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Remote Printing in TeamViewer

Marlon Manhertz
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General

This article is for setting up and using TeamViewer Printing for remote printing as a feature.

Using TeamViewer Printing, you can print documents from remote computers directly on a locally accessible printer. This allows you to print documents from remote computers on your own printer without the need to transfer files.

From the remote computer, you can access the same printers (including network printers) as you would on your local computer.

Remote Printing is available for Windows and macOS.

Remote Printing in colour is possible.

IMPORTANT NOTE:

In case Windows 10 Version 1903 or 1909 is installed on the remote computer:

- If you are using TeamViewer version 14.7 or higher: Printing documents on macOS is possible with an installed XPS viewer on the local computer. Please follow the instructions below on how to use an XPS viewer

- If a TeamViewer version lower than14.7 is installed on the remote computer: TeamViewer Printing does not work due to some changes in the Windows versions. This is fixed for higher Windows versions starting with build 2004.

In case Windows 10 Version 2004 (or higher) is installed on the remote computer: 

  • If you are using TeamViewer version 15.5 or higher and the provided printer driver has been installed: everything works as before. Due to a fix by Microsoft, the direct printing in connections from macOS to Windows was re-enabled.

TeamViewer Printing on Windows 

Installing remote printing driver on Windows 

First, install the TeamViewer printer driver by clicking the gear icon and going to Advanced --> Show advanced options --> Advanced network settings --> Install TeamViewer Printer Driver

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đź“ŚNote: The native format on Windows is XPS. However, with the Windows 10 April 2018 Update, Microsoft has made the XPS-Viewer an optional feature. Therefore, you will be able to select the format (PDF or XPS) to open documents within the Advanced Settings. By default, XPS is selected. In case you have selected PDF, but do not have a PDF reader the document will be opened as XPS as a fallback.

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When installing the print driver, TeamViewer selects the default printer and calls it TeamViewer (ID).

 

 

Activating remote printing within a session on Windows

Once the drivers have been installed, you can establish a connection to your remote computer and activate remote printing in the TeamViewer toolbar by selecting Files & Extras  --> Activate TeamViewer Printing

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Your local printers will now be displayed in the print dialogue boxes on the remote computer. They will be labelled [name of the printer] via TeamViewer.

 

 

Starting a print job

To run a print job, just follow these simple steps:

  1. Open the document you would like to print and open your normal print dialogue box
  2. Select a printer ending with via TeamViewer
  3. Start the print job
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đź“ŚNote: Please note that if you are using Version 12 or below the remote printing function is only available for connections from Windows to Windows and that your printer needs to support PostScript or EMF. More information can be found here. If you are not sure whether your printer supports PostScript or EMF, please go to the manufacturer’s website and search for your printer model. 

 

 

TeamViewer Printing on macOS

Installing remote printing driver on a Mac

Go to TeamViewer --> Preferences --> Advanced --> Network --> Install TeamViewer Printer Driver. 

TeamViewer_KB_6.png

 

Activating remote printing within a session on a Mac

Once the drivers have been installed, you can establish a connection to your remote computer and activate remote printing in the TeamViewer toolbar by selecting Extras --> Activate remote printing

TeamViewer_KB_7.png

 

 

Print document with macOS using an XPS Viewer 

If you are connecting from a macOS to a Windows machine, it might be necessary to have an XPS viewer installed dependent on the Windows and TeamViewer versions.

1) Install an XPS Viewer of your choice on your local computer running macOS.

đź“ŚPlease note: Free XPS Viewer software might come along with restrictions like limited page numbers. Please check for the viewer software that fits best your needs and note that TeamViewer does not provide any kind of support for this third-party software.

2) Follow the steps below for installation and activation (see the above two sections)

3) Open the file to be printed in your XPS viewer in the remote session. 

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4) Click the Print button 

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5) In the print dialogue, choose the local printer to be used for printing and click Print. 

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Open document in XPS Viewer or direct printing

Due to the nature of your local client and the computer on the remote side, you may need an additional tool for printing. Each Operating System has its own standard format for printing. If you connect devices running on the same Operating System, you can directly print to any printer. If you have different Operating Systems on both sides, you might need an additional tool to start the print job.

The native format on Windows is XPS (in some versions PDF is also supported), the one on macOS is PDF. 

TeamViewer_KB_11.png

 

 

XPS Reader/PDF

Due to the nature of the remote machine, you may need an XPS reader in connection for…

  • …Windows7/8.1 to Windows7/8.1 
  • …macOS to Windows 7 – Windows 8.1.

PDS is used in connections between …

  • …macOS to macOS 
  • …macOS to Windows 10 
  • …Windows to macOS 

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