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PRINTER MIGRATOR - KNOWLEDGE BASE
* How to run PPPClient.exe with elevated privileges
* Command line parameters for PPPClient
* The Printer Watcher does not recognize newly installed printers on XP
* PPPClient stalls the login script or batch file
* Distribute PPPro Client Package fails to copy PPPClient.exe
* How to migrate printers to a Microsoft Cluster
* How to rename printers during the migration
* Newly installed AD printers reappear after deleting them
* Can I migrate iPrint profile settings? Yes!
Issue: How to run PPPClient.exe with elevated privileges.
Here are the examples of using the p= and u= switch to run pppclient.exe
with elevated rights:
\\server\share\ppp\pppclient.exe u=example.domain.com\username
p=password
J:\ppp\pppclient.exe u=example.domain.com\username p=password
* Note: PPPClient.exe is still ran in the users space but when attempting operations that require elevated privileges it runs those procedures with the user specified with the u= switch.
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Issue: Command Line Parameters for PPPClient
Descripton: All command line parameters for PPPClient are preceded by a single space on the command line, and do not use a "/" or other delimiter.If a parameter value includes spaces, the entire value should be enclosed in double quotes.Unless specified, multiple parameters can be used simultaneously, separated by a single space.An example that meets all these requirements is "y:\ppp\pppclient.exe nominimize path="c:\ppp temp".
Solution:
| NOMINIMIZE |
Displays log window on client workstation. This is most useful for troubleshooting, and overrides the global setting in PPPAdmin, Client Options. |
| NOWATCHER |
Forces PPPClient to exit instead of entering Printer Watcher mode after initial configuration of printers. This is used when you don't want PPPClient to continue running on the client machine, watching for printer installs. |
| u=example.domain.com\username p=password |
Use the u= and p= to specify the domain user that you want PPPClient.exe to use instead of the user that runs PPPClient.exe. (Elevated privileges) |
| HideOnInvalidPath |
Causes the PPPClient.exe to remain hidden even if it is unable to connect to the configuration file to receive instruction to run open or hidden. The downside to using this option is you don't know the pppclient.exe is not able to find the config file in the <ppp_install_dir>/mem folder. The good side of it is users will never see the pppclient log window. Usually this parameter is used with the WorkingDirectory parameter so that if the server is down that is holding the ppp configuration database the PPPClient.exe will remain running silent (although doing no work) until the next time the user logs in and the server is back up. |
| WORKINGDIRECTORY= |
Followed by a path, optionally enclosed in double quotes. This parameter is used to tell PPPClient where to look for the PPP configuration files. By default, PPPClient looks in its own directory, but if you want to run PPPClient from a local directory, for example, and still keep the configuration files in one location on the server, you could use a command like this:
c:\ppp\pppclient.exe WORKINGDIRECTORY="y:\apps\ppp" |
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Issue: The Printer Watcher does not recognize newly installed printers on XP.
Descripton: The Printer Watcher waits for a Windows system event that is issued when printers are installed. It relies on a Windows subsystem that issues these system events for other applications to read. In XP, this subsystem is part of the 'Terminal Services' service, (started by default) and if this service is stopped, the Printer Watcher won't receive these printer install events.
Solution:
1. Enable the Terminal Services service in Windows.
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Issue: PPPClient stalls the login script or batch file
Description: Starting with version 6, PPPClient has a feature named Printer Watcher. After configuring all installed printers, PPPClient slips into the background and waits for more printers to be installed in order to configure them.Because of this, PPPClient doesn't exit until the user logs out or shuts down.
Solution:
1. MICROSOFT: If starting PPPClient from a batch file (.com or .bat), simply putting in the path and filename to PPPClient will make the batch file to wait for the program to finish.Use the Start command, and the batch file will continue without waiting for the program to finish. Example: start y:\pppclient.exe.
2. NOVELL: If starting PPPClient from a login script, use the @ symbol instead of the # symbol.@ will allow the script to continue, while # will wait for PPPClient to exit, which won't happen.See Novell TID 2905212 for more information.
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Issue: Distribute PPPro Client Package fails to copy PPPClient.exe
Description: This tool performs a basic file copy to the remote location.As such, if the pppclient.exe file is in use, or running on client computers from that location, the file may not be overwritten.Unless you are upgrading your PPPClient.exe file, this is not a problem, since the PPPClient.exe file is not altered when making changes to printer configurations.If you are upgrading or updating your software, PPPClient.exe will need to be overwritten.
