Question : word/excel don't show any printers on terminal server, but outlook/notepad/IE/etc work perfectly

sorry to ask such an easy question, that i've actually fixed a few times, but i cba to track down the answer right now

user on terminal server, 2008 x64, coming from xp sp3.

start > printers... shows all her printers.  test pages print fine.  outlook prints fine.  notepad prints fine.  IE prints fine.

word and excel are the problem.  file > print >  the printer selection window is entirely blank.

i've previously fixed this by deleting the contents of hkcu\software\microsoft\windowsnt\currentversion\devices, then re-importing from a working user, but this time it didn't fix it.

what's the fix?

Answer : word/excel don't show any printers on terminal server, but outlook/notepad/IE/etc work perfectly

If the user has roaming profiles this may happen due to corruption. That is why deleting the key, logging off and back fixes the issue as the printers get recreated (as the key is now gone).
This article explains the mechanism:
http://support.microsoft.com/kb/102116

Some people even go one step further and change a logoff script to get rid of orphaned printers (or all for that user) at logoff by deleting that key so it is recreated fresh every time you logon.

Cláudio Rodrigues
Microsoft MVP - Remote Desktop Services
Citrix CTP