Share your printer: Network Printing; Local Printing; Print Services

Applies To: Windows Server 2003, Windows Server 2003 R2, Windows Server 2003 with SP1, Windows Server 2003 with SP2

Open Printers and Faxes.
Right-click the printer you want to share, and then click Sharing.
On the Sharing tab, click Share this printer, and then type a name for the shared printer.

If you share the printer with users on different hardware or different operating systems, click Additional Drivers. Click the environment and operating system for the other computers, and then click OK to install the additional drivers.

If you are logged on to a Windows 2000 or Windows Server 2003 family domain, you can make the printer available to other users on the domain by clicking List in the Directory to publish the printer in the Directory.
Click OK, or if you have installed additional drivers, click Close.

Notes

To open Printers and Faxes, click Start, and then click Printers and Faxes.
This feature is not included on computers running the Microsoft® Windows Server® 2003, Web Edition, operating system. For more information, see Overview of Windows Server 2003, Web Edition.
Printers are not shared by default when you install them on computers running Windows XP Professional, but you can choose to share any printer you install on your computer. (On any Windows Server 2003 family product, the printer is shared by default when you add the printer.)
When you publish a printer in Active Directory, other users logged onto the domain will be able to search for the printer based on its location and features such as how many pages it prints per minute and whether color printing is supported.

Information about functional differences

Your server might function differently based on the version and edition of the operating system that is installed, your account permissions, and your menu settings. For more information, see Viewing Help on the Web.