USB Printers and Terminal Services
This one day at the previous job, we were trying to map this USB printer via Terminal Services.
Emphasis on 'trying' as it wouldn't automatically map. It had to be manually mapped at every logon, which was problematic, as I was the only one with that kind of access.
I noticed the LPT printers mapped without a problem, so I shared the printer, mapped it to LPT2, and installed a printer to LPT2. Then, I connected to the Terminal Server. It mapped beautifully. I tricked it!!
This was a solution that the tech before me, the point-of-sale company's techs, and apparently five Microsoft phone support techs couldn't figure out. I should have been somewhat happy about this. However, the tech before me, along with the point-of-sale company's techs had proven themselves less than competent on several occasions. And Microsoft is, well, Microsoft. Out-teching them was not an accomplishment to celebrate over.
But I digress. Back to Terminal Services and its eccentricities.
This does not entirely make sense to me. A good analogy for this solution would be getting lost and going to a gas station for directions, only the directions they give you are "put on a disguise, drive 'round the block, and come back." So you put on one of those fake moustache and glasses things, drive 'round the block and back to the gas station, (where now nobody recognizes you) and THEN they give you directions to where you want to go.
Windows...