The virtual printing feature lets end users use local or network printers from a remote desktop without requiring that additional print drivers be installed in the remote desktop. For each printer available through this feature, you can set preferences for data compression, print quality, double-sided printing, color, and so on.

After a printer is added on the local computer, Horizon Client adds that printer to the list of available printers on the remote desktop. No further configuration is required. Users who have administrator privileges can still install printer drivers on the remote desktop without creating a conflict with the virtual printer component.

Important: This feature is not available for the following types of printers:
  • USB printers that are using the USB redirection feature to connect to a virtual USB port in the remote desktop

    You must disconnect the USB printer from the remote desktop in order to use the virtual printing feature with it.

  • The Windows feature for printing to a file

    Selecting the Print to file check box in a Print dialog box does not work. Using a printer driver that creates a file does work. For example, you can use a PDF writer to print to a PDF file.

This procedure is written for a remote desktop that has a Windows 7 or Windows 8.x (Desktop) operating system. The procedure is similar but not exactly the same for Windows Server 2008 and Windows Server 2012.

Prerequisites

Verify that the Virtual Printing component of the agent is installed on the remote desktop. In the remote desktop file system, verify that the following folder exists: C:\Program Files\Common Files\ThinPrint.

To use virtual printing, the View administrator must have enabled the virtual printing feature for the remote desktop. This task includes enabling the Virtual Printing setup option in the agent installer, and can include setting policies regarding virtual printing behavior. For more information, see the View Administration document if you are using Connection Server and View Agent 5.x or an earlier version. See Setting Up Desktop and Application Pools in View if you are using Horizon 6 or later.

Procedure

  1. In the Windows 7 or Windows 8.x remote desktop, click Start > Devices and Printers.
  2. In the Devices and Printers window, right-click the default printer, select Printer Properties from the context menu, and select the printer.
    Virtual printers appear as <printer_name> in single-user virtual machine desktops and as <printer_name>(s<session_ID>) in session-based desktops on RDS hosts if View Agent 6.2 or later, or Horizon Agent 7.0 or later, is installed. If View Agent 6.1 or earlier is installed in the remote desktop, virtual printers appear as <printer_name>#:<number>.
  3. In the Printer Properties window, click the Device Setup tab and specify which settings to use.
  4. On the General tab, click Preferences and specify which settings to use.
  5. In the Printing Preferences dialog box, select the different tabs and specify which settings to use.
    For the Page Adjustment advanced setting, VMware recommends that you retain the default settings.
  6. Click OK.
  7. To use custom paper forms, define the forms on the client.
    1. Go to Control Panel > Hardware and Sound > Devices and Printers.
    2. Select the printer and click Print Server Properties at the top of the screen.
    3. On the Forms tab, specify the settings and click Save Form.
    This form will now be available in the remote desktop.