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Auto installed printers in XP

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8 replies

by pqw

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When I install a network printer on an XP machine, I end up with the printer I installed, plus an identical printer with the label of "Auto...." Can anyone explain what this auto installed printer is all about? The only reference to this I could find on Microsoft's Knowledge Base was in reference to running Citrix, which I am not. Thanks for any info.

8 replies

by b-more

XP automatic installs the print driver on all the computers in the segment and labels it auto and the printer type

by dprang

We have problem with sharing a DYMO for labels printing.
The automatically created DYMO printer objects interfere and confuse our users.

Is there a way to turn this feature off?

We are very concerned with the number of auto printers in Citrix. Our users have to go through many printers until they can find the correct one and print

HELP PLEASE

by kim sj

It seems to me that if there is a permanent printer of the same name, XP ought to be clever enough not to duplicate it. Or perhaps it is supposed to work that way, but for some reason it's not detecting them as the same printer?

Anyway, surely there's a way to completetly turn off auto-adding printers (which is what most of us with anything larger than a tiny home network would want). Please, please, please, could someone who knows about these things put us all out of our misery!

by teng.stteng

How do you force Windows XP OS to add an 'auto [shared printer name] on [local computer name]?

Does it matter if it is Windows XP Home vs. Windows XP Pro?

Does it matter if my printer is a HP Officejet G85 (not newest HP model)?

Please provide me with the exact instructions.

Thanks
stteng

by deepsand

1) XP Home or XP Pro?

2) Is the printer attached to the network, or directly to a computer?

3) If attached to a computer, is it a server?

4) If attached to computer, is printer Plug-and-Play compatible? If so, was it attached via USB?

5) How was sharing implemented?

6) Does the printer appear multiple times on all machines on the network?

7) What is the make/model of the printer in question?

by vcent_lim

Actually I'm not sure why this happened as previously it didn't happen. But the printers that appeared automatically are all shared printers in the network. It just populate by itself.

One thing I notice is that I install a Fuji Xerox printer before. The installation is able to detect the printers in the network. Not sure whether this is the reason as the place I install the printer is in my client place.

by hiluke1

Hi, I just recently found that i have the same issue as this, and was wondering if anyone could shed some light for me please.

I have a few computers 2 with windows xp pro and one with xp home. I have a printer connected to one of the xp pro computers, and have shared it on the network. In the other 2 xp computers (both pro and home) the printer would appear as 'auto Canon on '.

Recently i was deleting some old printers from my printers folder on the xp pro computer, and i accidentally deleted the 'auto Canon on ' too. This is the computer not directly connected to the printer. Since deleting the 'auto' printer, it has not come back, and i don't know how to get it back.

If i change the computer name of the computer the printer is directly connected to, the printer will then appear 'auto' in the other computers, but if i try to change the computer name back to the original, it will not work.

This is only an issue on the computer where i deleted the 'auto' printer. The other computers on the network show 'auto' regardless of the computer name.

I can manually add the printer to the computer, but i would like to have it automatic. Is there some registry entry putting a block on discovering the 'auto' printer now that i have deleted it, or is there another thing that i can do to fix the problem.

Thanks in advance.

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