Essentials Edition Installation

ScrewDrivers Essentials delivers endpoint printer and scanner redirection for virtual desktop environments — without SQL Server, without Windows print servers, and without the management tier Pro and Enterprise carry. Deployment is correspondingly simpler: a server-side install on your session hosts and a client on your endpoints. This page is the self-help hub for Essentials administrators.

System requirements

Session hosts (RDS/VDI servers) — where ScrewDrivers Essentials installs:

• Windows Server 2016 or newer for current (7.9.x) releases — Server 2012 R2 is supported only through ScrewDrivers 7.8.x. 64-bit only; v7 dropped all 32-bit support.
• .NET Framework 4.8, installed before running any v7 installer — without it, nodelocked license activation fails and the UIs won't run.
• Installer: ScrewDriversEssentials_<version>_x64.msi, from the Tricerat downloads share (your account team or Tricerat Support provides the link). Run installers locally, not from a UNC path.

Endpoints — where the client installs:

• Windows 10 or newer (64-bit) for the Windows client (ScrewDriversClient_<version>_x64.msi); endpoints that must stay on 32-bit or older Windows can continue using the v6 client, which connects to v7 servers.
• macOS, Linux, and IGEL OS clients are also available.
• A supported remote desktop client for the ScrewDrivers client to integrate with: Citrix Workspace, FreeRDP, or Omnissa Horizon.

Hardware sizing: see System Requirements & Recommendations.

Licensing

Essentials licenses either nodelocked (a key tied to the machine — no license server needed) or through the Tricerat License Server for concurrent models. If you run a License Server, use v6.0.7.0 or later — it's required for ScrewDrivers 7.9.6+ and backward compatible with everything earlier. The license types overview explains the models; v7 products need v7 activation codes.

Installing

• Your First Essentials Deployment — the complete guided walkthrough: license server, session host install, client install, first test print.
• Rolling out clients at scale: silent install switches and Intune deployment.
• Unblock downloaded installers first: Downloading Files from Tricerat.

Running Essentials day to day

• How Automatic Client Updates Work — clients pull the matching plugin per session, so server upgrades don't require client rollouts.
• Endpoint Client reference — the client application, tab by tab.
• Enabling Diagnostic Logging and Troubleshooting License Issues — when something misbehaves.
• Upgrading to a newer v7 release — in-place, low-drama point upgrades.
• Essentials Client Printing Architecture — how the redirection actually works.

Looking for SQL Server, print servers, printer profiles, scanning servers, or mobile printing? Those are Pro/Enterprise features.