Hi,

I read that I could also write to WMI, so I wanted to try that. In the documentation  and in WBEMTEST I can see a method AddPrinterConnection in the Win32_Printer class, but when I use   "gwmi -class Win32_Printer | gm"    I can't see this method anywhere. Isn't this possible with Powershell?

I don't know if there's an easier way to do this... I can't test it right now, so I'm not 100% sure it will work.

PSH>$unc_path_printer="\\myServer\printer1"
PSH>$obj=new-object system.management.managementclass("win32_printer")
PSH>$obj.psbase.invokemethod("addprinterconnection",$unc_path_printer)

I just realized that this won't help you if you're trying to do this remotely. I'll look into it...

I don't have the environment currently to test any of this, but maybe you do. I'm not sure how to invoke this remotely... easily anyways. Are you wanting to do this remotely? What do you have on the remote end? You have PowerShell v1? winrm?

PowerShell v2 has a new cmdlet named invoke-wmimethod which may make something like this work:
invoke-wmimethod -computer server -path win32_printer -name create -argumentlist "addprinterconnection","\\myServer\printer1"

Of course, v2 is just currently a preview release, and not intended for production environments.

Have you tried using the [WMIClass] accelerator

$p = [WMIClass]"\\.\root\cimv2:Win32_Printer"

$p | get-member

You will see the AddprinerConnection method then

If you want to create something via WMI you have to create an empty instance of the object & then populate it.  Get-WMIObject only really works with existing WMI objects

 

Thanks Richard!

Funny, this doesn't work also:
PSH>$gwmi=gwmi win32_printer
PSH>$gwmi|gm -force add*
PSH>

(-force because I have v2)

(I tried psbase, and the others also.)

The trick with the accelerator works. Thank you Richard and Marco!

Locally, there 's no problem: I just did $p.addprinterconnection(\\servername\printername) and the printer was added.

Before adding the printer to a remote computer, or a series of them, I want to know if the printer is already known. Unfortunately, I only get a "Microsoft XPS document writer", allthough on my local comp, the same line returns all printers, local and network:  gwmi -cl win32_printer. On the remote PC's, There are usually 3 to 5 printers installed and yet I can never get them using this gwmi cmd-let.

 

I use Powershell V1.0 and all PC's run Windows XP and the servers WIN2003.

I've been playing with this off and on. You can't use an accelerator remotely if you need to have different credentials. Is that a problem?

Strange about getting the limited WMI output... I'll try to think up a test...

I think the credentials are the real problem: I loop through all computers in AD and to do that I pass administrator credentials. On each PC is a different user logged in (or not), so when I ask for the known printers, I get the ones that are installed for administrator, which is nothing since administrator never works at those PC's.

If I would install printers this way, they will be installed for administrator and will be no use for the other users.

Am I right? And if so; is there another way?

There must be a way to list all the installed printers from the registry. I looked briefly, but could not find the proper location. I'll keep searching.