In the fall of 2026, Microsoft introduced Windows Protected Print mode, often referred to as WPP. When one of my colleagues shared some initial information on WPP, I must admit that it left me deeply concerned. The concern was not about Microsoft’s actions which, in my estimation, were overdue. What concerned me was the knowledge that every LRS customer I’ve worked with is fully invested in the use of Windows print drivers. With their WPP approach, Microsoft has made it clear that they are moving away from traditional drivers and adopting Mopria standards for printing. To me, this was a call to action.
Game-Changer, or Much Ado About Nothing?
I know that others in my industry scoffed at the notion that Microsoft would move away from third-party print drivers. I’m not so sure. Currently, no new printer drivers are being published to Windows Update by default. Very soon, Microsoft will start to preferentially use the Microsoft IPP class driver — and starting next year, only critical security fixes for third-party drivers will be allowed in Windows Update. While print drivers are not yet fully deprecated, soon customers will need to manually ensure that their third-party drivers are kept at the current levels.
Knowing that our own Windows printing was also reliant on Windows drivers, LRS chose to act. In April, we introduced LRS Driverless Printing in its initial form. This update required changes to our VPSX and Personal Print Manager (PPM) solutions. Now, our latest code level lets us define Mopria-compliant devices and print to them directly using PPM and VPSX/DirectPrint capabilities. In the next phase, this capability will be extended to allow data to be sent to the VPSX spool. It will also enable VPSX software to interact with Mopria-compliant devices for printing — thus giving customers support for both direct and server-based printing.
The Road Ahead
In the months after this second phase, LRS will open the door to all types of printing from the Windows workstation through the VPSX spool including the many types of printers we drive today. This will include even non-Mopria compliant devices, enabling customers to preserve their investments in older print hardware. Even more importantly, this new capability will support the many business-critical thermal and barcode devices commonly used in many industries, which are not found on any Mopria compliancy lists.
It is important to note that LRS Cloud Print mechanisms will soon be updated to support this same driverless print functionality. This continues LRS’ legacy of providing a great degree of flexibility: for example, a customer may choose to run their print management software on premise, in a private cloud, in LRS’ own SaaS environment, or even contract with LRS managed services staff to configure, manage, and support all printing throughout the enterprise.
How it Affects You
All of this is good news for LRS customers, as these enhancements will bridge the gaps that WPP is expected to create. Of course, you have the option of leaving WPP turned off and manually updating your drivers, but this may not be a wise long-term approach. To me, the prudent approach is to recognize and adopt these changes in Microsoft’s strategy and embrace the use of WPP in the environment.
Why, you ask? Firstly, WPP is far more secure than the traditional driver-based approach. WPP removes many of the vulnerabilities that are exposed using the existing Windows methods (think PrintNightmare and other CVEs that continue to plague this environment). Second, driverless print seems to be Microsoft’s long-term direction. To ignore this reality and be caught in an emergency situation where all printing begins to fail seems risky and short-sighted.
I note that macOS and other CUPS-based printing methods have been following a similar approach to printing for years, and our PPM software running in these non-Windows environments already supports the driverless capabilities described above. However, given the dominance of Windows desktops in the marketplace, the availability of driverless printing in our PPM for Windows client will impact — and benefit — far more organizations around the world.
Progress, they say, is impossible without change. And in my opinion, the effort of adopting this driverless printing approach is more than justified by the promise of increased security and alignment with industry trends. If you have questions about whether, when, and how driverless printing may impact your organization, please reach out to LRS and we’ll be happy to discuss your needs.