Clustered print server - relocate spool directory on shared storage

Question

I am trying to mantain HA for our print servers.
I have a cluster with two nodes and shared storage (C:\ClusterStorage on both nodes).
I'd like to relocate C:\Windows\System32\Spool\Printers from both nodes to C:\ClusterStorage\Spool.
But I cannot do that because as administrator I am unable to create folder in C:\ClusterStorage though permissions look permissive.

C:\ClusterStorage>cacls c:\clusterstorage

c:\ClusterStorage NT SERVICE\ClusSvc:F
                  BUILTIN\Administrators:(special access:)
                                         DELETE
                                         READ_CONTROL
                                         SYNCHRONIZE
                                         FILE_GENERIC_WRITE
                                         FILE_WRITE_DATA
                                         FILE_APPEND_DATA
                                         FILE_WRITE_EA
                                         FILE_WRITE_ATTRIBUTES

                  Everyone:R


C:\ClusterStorage>mkdir spool
Access is denied.

C:\ClusterStorage>

Answer 1

VolumeX was missing "somehow".
I re-created clustered storage and I am able to create a file/dir under C:\ClusterStorage\Volume1.

BTW, set-up-clustered-print-server+ applies to Windows Server 2003.
It is not applicable for Windows Server 2016 Print Server at all.

What is the concept of Print Server setup in Server 2012 and above?
Is this it? You just install Print Server feature on each node and clustered service Print Spooler on cluster?
Then you install drivers and printers on each node and that's it?

Answer 2

Hello @Marian Hercek ,

1.Please try the following method to check if it works for you: https://social.technet.microsoft.com/Forums/en-US/2a19125d-ae7e-49d9-8f5c-956e0836db0a/not-able-to-create-folder-inside-cclusterstorage?forum=winserverpowershell

Your ClusterStorage folder should have a "VolumeX" folder within it, if you've configured the cluster and the cluster disks correctly.
You cannot create a folder directly under C:\ClusterStorage, it needs to be created under C:\ClusterStorage\VolumeX\<CreatedFolder>.
As described in here https://www.veeam.com/kb2194
For the VolumeX (for example: Volume1) to be created, you need to add a Cluster Shared Volume, see:
https://learn.microsoft.com/en-us/windows-server/failover-clustering/failover-cluster-csvs#add-a-disk-to-csv-on-a-failover-cluster

2.Unable to start Cluster Service - Event ID 5123 ClusterStorage Access is denied: https://social.technet.microsoft.com/Forums/windowsserver/en-US/3baa96d6-8047-4479-b4cf-4f75bfa7c26b/unable-to-start-cluster-service-event-id-5123-clusterstorage-access-is-denied?forum=winserverClustering

3.C:\Windows\System32\spool\PRINTERS folder, security tab. I gave the "Everyone" group permission to read & execute, list folder contents, read, and write.
https://social.technet.microsoft.com/Forums/azure/en-US/56f102d6-e53a-42a9-9855-1e01efeb4cd2/printer-spooler-access-denied-on-local-printers?forum=winserveressentials

4.Unable to move Print Spooler Folder, Server 2008R2 Standard: https://social.technet.microsoft.com/Forums/en-US/fe55e47f-db8c-41b0-a9fc-c51edbd417c2/unable-to-move-print-spooler-folder-server-2008r2-standard?forum=winserverprint
Change the spool folder location: https://learn.microsoft.com/en-us/previous-versions/windows/it-pro/windows-server-2003/cc736979(v=ws.10)?redirectedfrom=MSDN

5.How to set up a clustered print server: https://learn.microsoft.com/en-us/troubleshoot/windows-server/high-availability/set-up-clustered-print-server

Best regards,
Leila

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Answer 3

Hello @Marian Hercek ,

Thanks for your feedback.

1.Windows Server 2012 removes the cluster-aware print spooler and instead highly available print services are now achieved through a VM running on Hyper-V and within the VM the print services run.
In contrast to previous versions of Windows Server, Windows Server 2012 defines a highly available print server as a Hyper-V virtual machine running on a node in a cluster. A single virtual machine with the Print Server role installed can then be migrated from one node in the Hyper-V cluster to the other using either manual or automatic methods. In Windows Server 2012, the print spooler service is no longer a clustered resource and instead the entire virtual machine is migrated from one Hyper-V node to the other.

Before attempting to install and configure a highly available Print Server, install and configure Hyper-V and Failover Clustering on at least two physical servers. Once Hyper-V and Failover Clustering have been installed on both servers, create a cluster and make sure the virtual machines are stored on a Cluster Shared Volume. Once the initial setup of Hyper-V and Failover Clustering is complete, install a Windows Server 2012 virtual machine and configure the virtual machine for failover.

Cluster printing in Windows Server 2012 and above: https://www.itprotoday.com/windows-78/cluster-printing-windows-server-2012-and-above
High Availability Printing Overview: https://learn.microsoft.com/en-us/previous-versions/windows/it-pro/windows-server-2012-R2-and-2012/jj556311(v=ws.11)?redirectedfrom=MSDN
Install and Configure High Availability Printing: https://learn.microsoft.com/en-us/previous-versions/windows/it-pro/windows-server-2012-r2-and-2012/jj556313(v=ws.11)

2.Since Microsoft Windows 2012, Microsoft have reconfigured the way in which you can manage High Availability with print services. They introduced the ability to use Hyper-V and failover clustering to make your print server a highly available virtual machine.
Microsoft Failover Cluster Manager (MSFCM) on Windows server 2012/2016:
https://www.papercut.com/support/resources/manuals/ng-mf/common/topics/cluster-server-2012-2016.html
Installing the Failover Cluster Feature in Windows Server 2016: https://www.vembu.com/blog/installing-the-failover-cluster-feature-in-windows-server-2016/