May 19, 2009

Migrate Printers From Windows 2003 to Windows 2008 Server

At my day job we are currently in the mist of migrating our Windows 2003 environment slowly into a Windows 2008 environment. One of the first places we are moving to 2008 is on our file and print servers in the field. Lucky me, I got to configure the first Windows 2008 file and print server in one of our nearby remote offices!

One of the first things I needed to do after installing the server, and powering it on was to migrate all of the printers from the old 2003 server in that office over to the new 2008 server that was replacing it. In Windows 200 and Windows 2003 I would have used the Printmig utility, but that has gone by the wayside in 2008. Now, it is even easier to migrate printers!

So how about it? Do you want to know how to do it? Easy!

  1. Click on Server Manager
  2. Scroll down to Roles Summary and click on Add Roles
  3. Check the box for Print Services and follow the wizard to install
  4. After it is installed, Click Start > Administrative Tools > Print Management
  5. Expand the tree, then right click on Print Servers and click on Add/Remove Servers
  6. Enter the name of the print server you want to migrate the printers off of and select Add to List, then click Apply
  7. Right Click on that Printer in the tree and select Export Printers to a File and save that file on your desktop
  8. After the export is complete, right click on your new server in the tree
  9. Select Import Printer from a File, and select the export from your desktop
  10. Follow the wizard and you are done!
It couldn't be more easy! Now the old Printmig was similar to that, but this feature is built right in! No downloading, no fussing! Just a simple export, import and boom! DONE!

One thing you have to note though is that, according to Technet, you cannot migrate printers from 2000 servers or older. For that you will have to use Printmig to a Windows 2003 server first, then on over to a Windows 2008 server.

How many of you have migrations like this coming up? How many of you have already migrated? Let us know in the comments!

Technorati Tags: , , , , ,




Twitter Delicious Facebook Digg Stumbleupon Favorites More

 
Design by Free WordPress Themes | Bloggerized by Lasantha - Premium Blogger Themes | stopping spam