Deploying printers via GPO

Can someone please explain the difference between

User Configuration\Policies\Windows Settings\Printer Connections

and

User Configuration\Preferences\Control Panel Settings\Printers\Shared Printers

I encountered a problem today which was solved by adding the troublesome printers to the first setting. Thanks

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buzzkill

First one is a 2003 policy setting, the second one is a 2008 group policy preference.

If you were trying to deploy a printer using the 2nd option, and it wasn't working, then it was probably because the target computer did not have the client side extensions installed (likely to be the case if it was XP or Vista). These are needed in order to apply the newer GP preferences.

Installing the OS specific CSE package would have allowed option 2 to work.

If you use WSUS then I'd recommend rolling out the CSEs that way.

netsysllc

One thing new is that you can also deploy a TCP/IP printer with a group policy preference. Where as with a policy setting you have to have a print server (printer shared off of a computer)