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Ryan H
Asked: 2011-08-12 08:39:43 +0800 CST

Select appropriate network printer for Remote Desktop based on Thin Client location

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I'm setting up my organization's first Terminal Server / Remote Desktop Session Host (RDSH) for Lab use. We are a college, and I am wanting to use this server (or more servers configured similarly in a farm) to power other labs on campus as well. Each of those labs will have its own shared printer.

Ideally, the thin clients would not need to have any knowledge of the printer that is in the area, as they won't be needing to print in the first place. Because the thin clients are re purposed hardware, we will be installing windows 7 on them, joining them to the domain, and using Group Policy to lock them down to minimal thin clients.

Is there some way that I can use Group Policy or Logon Scripts to have the thin client's location (Organizational Unit or something) determine which printer installed on the Server should be allowed/default to a user connecting from a given thin client?

A friend of mine in a similar situation (but unable to add the thin clients to active directory) was only able to accomplish this by having different terminal servers. In the case that we couldn't join the thin clients to the domain, is there any way that we can determine access / default printer appropriately?

thin-client remote-desktop-services windows-server-2008-r2 shared-printers

3 Answers

  1. Do you have separate subnets for each of these labs? I would probably set up different profiles to be used depending on the different labs and dole the values out via DHCP. I've done similar at my employer except that it's separated by floors. Each floor has its own subnet, which is setup to a scope in DHCP. DHCP option 162 differs for each scope.

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  2. In order to programatically determine the location of a machine as it is logging in through scripting, two possible considerations:

    1. A naming schema which identifies the location (e.g. computer name = building-room-system)
    2. Creating AD containers that identify/group location and placing the systems into them accordingly

    Scripting can then key off of the information and then assist in making adjustments as part of the login process.

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  3. I've tried the above method. The instructions are are well outlined here... http://www.petri.co.il/setting-up-logon-script-through-gpo-windows-server-2008.htm

    Obviously an ugly method that mentioned is basically having a double login. Login to the local system which already has local printers setup (or can easily be setup) and use the re-direction capabilities of Windows so that you can access locally available printers via RDP from the terminal server, http://technet.microsoft.com/en-us/library/bb457106.aspx

    If you use system imaging/remote package management of the thin clients than obviously it won't be too tedious?

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