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Windows 11 Photo viewer allowing connection to ALL network printers

Decatur Library 0 Reputation points
2025-10-24T18:26:02.42+00:00

Recently upgraded several public facing systems to Windows 11. We have 2 printers installed on the systems, When trying to print from Photo Viewer, however, we get a list of ALL network printers, and people can print to them. Some of them are in offices the public does not have access to. PLEASE NOTE these printers are NOT installed on the system. I do not see a way to uninstall them, and it is ONLY in Photo Viewer you can see them all. This is something of a security issue for my network. We have 2 specific printers for the public to use, which calculate costs per job, this bypasses that system.

Windows for business | Windows Client for IT Pros | Devices and deployment | Other
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  1. Joseph Tran 3,040 Reputation points Independent Advisor
    2025-10-24T20:08:23.1733333+00:00

    Hi, There

    As I known, we recently upgraded some public systems to Windows 11. They have 2 public printers installed, but when printing from Photo Viewer, all network printers show up, including ones in restricted offices. Users can print to them, bypassing our cost-tracking system.

    This happens because Photo Viewer’s print dialog lists all network-discovered printers, even if they aren’t installed locally.

    But you can try these fixes and it may solve your problem:

    1. Limit visible printers via Group Policy – prevent connections to printers not explicitly installed.
    2. On the print server, disable “List in Directory” for sensitive printers.
    3. Install public printers as local TCP/IP printers so only they appear.
    4. Optionally, use another app (like Photos) that respects installed printers only.

    => But best approach: local-only installation + hide sensitive printers to ensure only public printers show up.

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