Microsoft Print to PDF feature no longer appearing for MAC Windows App users on 2022 Server

Question

Microsoft Print to PDF feature no longer appearing for MAC Windows App users on 2022 Server

Thomas Gellar 5

Running a Windows 2022 Server on AWS, the Microsoft Print to PDF feature no longer appears to enable MAC remote desktop clients to print to redirected printer.

Any advice to restore that capability?

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3 answers

Your answer

Answer 1

Microsoft Print to PDF is a server-local virtual printer and does not provide Mac physical-printer redirection, so first determine whether the missing item is “Microsoft Print to PDF” itself or a Mac printer whose name should end in “(redirected n).”

If the Mac printer is missing

Verify Windows App is redirecting printers.
- Edit the Server 2022 remote-PC entry in Windows App.
- Open Devices & Audio and enable Printers, if that control is available.
- For a direct remote-PC connection, Use customized settings does not apply; do not expect that checkbox. For managed resources, select Use customized settings, enable the required device, and save. Windows App for macOS supports printer redirection, subject to administrator policy. ^1^
- Disconnect completely and start a new session.
Apply the Mac permission workaround if Windows App lost printing after a macOS or app update.
- Open macOS System Settings → Privacy & Security → Local Network.
- Enable access for Windows App or Microsoft Remote Desktop, whichever appears.
- Fully quit Windows App, reopen it, and reconnect.
This is a community-reported workaround for Mac Windows App printing failures, not a documented RDP prerequisite or guaranteed Server 2022 fix. ^2^
Verify the effective Server 2022 policy using an administrator account.
- Run gpresult /h C:\Temp\gpresult.html or Resultant Set of Policy first.
- Check: Computer Configuration → Policies → Administrative Templates → Windows Components → Remote Desktop Services → Remote Desktop Session Host → Printer Redirection
- Set Do not allow client printer redirection to Disabled or Not configured.
- Set Use Remote Desktop Easy Print printer driver first to Enabled or Not configured.
- Apply the GPO, restart the server as documented, and establish a fresh session. ^3^ ^4^
Check whether Easy Print created redirected queues.

$printers = Get-Printer |
    Where-Object DriverName -eq 'Remote Desktop Easy Print'
if ($printers) {
    $printers | Sort-Object Name | Format-Table Name, DriverName -AutoSize
} else { Write-Host 'No redirected Easy Print queues found.' }

Redirected queues should appear under Settings → Printers & scanners with names ending in (redirected n). They use Remote Desktop Easy Print; the remote session does not need the Mac printer’s vendor driver. ^3^

Conditional server repairs

Only use these after effective policy and client redirection have been verified:

If both fEnablePrintRDR and fEnableRDR are 0 under
HKLM\SYSTEM\CurrentControlSet\Control\Terminal Server\Wds\rdpwd, set both to 1. This repair applies specifically to that registry condition. Back up the keys first. ^5^
If no printers redirect and the spooler security descriptor lacks the Authenticated Users entry AU, use Microsoft’s documented sc sdshow spooler procedure to preserve the existing descriptor and add the missing ACL. Do not replace the descriptor with a generic value. ^4^

If only Microsoft Print to PDF is missing

On Server 2022, run OptionalFeatures.exe, enable Microsoft Print to PDF, restart if requested, and confirm it appears as a local server printer. This restores PDF-file creation inside the server session; it does not restore Mac physical-printer redirection. ^6^

The published 2025 Print-to-PDF update defect applies to Windows Server 2025, not Server 2022, so its KB-specific fix should not be applied solely because the printer disappeared.

If every check passes

Test the same Mac, printer, account, and Windows App version against another Windows host. A recent matching report describes redirection working to Windows 11 but failing against Server 2022, without an accepted resolution or an official Microsoft known-issue bulletin. ^7^

If that comparison reproduces the Server 2022-only failure, open a Microsoft Support for Business case and include:

macOS and Windows App versions
Server 2022 build number
effective gpresult
Easy Print query output
PrintService and TerminalServices event logs
TSS User Experience printing traces, as recommended by Microsoft ^4^

References

Answer 2

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Answer 3

Hello Thomas Gellar,

Thank you for posting question on Microsoft Windows Forum!

The fact of the matter is that Microsoft Print to PDF and Mac printer redirection are two entirely separate mechanisms. The former is a local virtual printer on the server for creating PDFs inside the session, while the latter is the feature that allows a Mac's local printer to appear as a redirected queue inside the remote session. Microsoft Print to PDF itself does not enable or provide Mac printer redirection.

