Error when adding a printer from a print server hosted in Azure.

Question

This is the scenario.

• Computer is natively joined to Azure.
• There is no AD domain.
• Classic Windows print server (Server 2022) is hosted in Azure VM, as a Workgroup computer, since there is no domain.
• Not using Universal Print in this instance as UP does not support wide format printers.
• Using the Add Printer wizard on the client, I can browse to and successfully list all the shared printers using the FQDN of the Azure VM.
• Error occurs when selecting and trying to connect to the shared printer.

"Windows couldn't connect to the printer. Check the printer name and try again. If this is a network printer, make sure that the printer is turned on, and that the printer address is correct."

• Client OS - Windows 10/11
• I've seen articles regarding RPC and verified the necessary ports & port ranges are open for RPC over TCP. (Prefer not to use named pipes)
• No blocks by network firewall or Windows firewall.

Hoping someone else in this scenario has found a solution.

***Moved from Windows / Windows 11 / Devices and drivers***

Answer 1

Hello   Pietrorazio，

Thank you for posting in Microsoft Community forum.

Based on the information you have provided, it seems that you are experiencing an issue when trying to connect to a shared printer hosted on a Windows print server in Azure.

To troubleshoot this issue, you can try the following steps:

1. Ensure that the printer is turned on and connected to the network.
2. Verify that the printer name and IP address are correct.
3. Check if the printer driver is installed on the client computer. If not, install the driver and try connecting to the printer again.
4. Ensure that the necessary ports are open on the Azure VM hosting the print server.
5. Check if the client computer is able to resolve the FQDN of the Azure VM hosting the print server. You can try pinging the FQDN from the client computer to verify this.

If the issue persists, you can try enabling logging for the PrintService on the Azure VM hosting the print server to get more information on the error.

Here are the steps to enable logging for the PrintService on the Azure VM:

1. Log in to the Azure VM where the print server is hosted.
2. Open the Event Viewer by pressing the Windows key + X, then selecting "Event Viewer" from the menu.
3. In the Event Viewer, navigate to "Applications and Services Logs" > "Microsoft" > "Windows" > "PrintService".
4. Right-click on "PrintService" and select "Properties".
5. In the Properties window, check the box next to "Enable logging".
6. Set the maximum log size to a value that is appropriate for your needs. This will determine how much disk space is used by the log files.
7. Click "OK" to save the changes.

Once logging is enabled, you can view the logs by navigating to the same location in the Event Viewer and selecting "Operational". You can filter the logs by date, severity, or other criteria to help narrow down the issue.

I hope the information above is helpful.

If you have any question or concern, please feel free to let us know.

Best Regards,

Haijian Shan

Answer 2

Thanks, but unfortunately none of this was helpful. We of course already verified basic connectivity and that's all fine. Additionally, if I change the FQDN to the IP address and try to connect to the printer, I can connect. But then when it tries to download the drivers, I get access denied, thought sharing is for everyone and I am an admin.

Answer 3

Hello  Pietrorazio，

Thank you for your reply.

I'm sorry to hear that the previous suggestions didn't help. Based on the additional information you provided, it seems that the issue may be related to driver installation or permissions. Here are some additional steps you can try:

1. Make sure that the printer driver is compatible with the client operating system. You can check the manufacturer's website for the latest driver version.
2. Try installing the printer driver on the client computer before connecting to the shared printer. You can download the driver from the manufacturer's website and install it using the "Add Printer" wizard.
3. Check the permissions on the printer share. Make sure that the Everyone group has at least "Read" access to the share. You can do this by right-clicking on the printer share on the print server and selecting "Properties" > "Sharing" > "Advanced Sharing" > "Permissions".
4. If the printer driver is already installed on the client computer, try connecting to the printer using the "Add Printer" wizard and selecting the option to use an existing driver.

Also you mentioned that if you change the FQDN to an IP address and try to connect to the printer, you can connect.

It could indicate a DNS resolution issue. Here are some troubleshooting steps you can try:

1. Verify that the DNS server settings on the client computer are correct. You can do this by running the "ipconfig /all" command in a command prompt and checking the "DNS Servers" line.
2. Check if the DNS server is able to resolve the FQDN of the print server. You can do this by running the "nslookup" command in a command prompt and entering the FQDN of the print server. If the DNS server is unable to resolve the FQDN, you may need to add a DNS record for the print server.
3. Check if there are any DNS suffixes configured on the client computer that may be causing the FQDN to be resolved incorrectly. You can do this by running the "ipconfig /all" command in a command prompt and checking the "DNS Suffix Search List" line.
4. Try flushing the DNS cache on the client computer. You can do this by running the "ipconfig /flushdns" command in a command prompt.
5. If none of the above steps work, you can try adding an entry for the FQDN of the print server in the hosts file on the client computer. This will force the client computer to resolve the FQDN to the IP address specified in the hosts file. You can do this by editing the "C:\Windows\System32\drivers\etc\hosts" file and adding a line in the following format:

<IP address> <FQDN>

For example:

192.168.1.10 printserver.domain.com

Best Regards,

Haijian Shan

Answer 4

I've already tried everything you listed, but none of these worked, which is why I'm posting the question.

Mike

Answer 5

hi Pietrorazio，

What is your current patch update status?I found an issue that looks very similar to yours, and the corresponding patch fixes are as follows:

KB5005652—Manage new Point and Print default driver installation behavior (CVE-2021-34481) - Microsoft Support

You can try the mitigation options ：Modify the appropriate registry key or Group Policy

Observe if you can fix your problem.

Best Regards,

Haijian Shan