How to Print From Remote Desktop to a Local Printer (and Fix a Missing Printer)

Remote desktop printing can often feel like it’s more trouble than it’s worth. Make no mistake: There are a lot of benefits to remote desktop protocol (RDP) environments. A leaner infrastructure, more flexibility and centralized management, to name just a few. At the same time, the advantages of RDP environments can also pose serious problems for RDP printing.

1. Press Windows + R, type mstsc and press Enter to open Remote Desktop Connection.

2. Select Show Options, then open the Local Resources tab.

3. Under Local devices and resources, check Printers.

4. Connect, open your document and press Ctrl + P.

5. Choose your printer. It appears with “(redirected)” after its name.

Windows uses the Remote Desktop Easy Print driver in the session, so you usually don’t need to install the printer driver on the remote server. The driver does need to be installed on your local PC.

Because remote printing relies heavily on the WAN connection, particularly in distributed environments, that makes the WAN a potential point of failure. If the WAN experiences bottlenecking on account of heavy network traffic or goes down completely, RDP performance is hindered or interrupted, resulting in unwanted and unexpected downtime. RDP printing is no different because it’s subject to the same vulnerabilities. As a matter of fact, RDP printing is a major cause of WAN bottlenecking.

But it isn’t just the WAN connection that causes trouble in remote environments. RDP printing often involves printer redirection with a print driver as the preferred deployment method, and the instances of remote desktop printer redirection not working as it should are legion. One of the most common problems is printers not appearing in the session.

To troubleshoot a missing printer, it helps to understand how RDP printer redirection works in Windows Server. In a nutshell, the server first receives a list of local printers that are installed on the remote client. Next, the server creates the print queue within the remote session. When the end user goes to print from the remote client, the server is queried for accompanying printer drivers. All being well, the printer is then redirected.

As you can see, this is a chain of events that depends on a series of successful queries and responses. Any failure at any point along that chain can result in remote desktop printer redirection not working and, among many other errors, the printer not showing.

• On your PC: confirm Printers is checked under Local Resources, and that the printer prints normally outside the remote session.

• On the session host: in Group Policy, go to Computer Configuration > Administrative Templates > Windows Components > Remote Desktop Services > Remote Desktop Session Host > Printer Redirection, and make sure “Do not allow client printer redirection” is not enabled.

• In an RDS collection: go to Server Manager > Remote Desktop Services > Collections > Tasks > Edit Properties > Client Settings, and confirm Windows Printer is selected.

• On Azure Virtual Desktop: the host pool’s printer redirection setting (RDP property redirectprinters) must allow local printers.

• Drivers: if the session falls back to a specific driver instead of Easy Print, install the matching driver on the server.

• Permissions: check the Users and SYSTEM permissions on C:\Windows\System32\spool.

For more fixes, see 5 common printer redirection problems with RDS and printers not showing in RDP on Server 2016 and 2019.

By using a unique centrally managed direct IP printing paradigm, PrinterLogic is able to eliminate many of the variables that are responsible for remote desktop printer redirection not working, including those elusive printers that don’t appear in a session.

In addition to streamlining and simplifying driver management (which avoids those problematic driver installs), PrinterLogic enables you to deploy printers accurately and dynamically without using GPOs or scripts (which can cause a whole host of deployment hassles). It integrates seamlessly with any remote desktop environment, including Citrix and VMware, and can help your organization to eliminate print servers completely and minimize infrastructure even further. It’s the complete, cost-effective RDP printing solution that will transform how you think about enterprise printing in general.