DOS Printing

We need to print from a finance package at a remote site, but we can't figure out how to map printers to the site. Is this because we depend on DOS mappings?

Citrix MetaFrame is best for handling DOS printing. Windows NT Server 4.0, Terminal Server Edition (TSE) with RDP doesn't let you map client printers, but this has changed in Windows 2000 Server Terminal Services. Win2K's RDP client supports local devices, such as printers. However, third-party products can extend the reach of Terminal Services. For example, TSE supports Line Print Remote (LPR) printing, which lets you create a Line Print Daemon (LPD) printer on the workstation and print to it. The Tektronix Windows-based terminal (WBT), for example, supports LPD as a separate process on the device, which means that TSE administrators can set up a print queue that points to the LPD printer on the Tektronix terminal. A user can connect from the Tektronix terminal to the LPR queue and print to the local printer. You can also use NT Workstation to create an LPD printer. NCD's ThinPATH Plus software, which you can download for free, improves the functionality of Terminal Services for both PCs and WBTs. Enhancements include support for local parallel and serial port connectivity, bidirectional data support, and Windows audio input and output capabilities.

MetaFrame and WinFrame 1.8 introduced the printer queue mapping option and the Client Printer Configuration utility on the DOS 32-bit Client. These tools let ICA DOS clients map printers manually in a session and autocreate printers at logon. You can turn the client printer queue mapping option on by clicking Options, Preferences, Allow Printer Queue Mapping on the DOS 32-bit Client, and a client will automatically map its local DOS printers to the server. For example, if a user has a printer connected to the LPT1 port, the server's LPT1 redirects to the client's LPT1. If this option is checked, the system creates printers based on the printer.ini file in the client's Wfclient directory and in conjunction with the Client Printer Configuration utility. If this option is not checked, you can configure a printer by clicking Printers, Add Printer in the Control Panel and selecting the client network and the printer. You can also go to a command prompt and type a Net Use command (e.g., Net Use LPT1: \ClientLPT1:).

The ICA Client Printer Configuration functionality accompanies the Citrix DOS 32-bit Client 4.20.715 and higher and in some OEM client devices. You can use the tool to configure and manage client printer connections. If you check the tool's Allow Printer Queue Mapping box, users can choose Printer/New during a session and create a printer with the help of a wizard. As long as you have loaded the appropriate print driver, users should find this an easy and convenient way to print to their local printer.