How to Remove Cross-Platform Printer Drivers on Windows NT

• Microsoft Windows NT Workstation version 4.0
• Microsoft Windows NT Server version 4.0

SUMMARY

This article describes how to remove cross-platform printer drivers on a computer running Windows NT Server for clients to Point and Print. This includes instructions on removing entries from the registry and deleting the driver files from the hard disk drive.

MORE INFORMATION

The following procedure for removing unwanted printer drivers involves editing the registry.

WARNING: Using Registry Editor incorrectly can cause serious problems that may require you to reinstall your operating system. Microsoft cannot guarantee that problems resulting from the incorrect use of Registry Editor can be solved. Use Registry Editor at your own risk.

For information about how to edit the registry, view the "Changing Keys And Values" Help topic in Registry Editor (Regedit.exe) or the "Add and Delete Information in the Registry" and "Edit Registry Data" Help topics in Regedt32.exe. Note that you should back up the registry before you edit it.

1. Open the Control Panel and double-click the Services icon.

2. Click the Spooler service and then click Stop. Click Yes when prompted.

3. Start Registry Editor (Regedt32.exe) and select the following subkey:

         HKEY_LOCAL_MACHINE\SYSTEM\CurrentControlSet\Control\Print
         \Environments\<platform>\Drivers\Version-x\<printer driver>
   

   Where <platform> is Windows 4.0 (Windows 95), Windows NT Alpha_AXP (Alpha), Windows NT PowerPC (PPC), or Windows NT R4000 (MIPS).

   <Version-x> refers to one of the following:

         Windows 4.0, Version-0 is Windows 95,
         Windows NT Alpha, MIPS, and PPC, Version-0 is Windows NT 3.1
         Windows NT Alpha, MIPS, and PPC, Version-1 is Windows NT 3.5x
         Windows NT Alpha, MIPS, and PPC, Version-2 is Windows NT 4.0
   

   <Printer driver> is the printer key that will be deleted in step 5.

4. Make a note of all files referenced in the printer driver key that will be deleted. These files will be removed in step 6.

   NOTE: Some files may be referenced by other cross-platform printers. In this case, you should check all other related cross-platform registry keys to find out which files are in common, or simply leave the files in the directory referenced and skip step 6.

5. Delete the printer driver key.

6. Delete the files on the hard drive as noted from step 4. These files should be located in one of the following directories:

         %SystemRoot%\System32\Spool\Drivers\W32alpha\<version>
         %SystemRoot%\System32\Spool\Drivers\W32mips\<version>
         %SystemRoot%\System32\Spool\Drivers\W3ppc\<version>
         %SystemRoot%\System32\Spool\Drivers\w32x86\<version>
         %SystemRoot%\System32\Spool\Drivers\Win40\<version>
   

   Where the version corresponds to the <version-x> number from step 3. For example, Windows 95 drivers are located in the directory %SystemRoot%\System32\Spool\Drivers\Win40\0 and Windows NT 4.0 Alpha drivers are located in %SystemRoot%\System32\Spool\Drivers\W32alpha\2.

7. In Control Panel Services, select the Spooler service and click Start.