Does anyone have a suggestion for blocking AirPrint discovery on macOS?
I have an Printopia Pro AirPrint server configured for iOS devices. iPhone and iPad users can quickly print to printers on-the-fly, from meetings, walking down the hall, etc. Very handy. Users are always blown-away when they realize they can print with zero configuration from the device in their pocket.
However, my Macs currently do not use AirPrint. All Mac desktops and laptops get printers mapped via Jamf policies (based on what dept they are located in). The Macs use HP socket protocol and print directly to the printers (no need for a CUPS or Windows printer server in my situation). This method has worked very well for me.
The problem:
On occasion, Mac users do not realize they already have their printers mapped, so they will manually browse the network and "discover" AirPrint queues that are intended for my iOS devices. To avoid confusion, I'm trying to figure out a way to prevent the Macs from seeing these AirPrint queues but allow iOS devices to print.
I have reached-out to Printopia, but they are slow to respond, and are hard to get ahold of. Initially they sound interested in working with me to examine this problem, but they haven't followed-up in almost a year.
I have experimented with the AirPrint restrictions MDM profile payload. In my testing, I cant really tell what its actually supposed to do. Apple deosnt have much information on this restriction. Scratching my head wondering...
-Does the restriction block the Mac from discovering/seeing AirPrint queues?
-Does it prevent the Mac from mapping AirPrint queues?
-Does it block print jobs from being sent to AirPrint printers?
-Does it remove existing AirPrint queues that are already mapped?
(Based on limited info on forthcoming Catalina 10.15, all of this print protocol stuff may change in future - depending on how Apple wants to handle printing, but for now Im still focused on supporting/providing AirPrint for iOS and not on macOS)
