Select the product you need help with

A description of the user rights that a user must have to install or modify a local printer in Windows XP or Windows 2000

Article ID: 297780 - View products that this article applies to.

This article was previously published under Q297780

SUMMARY

This article describes the user rights that a user must have to install or to modify a local printer on a Microsoft Windows XP-based or Microsoft Windows 2000-based computer.

MORE INFORMATION

To install or to modify a local printer, either of the following conditions must be true:

You must be logged on as an administrator or a member of the Administrators group.
You must be logged on as a member of the Power Users group and have the Load/Unload Device Drivers user right. The Load/Unload Device Drivers user right is a Group Policy setting.

Note To assign this user right, follow these steps:
1. Click Start, click Run, type gpedit.msc, and then click OK.
2. Click Computer Configuration, click Windows Settings, click Security Settings, click Local Policies, and then click User Rights Assignment.
By default, only administrators have this user right. In Windows XP, Power Users can obtain the same user right to install or modify a local printer as they had under Windows 2000 if the administrator explicitly grants this user right to them.

If a user who has not been assigned the proper user rights attempts to add a local printer, the option to add a local printer is unavailable in the Add Printer Wizard.

If a user who does not belong to Administrators group does not upgrade driver files, Administrators may have to install the driver again.

Note We strongly recommend that you use only device drivers that use a digital signature. Installing device drivers that have not been digitally signed by Microsoft might disable the system, allow for viruses onto the computer, or otherwise reduce the correct operation of the computer either immediately or in the future.

For more information about driver signing and digital signatures, visit the following Microsoft Web site:

http://technet.microsoft.com/en-us/library/cc728393(WS.10).aspx

(http://technet.microsoft.com/en-us/library/cc728393(WS.10).aspx)