networked NEC P30 dot matrix printer

[TauTau]

Hi,

I just installed 7 and am trying to get all my stuff up and running. One thing still missing, is a NEC P30 that's connected to my 2003 Server and shared. Windows Update won't find any drivers, how could I go about to use that printer (though it's just an old dot matrix printer, I badly need it )

Lars

 

[ccatlett1984]

try installing the windows xp drivers for it manually.

 

[TauTau]

since the XP drivers are integrated, any idea on how to access those? And yet I didn't see a way to manually select a driver with a network printer install

 

[ccatlett1984]

if you can manually install a local printer with the correct drivers, then those will be used when any printer of the model is mapped, local or not. Unless the print server is set to force the download of drivers from it.

 

[TauTau]

ok, sounds good... though I still have no idea how to access the XP drivers since those are buried somewhere within XP (there's no downloadable install files)

 

[ccatlett1984]

Give this a try, its a tool MS wrote for moving print queue's from one print server to another, but it also works for workstations. It should grab the print driver files that win7 needs.

http://download.microsoft.com/download/4/5/2/452d431e-5a5c-43bd-b398-6fc27208e001/printmig.exe


run this on another computer that can still print to the printer, not on your print server.

 

[TauTau]

So, played around a bit again... I tried the migration tool on a XP machine, which made me a huge .cab file (it takes all printers and queues). I then restored that on the W7 machine without errors.
Though the driver is still not available to me when I manually install a local printer. I unpacked the .cab file, but there is no .inf file in it which I would need.
However, I found out, that when I go through manual installation, and go Windows Update there, I get a driver for NEC Pinwriter 136 width, which could work also. But, when I install a networked printer, I don't get the option to manually chose a driver via manufacturer, I only can add from disk (which I don't have again). quite a bit stuck there

 

[TauTau]

So, if anyone again searches for this, here is the solution: I installed a new local printer, creating a local port, pointing to \\server\printer. This gave me the option to chose the builtin "NEC pinwriter 136", which works fine with this printer.

 

[ccatlett1984]

glad you got it figured out finally.

Do you print out something on a pre-printed form? My other suggestion was going to be to try a "generic text-only driver"

 

[TauTau]

I have a somewhat creative use of the dot matrix printer... I'm a tattoo artist, and usually to transfer the designs onto the body, you use a special carbon paper and trace the design with it, and then apply that trace to the body with a fluid.
To save me from that cumbersome work, I scan the line-art, and then print it with that carbon paper So no forms, no text... but the driver used now works fine with graphics.