The suggestion here is to verify Mac RDP client settings and making sure the Mac client is explicitly configured to pass local printers through to the AWS session. Open the Microsoft Remote Desktop app on your Mac. Right-click your connection profile (or click the Edit pencil icon) and navigate to Devices & Audio (or Devices) and ensure the Printers checkbox is selected. Save the settings, disconnect completely, and log back in. Also, making sure access is enabled for Windows App or Microsoft Remote Desktop under System Settings → Privacy & Security → Local Network .Then fully quit and reopen the app.

Another point worth mentioning is that the server must be configured to allow client printer redirection and to use the Easy Print driver. On the Server 2022 host, making sure the following two settings Do not allow client printer redirection is set to Disabled or Not Configured and Use Remote Desktop Easy Print printer driver first is set to Enabled under this path Computer Configuration → Administrative Templates → Windows Components → Remote Desktop Services → Remote Desktop Session Host → Printer Redirection. This is crucial because it allows redirection without needing to install the Mac printer's specific driver on the server. After applying the policy, run gpupdate /force and restart the server to ensure the changes take effect.

Also, it is worth verifying the status of Print Spooler in state of "start" or restart the service and navigate to Control Panel -> Devices and Printers on the server during an active user session. Check if the Mac's local printers show up as [Printer Name] (redirected X). Please note: If a Mac user is looking for "Microsoft Print to PDF", they should ideally select Save as PDF or print to their Mac's native PDF handler natively from their local Mac preview, which maps through smoothly via Easy Print. If they expect the server's "Microsoft Print to PDF" to generate a file on the AWS server, remember that it saves to the remote server's C: drive, not the local Mac.

If the Microsoft Print to PDF virtual printer itself is missing from the server's printer list (for creating PDFs locally), you can try to reinstall Microsoft print to PDF by running OptionalFeatures.exe and enable the Microsoft Print to PDF feature, then restart if prompted.

I hope you have found something useful here. If it helps you get more insight into the issue, it is appreciated to accept the answer. Should you have more questions, feel free to leave a message.

Chen Tran 13,695 Reputation points Independent Advisor

2026-10-20T09:20:45.55+00:00

Hi Thomas Gellar,

Hope you are doing well!

May I know the latest status of your query?

Hope the provided information is helpful! If it is. It is appreciated to consider clicking "Accept Answer".
Thomas Gellar 5 Reputation points

2026-10-20T10:21:19.38+00:00

Hello,

Yes, the printer is available on the Mac. The redirection was working fine on the server until an update and reboot.
Easy Print is enabled, but I understand it doesn't work for Mac. It is working for PC users.
I have applied the following:
DISM /Online /Enable-Feature /FeatureName:Printing-PrintToPDFServices-Features /All /Source:C:\sources\sxs /LimitAccess and rebooted; no change to the available printers.
Any thoughts?
Chen Tran 13,695 Reputation points Independent Advisor

2026-10-20T11:32:25.0633333+00:00

Hi Thomas Gellar,

Thank you for the extra information!

Well! The DISM command you ran (Printing-PrintToPDFServices-Features) installs the server-side "Microsoft Print to PDF" virtual printer, which is designed to save PDF files directly onto the AWS server's local file system. It does not affect client printer redirection. If that virtual printer itself is still missing from the server's printer list, you can try manually recreating the queue using the Add Printer wizard. Click Add a printer -> The printer that I want isn't listed. Then select Add a local printer or network printer with manual settings and click Next. Choose Use an existing port and select PDF: (Local Port) or PORTPROMPT from the dropdown. Under Manufacturer, select Microsoft, then choose Microsoft Print to PDF to finish.

Another important point worth mentioning here is that there are reports of printing failures, including RDP redirection, on Windows Server 2022 due to the September 2026 cumulative update (KB5122882) and its subsequent out-of-band update (KB5129237). You can check installed updates to confirm if KB5122882 or KB5129237 were installed around the time the issue started.

An alternative workaround you can consider is instead of relying on native redirection for PDF creation, you can install a lightweight universal PDF printer utility directly on the Windows Server. Users can print to it locally on the server and use AWS file transfer or clipboard redirection to pull the PDF down to their Mac. On the other hand, connecting from the Mac to a Windows 11 PC first, then establish a second RDP connection from that PC to Server 2022. The Mac's redirected printer was available in the second session.

If provided information is helpful this time around! Please Feel free to click "Accept Answer"