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Printer sharing allows multiple users, or
clients, to access a printer that is directly connected to a single
computer, the print server. Sharing resources, like printers, was one of
the reasons why networks were developed. A group of users sharing a
single printer is far more economical than buying each user an
individual printer.
For print sharing to work, special software must be installed and configured on the print server. Then, the clients must be configured to be able to access the printer located on the print server. While third-party software applications are available, most personal computer operating systems have printer-sharing capability built-in. In Windows, this option is called File and Print Sharing. While Windows 2000 installs this component automatically, it is easily added to the rest of the Windows operating systems. To install File and Print Sharing or to verify that it is installed on a Windows 9x computer, right-click on My Network Places (Windows ME) or Network Neighborhood (Windows 95/98), and choose Properties. On the screen that displays, the user can see if File and Printer Sharing for Microsoft Networks is installed. If it is not installed and selected, the user can easily do so by clicking File and print sharing…. Remember, the printer must be installed and configured on the print server before printer sharing will work. After verifying that the printer sharing software is installed, the server must know which printer it is going to share. In the Printers folder, right-click on the printer to share, choose Properties, and select the Sharing tab. Choose the option to share the printer and assign it a unique name. Finally, each client computer that will access the printer must have the correct printer drivers installed. Begin the Add a Printer wizard to find and install the shared printer. If configured properly, the client will automatically download the driver information from server.
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