Introducing Microsoft Windows Server(TM) 2003

The Windows Server 2003 family provides many enhancements to the print services. The following list provides a general overview of what's new and improved in print services for Windows Server 2003.

• Command-line interface.

  Windows Server 2003 provides new and expanded command-line functionality for many print management tasks , including extension of printer management and configuration, job and queue control, port management, and driver management.

• Print cluster support (Enterprise and Datacenter Editions only).

  This new feature in Windows Server 2003 improves productivity by making it easier to install printer drivers on server clusters. When a printer driver is installed on a virtual cluster, Windows Server 2003 automatically propagates the driver to all nodes of the cluster.

• 64-bit printing support.

  A new feature in Windows Server 2003 is support for 64-bit drivers and applications. Point-and-print provides client-server printing support for interoperability of 32-bit to 64-bit clients and servers.

• Wide range of devices.

  Windows Server 2003 improves connectivity, with built-in support for more than 3800 printer drivers.

• Reliability improvements.

  Windows Server 2003 increases the reliability of print servers by providing kernel-mode driver blocking. This gives administrators fine-grain control of driver installation on the server.

• Active Directory enhancements.

  By publishing printers in the Active Directory directory service, you enable users to quickly locate and connect to printers based on criteria such as location, ability to print color , and the speed of the printer.

• Performance improvements.

  Windows Server 2003 improves performance over Windows 2000 by optimizing file spooling (read/write from disk) for management of higher print volumes . Users benefit by getting their documents faster.

• Plug and Play enhancements.

  Windows Server 2003 improves your productivity by recognizing and adapting to hardware configuration changes automatically.

• Easier printer management.

  You can easily monitor the operations of local and remote printers. With System Monitor, you can control counters for a variety of criteria, such as bytes printed per second, job errors, and total pages printed.

• Increased performance for network printing.

  The standard port monitor, Microsoft's primary method for fast and robust printing to network attached printers, has been updated to provide better performance and richer device status.

  Windows Server 2003 also includes wireless (802.1X, Bluetooth) printing support. In addition, print drivers are downloaded automatically when client computers connect to print servers, a benefit that simplifies printing across a network and saves time.

• Security enhancements.

  Two new group policies have been added to provide tighter security control of the print environment. These include a policy to prevent managed clients from connecting to untrusted print servers and a policy that prevents the print spooler from allowing client connections if the server is not providing print services.

• Broad interoperability.

  Using AppleTalk, LPR/LPD, and IPX protocols, Windows print servers can accept jobs from other client operating systems, such as Macintosh, UNIX, Linux, and Novell. Conversely, Windows-based client computers can print to servers running other operating systems.