Printers that were installed in Windows XP no longer appear to be installed after you upgrade the computer to Windows Vista

After you upgrade a computer from Microsoft Windows XP to Windows Vista, printers that were installed in Windows XP no longer appear to be installed.

This issue occurs because of a difference in the design of printing functionality between Windows XP and Windows Vista. Because of this design difference, Windows Vista removes installed printer drivers from the local settings during the upgrade operation. When you upgrade Windows XP to Windows Vista, Windows Vista records the connection information only for point-and-print printers.

To work around this issue, use one of the following methods, as appropriate for your situation.

Method 1: For a printer that is installed locally

After you upgrade the computer to Windows Vista, reinstall the drivers for any printer that is installed locally. For more information about how to obtain and to install printer drivers in Windows Vista, visit the following Microsoft Web site:

Method 2: For a point-and-print printer

In a point-and-print scenario, a Windows-based computer automatically downloads the printer driver from the print server. If a driver for the printer is available in Windows Vista, Windows Vista automatically installs the appropriate driver for the shared printer. However, Windows Vista does not restore the printer settings that were configured in Windows XP. Instead, Windows Vista restores the printer to its default settings.

Note If a printer driver is not available in Windows Vista, you must manually reinstall the driver for the shared printer.

This behavior is by design.

For more information about how to manage printers in Windows Vista, see the Windows Vista Print Management Step-by-Step Guide. To obtain this guide, visit the following Microsoft Web site: