Introduction
You can use the Printing rules to control printer usage. For example, you can restrict which documents can be printed to prevent physical data exfiltration, or warn users about large print jobs to reduce waste.
Rule Walkthrough
The simple rule below shows you how to block large documents from being printed by restricting the maximum number of pages allowed per print job.
Setting Up the Rule
General Settings
1. Assign a Rule Name. For example, “Restrict print volume”.
2. Select a Parent Policy. For example, “Admin Policy”.
3. Select “Activity” for Rule Type.
4. Select “Printing” under Select the type of activities.
Helpful Resources:
Employees
5. Turn off the Inherit targets from Parent Policy option to manually select the rule's targets. Then, select employees, departments and/or computers for the rules target from the Assign to field. In this case, we selected a computer named "desktop-peotii6".
6. Alternatively, you can keep the Inherit targets from Parent Policy option turned on to use the policy’s default targets.
7. Optionally, you can exclude targets in the Exclude from rule field.
Helpful Resources:
Printing
8. A default condition block, "Condition 1," should already be added to the rule. If it's missing, click the New Condition button, then add the Number of Pages criterion. Configure the condition as follows:
Condition 1
9. In the Number of Pages field, enter a number such as "50", then select a condition like ">=".
Helpful Resources:
Actions
10. Select the Block action.
11. Optionally, add a message. For example, “Printing blocked.”.
12. Optionally, turn on the Use HTML Template option to show the message in a visually appealing template.
Help Reference:
Rationale for the Rule
High volume printing is a critical risk, as it often suggests an attempt to exfiltrate confidential information, customer records, or intellectual property (IP). Unrestricted large jobs also cause operational issues like environmental impact and waste.
This rule is built around a single criterion, "Number of Pages". By setting a threshold (e.g., >= 50 pages), the rule immediately identifies and flags large print jobs.
The rule can be refined using additional criteria such as Applications (e.g., only restrict printing from specific R&D or financial software) and Printer Name (e.g., restrict large prints only to network printers, but allow local desktop prints) to create targeted and functional policies.