a likely place where they would be put, additionally you can check the registry, the script I have will give you the path for the printers, check and see if CutePDF stores the drivers somewhere therein. [/COLOR][/FONT][/SIZE]
[SIZE=12px][FONT=Verdana][COLOR=#000000][/COLOR][/FONT][/SIZE]

[Edgardo Peluffo]

did you try for Windows XP and windows 7

network printers
rundll32 printui.dll,PrintUIEntry /dn /q /n\server\printer

or
local printers
rundll32 printui.dll,PrintUIEntry /dl /q /n

for Windows 7 and above

network
[FONT=Courier New][COLOR=#000000]printui.exe /dn /n “\server\printer”[/COLOR][/FONT]

[FONT=Courier New][COLOR=#000000]local[/COLOR][/FONT]
[FONT=Courier New][COLOR=#000000]printui.exe /dl /n “NAME_OF_PRINTER” [/COLOR][/FONT]/q

[url]http://technet.microsoft.com/en-us/library/ee624057.aspx[/url]
[url]http://support.microsoft.com/kb/189105[/url]
[url]http://texhex.blogspot.com/2014/03/deleting-local-or-network-printers-as.html[/url]

[Roger Saffle]

This doent install a printer that can save PDF files. I know how to install a regular printer. I found the inf file for Adobe and CutePDF but they need a special PDF saving port that is only installed via the software. I think I will need to make the software part of our image to get the port, and then use fog to add a printer so that it does not get deleted.

[Roger Saffle]

Just wanted to come back and post the solution…

1. install the CutePDF (or any PDF software printer) as normal
2. note the name of the port that was created by the install
3. grab drives for any PS printer. I used HP Color LaserJet 3800 PS
4. point the fog printer to that INF file and that port.

Boom. PDF printer

[Roger Saffle]

This is not working anymore. Client 0.10.6 . Says :
5/25/2016 10:42 AM Client-Info Client Version: 0.10.6
5/25/2016 10:42 AM Client-Info Client OS: Windows
5/25/2016 10:42 AM Client-Info Server Version: 7845
5/25/2016 10:42 AM Middleware::Response Success
5/25/2016 10:42 AM PrinterManager Adding printers
5/25/2016 10:42 AM PrinterManager HS MC Copier already exists
5/25/2016 10:42 AM Printer Attempting to add printer:
5/25/2016 10:42 AM Printer --> Name = PDF_Printer_10
5/25/2016 10:42 AM Printer --> IP = 10.95.95.100
5/25/2016 10:42 AM Printer --> Port = CPW2:
5/25/2016 10:42 AM Printer --> File = C:\ProgramData\drivers\HP\1215\HPCP1215.INF
5/25/2016 10:42 AM Printer --> Config =
5/25/2016 10:42 AM Printer --> Model = HP Color LaserJet CP1215
5/25/2016 10:42 AM Printer ERROR: Could not add
5/25/2016 10:42 AM Printer ERROR: Generic failure

I am using the same port as I did on the old fog client. Any idea what a Generic Failure is?

[Roger Saffle]

Seems to be the : , if i put in just the port with out the : it makes the port and installs. Of course that doesnt prompt to save. As soon as i put in the correct port name with the : i get the generic failure.

[Joe Schmitt]

@Roger-Saffle Adding : to a port makes it invalid. There’s nothing the client can do about the user entering a bad port.

[Roger Saffle]

Thanks for the feed back. I am 99.5% Positive it worked with the legacy for printer client. I know i pushed out Cute_PDF printers last year with it.

as you can see here, Windows does indeed add the : to its default PDF or XPS port name

Thanks again for the quick reply.

EDIT: It just dawned on me that maybe I need to do the install as a LOCAL printer? Cuz LPT1: has a : also this video shows adding the : after LPT1 http://freeghost.sourceforge.net/videotutorials/printer.swf Ill try tomorrow and post back.

[Roger Saffle]

Well that didnt work. “Lcoal” is not an option. So how would I even add a printer to LPT1: or File: since they both have : in them?

[Quazz]

@Roger-Saffle PDFCreator seems to use a printer port without :, so that might be worth checking out.

[Roger Saffle]

@Quazz do you use pdfcreator? Do you have a link. I tried a couple called PDFcreator. 1 had : in the ports, the other set off my AnitVirus.

[Quazz]

@Roger-Saffle You can get it through Ninite. Creates a port called pdfcmon

I have not tested printer managing any of that though, but it might be worth a shot.