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Citrix Virtual Apps and Desktops
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Network Printers (on the VDA)

August 11, 2025
Contributed by: 
C

Here, the print job is sent directly from the VDA across the network to a network print server (either a standard Windows Print Server or a Citrix Universal Print Server). This pathway is generally faster for printers located on the same Local Area Network (LAN) as the VDA. This is the default pathway for network printers when direct connections are enabled. Print jobs fall back to being routed over the ICA connection if the published application or desktop cannot access the print server or if the native printer driver is not installed on the multi-session OS machine.

print-3

Requirements

  • The necessary printer driver depends on the type of print server hosting the network printer:
    • If the printer is hosted on a standard Windows Print Server, the corresponding native printer driver must be installed on the VDA.
    • If the printer is hosted on a Citrix Universal Print Server (UPS), the connection can use either the native driver or the Citrix UPD.
  • Network connectivity from the VDA to the print server.
  • Appropriate permissions for the logged in user.

Guidance on connecting and configuring network printers (Policy settings)

  • Connect printers via UNC paths (ex. “\PrintServer\PrinterName”)
  • Session printers: The primary policy for this method. Administrators add printers by typing the UNC path or browsing the network. Filters can be applied to the policy to target specific users, groups, client IPs, etc.
  • Printer assignments: An alternative policy, useful for assigning a large group of printers to multiple users or devices simultaneously. It allows setting both the session printers and the default printer for those assignments.

Best practices (Allow direct connections to N/W printers)

  • Consider the “Direct connections to network printers” policy for routing (direct VDA-to-server or via client/ICA).
    • When enabled (default setting), printing performance will be optimal over LAN. The print traffic in this scenario is uncompressed.
    • Disable this policy setting if the VDA and the print server are not in the same network (WAN scenario). This would force the print traffic to flow through the client endpoint and leverage ICA compression but will introduce latency.

Enabling direct connections favors LAN performance but uses uncompressed network traffic between the VDA and print server. Disabling it forces traffic through the client pathway, leveraging ICA compression, which is beneficial for WAN scenarios but adds latency.

Use case

Accessing shared departmental or office printers directly from the virtual session. Requires native drivers to be installed on the VDA.

Limitations

Printing performance will be poor in adverse network conditions (WAN). Additionally, driver management is a huge overhead for IT admins.

Network Printers (on the VDA)
August 11, 2025
Contributed by: 
C
August 11, 2025
Contributed by: 
C

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