VMware Integrated Printing not working

[TomH201110141]

We have a problem on customer side that VIP is not working. We see the error:

2022-01-17 15:05:15.185 [DEBUG] VMware Integrated Printing does not support required logic for default printer management

In the "Network Printers.zip" I see that the wrong default printer gets saved.

What could be wrong? I have never seen this message that VIP completely fails. VIP is an installed option in the Horizon Agent. 

VMware DEM 2103 and Horizon Agent 7.13 on Connection-Server 7.13.

[DEMdev]

Hi @TomH201110141,

The "improved default printer handling" introduced in DEM 2103 depends on corresponding changes in VIP, introduced in Horizon 2103+. I'm not sure whether those were ever backported into 7.13.x.

Could you try adding the following to your Network Printers.INI:

[IncludeIndividualRegistryValues]
HKCU\Software\Microsoft\Windows NT\CurrentVersion\Windows\Device

That'll effectively get it back to the pre-2103 definition, and will hopefully correctly capture the default printer again. (Unless that default printer is one redirected by VIP, of course.)

[TomH201110141]

No luck, the error remains and the wrong default printer get's saved.

What elese can we do? Go back to an older DEM version or try the 2103 agent with 7.13 connection server (I know it's unsupported to mix the versions).

Best regards, Tom

[DEMdev]

Hi @TomH201110141,

Could you test with a different config file (disabling your current one) with the following content:

[IncludeRegistryTrees]
HKCU\Printers
HKCU\Software\Microsoft\Windows NT\CurrentVersion\PrinterPorts
HKCU\Software\Microsoft\Windows NT\CurrentVersion\Devices

[IncludeIndividualRegistryValues]
HKCU\Software\Microsoft\Windows NT\CurrentVersion\Windows\Device
HKCU\Software\Microsoft\Windows NT\CurrentVersion\Windows\UserSelectedDefault

That's the content from the "Printers - Mapped network printers only" Windows Common Setting prior to DEM 2103. That way, you don't trigger any of the default-printer-related code changes that we added in 2103 (and that depend on corresponding changes in VIP 2103.) Effectively, that's the same as downgrading the DEM agent (when it comes to default printer handling, that is.)

[TomH201110141]

Hi @DEMdev 

OMG ... I thought I still replied already! What I wanted to say ...

I tried your "Windows Common Setting prior to DEM 2103" but without success. The correct printer was saved but the restore did not work. It seems to me, that the restore got "hijacked" by VIP. I think it has something to do with this KB 78496.

What I found out is that VIP and the "Windows default printer management" itself causes all the trouble.

My solution: I have disabled VIP via DEM ADMX-based Settings ("Do not redirect client printer(s)") AND turned off "Windows default printer management" with a registry value:

[HKEY_CURRENT_USER\Software\Microsoft\Windows NT\CurrentVersion\Windows]
"LegacyDefaultPrinterMode"=dword:00000001

What I was wondering, that I could not use DEM ADMX-based settings. Why is it not supported?

At the end we can not use VIP with Horizon 7.13 (still to be discussed) but the default printer management works by hard turning off the Windows default printer management.

The customers needs to get rid of the Linked-Clone Pools first by making the step to Instant-Clone Pools. After that we can jump to Horizon 2111 or higher and then I'm sure we can use VIP.

[DEMdev]

Hi @TomH201110141,

Thank you for reporting your findings; good to know that Windows default printer management can throw a spanner in the works.

As for why that ADMX-based setting is not supported, that's because it's not actually in a policy key:

DEM ADMX-based settings only support "real" policy settings, and this one lives in HKCU\Software\Microsoft\Windows NT\CurrentVersion\Windows rather than HKCU\Software\Policies\..., but it looks like you already knew that, given the registry snippet you posted 🙂