Solution:
1. Peform the distribution after hours when no end-users are logged in or using the PPPClient.exe file.
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Issue: How to migrate printers to a Microsoft cluster
Description: When migrating printers from eDirectory to a Microsoft Cluster there doesn't seem to be a server object in Active Directory for the "virtual server" that I want as the target server.
Solution:
First we need to make the cluster servers (virtual server objects) show up in Active Directory so we can select them in the Printer Migrator application as a target server.
* On the Windows server open "Cluster Administrator" (start - Administrative Tools - Cluster Administrator)
* Select the Cluster that you are wanting to migrate printers to
* Select the "Resources" folder and select the appropriate "group" folder containing the virtual server you want to see in Active Directory.
* In the right pane right click on "Network Name" and select properties
* Select the "Parameters" tab
* Check the "Enable Kerberos Authentication" option (resource must be offline to enable). This option may not be available when running "Cluster Administrator" from a Windows 2000 desktop. Try remoting into the cluster name and accessing the "Cluster Administrator" from the cluster server.
Now your virtual server object will show up in Active Directory (by default it will populate into the "Computers" container). Open Printer Migrator and simply select any printer from eDirectory and the target virtual server (cluster server) and the printers will be copied to the virtual server. By migrating the printers to the virtual server object the printers will failover with the cluster resources because the printers have been installed to the virtual server and not the actual physical server.
NOTE: The migrated printers will still be viewed in Active Directory under the current server node that is hosting the resource (this is standard Windows behavior).
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Issue: How do I rename printers during the migration?
Description: Customer is using a new naming standard for the printers in Active Directory and want to rename the Novell printers as they are migrated.
Solution:
OPTION #1 - In the Printer Migrator Administrator, stop the migration queue by clicking the "STOP" button (located just below the NDS browsing tree to the left). Select the printers you want migrated, then select the target AD server and click the red arrow button. The migration queue will now list all the printers in the migration queue. Simply right click the printer and select change printer name and enter the new name for the printer to be created with in Active Directory. Click the START button and the printers will be migrated with the new printer name. When PPPClient.exe runs to remap the end user printers the PPPClient.exe will install the new AD printer with the new name.
Option #2 - In Admin_Options select the "Use the short DNS name instead of the Novell name as the Windows printer name" to have Migrator use the resolved DNS name (up to the first "." of the DNS name) for the Active Directory printer name. For instance, if the ipaddress of the printer in eDir is 192.168.3.44 then Printer Migrator will do a reverse DNS lookup on that IP address and it will return. Printer1.ppp.printerpropertiespro.com. Printer Migrator will use up to the first "." for the printer name, Printer1. This is helpful if you have a couple hundred printers and you want to use a DNS file to name the printers in AD.
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Issue: Newly installed AD printers reappear after being deleted?
Description: Customer uses PPPClient.exe to migrate the end users printers to AD printers but later on when deleting any of the AD printers the AD printers reappear after a reboot.
Solution:
PPPClient.exe by default installs "Global Printers" or "Workstation Printers" because that is the type of printer NDPS printers are, available for all users. These printers make a registry setting so that every user that logs in gets the new printer installed (or if you reset spooler it will recreate them). To delete this type of Windows printer you have to use the printui tool from a command line:
rundll32 PrintUI,PrintUIEntry -gd /c\\server\name
rundll32 PrintUI,PrintUIEntry /? Gives you all the info for using PrintUI
(everything is case sensitive)
Or simply delete the printer entries from
HKEY_LOCAL_MACHINE\SYSTEM\ControlSet001\Control\Print\Connections
I know it is a pain but that is how Windows behaves with workstation printers. You can change pppclient.exe so it will install "user printers" in the Client_Options, settings, Migrate tab at the bottom. Then it will only install the Windows AD printer for that user only (subsequent users will not get the printer installed because the first user to migrate the printer will delete the NDPS printer) and the user can delete it.
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Issue: Can I migrate iPrint Profile settings? Yes!
Description: Customer spent endless hours creating iPrint Profiles so that the duplex option and tray settings would be set on iPrint printers when they were installed to the end user. Now they are migrating to Active Directory and don't want to have to go through all the printers and set those settings again. Oh please make it do it automagically like the rest of the printer migration!
Solution:
In PPPAdmin - Migrator, select the Admin Options menu and check the "Require Novell Printers to be installed locally to copy printer preferences from when creating the AD printer" option.
Now install the iPrint printers to the same machine that is running the Printer Migrator.
Migrate the printers by selecting the source iPrint printer and target AD server
The AD printers will be created with the settings from the iPrint profile and the PPPClient.exe will migrate the old iPrint printers to the new AD printers with the same settings that the iPrint Profile had.
Is that cool or what? We think so.
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