Sharing Printer Access

After you've installed a printer on your network (as we explain in the previous section), the next step is to create a share on the network for that print device. (See Chapter 16 for more details on Windows 2003 network shares.)

Until you share a print device, your users can't see it on the network. To share a print device, do the following:

1. Open the Printers and Faxes folder (Start Printers and Faxes).

2. right-click the print device you want to share and choose Sharing.

3. On the Sharing tab, choose the Share This Printer option and type a descriptive share name (for example, 2ndFlWest).

4. If you want this printer listed in Active Directory, choose the List in the Directory box.

5. Click OK and you're finished!

When you share a printer, it's available to everyone on the network by default. You must specifically restrict groups or users from accessing the printer if that's what you want.

Tip 

If you have MS-DOS-based clients on your network, make sure that your share names for print devices are only eight characters long.