In Windows 7, a printer driver store has been introduced to store printer drivers. Printer drivers can be added to the store before the printer is attached.

• Adding drivers to the store is known as staging a driver. A printer driver is added during the printer installation process.


• When drivers are added to the store, they are stored side-by-side. Multiple versions of the same driver can be contained in the store.


• Previous versions of Windows printer drivers were distributed as printer driver packages and just printer drivers. When printers were networked, point and print allowed printer drivers to be distributed automatically from the print server, but not driver packages. With Windows 7, driver packages can be distributed by point and print.


• The printer driver installation process variations includes:
• Local printer: When a local printer is installed, the printer driver package is automatically added to the driver store and the printer driver is installed.


• Remote printer: When a printer is installed on a remote machine, the printer driver package is added to the driver store on the remote machine and the printer driver is installed.


• Network printer: when a network printer on a print server running Windows Vista, Windows 2008, or later is installed, then point and print copies the printer driver package to the local driver store and the printer driver is installed.

Read how to set up a network printer using point and print at:
http://support.microsoft.com/kb/141839.


• Web printer: When a netwprk printer on a print server running Windows Vista, Windows 2008, or later is installed by using HTTP, then the printer driver package is installed in the local driver store by Web point and print, and installs the printer driver.