Microsoft KB Archive/256869

= SMS: Network Printers for Windows NT Clients Are Not Reported by Hardware Inventory =

Article ID: 256869

Article Last Modified on 10/25/2006

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APPLIES TO


 * Microsoft Systems Management Server 2.0 Standard Edition

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This article was previously published under Q256869



SYMPTOMS
Microsoft Windows NT-based hardware inventory does not report network printers if you modify the MOF file to report the Printer class. Hardware inventory for clients running Microsoft Windows 95/Microsoft Windows 98 reports network printers as expected.



CAUSE
This problem is present in all instances of Systems Management Server 2.0 as it is due to architectural issues in the NT Operating System. In Windows 95/Windows 98, all printers (local and network) are available to all users. The Hardware Inventory agent (Hinv32) in Windows NT runs under the SMS Client Token account. When it starts the inventory cycle, it calls Windows Management Instrumentation (WMI) for all the requested inventory information, including the printer information.

WMI then redirects that request to the Win32 provider. The Win32 provider running under the Local System account impersonates the caller/client (that is, Hinv32) and accesses the information by using the SMS Client Token account. In Windows NT, the printer information that the Win32 provider returns includes the local printers and the network printers belonging to the SMS Client Token account (because that is the profile that Hinv32 is running under). This account, by default, does not have any network printers.



STATUS
Microsoft has confirmed this to be a problem in Systems Management Server version 2.0.

Additional query words: prodsms

Keywords: kbbug kbfix KB256869

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