Microsoft’s ‘Universal Print Anywhere’ Now Available
On August 12th, Microsoft reported that pull-printing for its Universal Print is now available.
Called “Universal Print Anywhere,” this new feature enables users to print securely from any location and retrieve their documents at any corporate printer. This provides extra security, as users release print jobs only when they are physically at the printer by entering their credentials at the printer’s control panel. Known as “pull print,” this reduces the risk of sensitive information being left unattended.
This pull-print functionality builds on Universal Print’s existing secure release capabilities, allowing users to print without having to choose a specific printer in advance.
With Universal Print anywhere, employees can:
- Print from any device to any corporate printer without choosing a destination printer in advance.
- Authenticate at any printer to securely release their jobs.
- Prevent confidential documents from being left unattended.
- Reduce toner and paper waste from uncollected prints.
Key benefits for organizations include:
Enhanced Security and Privacy: Universal Print Anywhere ensures that confidential documents are never left in printers’ output trays for unauthorized viewing. Users must authenticate at the printer before their jobs are released, maintaining document security in shared printing environments.
Simplified User Experience: Users simply print, then walk to any available printer in their organization to retrieve their documents. This reduces support tickets and improves productivity.
Reduced Waste and Cost Savings: By requiring user authentication before printing, organizations can reduce paper and toner waste from forgotten or uncollected print jobs.
Cross-Platform Support: Universal Print anywhere works seamlessly across Microsoft Windows and Apple macOS devices, ensuring all employees can take advantage of pull printing, regardless of their device preference.
How Universal Print Works
Microsoft says the deployment architecture remains straightforward and builds on an enterprise’s existing Universal Print infrastructure:
- Printer Registration: Printers are registered to Universal Print directly or through the Universal Print connector.
- Secure Release Configuration: Administrators configure the secure release option for each printer they want to include in the pull-print experience.
- User Authentication: Users print as normal to the pull-print printer, then authenticate at any configured member printer to retrieve their jobs.
Administrator Control and Management
Universal Print Anywhere provides administrators with enhanced control over the printing experience:
- Print Option Management: Administrators can configure specific print options for Universal Print Anywhere, with end-users only seeing administrator-approved options.
- Printer Membership Control: Administrators can configure which printers are members of the pull-print printer group, providing flexibility in determining which devices participate in the Anywhere printing experience.
Coming Soon: Enhanced Partner Integration
Universal Print anywhere is designed to work with existing printer infrastructure and partner solutions. In the coming months, Micrsoft will be extending this feature to enable original equipment manufacturers (OEMs) to integrate their user badge-release technologies to securely release print jobs at the printer, ensuring compatibility with existing authentication systems and providing even more flexibility for organizations with diverse printer fleets.
Getting Started with Universal Print Anywhere
Universal Print Anywhere is now available for Microsoft 365 organizations worldwide. The feature is included with existing Universal Print licensing at no additional cost. For more details, please refer to the Universal Print licensing documentation.
Other Resources:
You must be logged in to post a comment.