Posted by Devin Anderson
Are you dissatisfied with the performance and features of Windows Print Server 2012? You’re not alone. Although this release introduced a handful of logging updates and some minor new features, such as making printer settings available in roaming user profiles and improving printer accessibility for Windows RT users, it really didn’t solve the longstanding issues that organizations have had with Windows printer servers. Or print servers in general.
Some of those longstanding issues will be all too familiar:
- Single points of failure: The fundamental flaw of print servers is that printing hinges on them unconditionally. This wouldn’t be such a glaring issue were Windows Print Server 2012 and its predecessors not prone to crashes caused by common driver conflicts. To bring printing back online, admins then have to waste time hunting down the rogue driver. Which is why organizations end up spending so much money on print server redundancy.
- Inefficient printer and driver management: Printer and driver management with print servers is, quite frankly, a nightmare. Deploying printers—which should be a straightforward, routine task—often calls for complex protocols like group policy objects (GPOs) and scripts. Even getting default settings to stick across multiple sessions can be a challenge. And centralized management? Forget it.
- Lack of self-service options: Print servers treat end users like obstacles and afterthoughts. Just think: Organizations had to wait until the release of the 2012 Windows printer server to have some printer connections persist for roaming users or for Windows RT users to access printers more easily. That functionality should have been baked in years ago.
The simplest and most cost-effective solution would be to make a clean break and completely eliminate Windows Print Server 2012 – along with any other print servers your organization uses. But conventional wisdom says that’s impossible. How can any viable enterprise printing infrastructure exist without print servers?
PrinterLogic is an enterprise printing solution that can do all the work of the 2012 Windows printer server—plus much, much more—without the onerous infrastructure requirements and the need for tedious management tools like GPOs. Let’s look at how PrinterLogic addresses the three major shortcomings above:
- Unprecedented availability: With PrinterLogic, your end users can continue printing without interruption in the event of a host server failure or WAN outage. Furthermore, PrinterLogic solves the usual causes of errors in Windows Print Server 2012, so your organization experiences incredible printing reliability.
- Effortless centralized management: Unlike print servers, PrinterLogic allows you to manage your organization’s entire print environment from a single pane of glass. On top of that convenience, the administration, deployment and modification of both printers and drivers is as easy as it gets. GPOs and scripts are totally unnecessary, yet you still enjoy Active Directory integration and targeted deployments.
- End-user empowerment: PrinterLogic turns the print server philosophy on its head by making your end users your print environment’s biggest asset. Through its intuitive self-service portal, PrinterLogic enables end users to perform routine installations themselves with a single click. No call to the service desk required.
If you’re frustrated by the limitations of Windows Print Server 2012, it’s time to stop holding out hope that print servers are ever going to improve. With PrinterLogic, you can eliminate your 2012 Windows printer server along with its outdated forerunners—all while introducing greater flexibility, reliability, simplicity and ease of use into your print environment.