XL2002: Excel Ignores "Number of Copies" Setting When Printing from Desktop

When you set the default number of copies to print for a printer, and then drag a Microsoft Excel document onto a desktop shortcut to that printer, the number of copies printed may not match the setting for the printer.

This behavior occurs because the default number of copies in the Print dialog box remains the same, even after you have changed the default printer setting. Excel stores the number of copies to print in the workbook when it is created. This setting is taken from the default printer's properties at the time the workbook is created.

To work around this issue, use one of the following methods.

Print from Excel

1. Open the workbook in Excel.
2. On the File menu, click Print.
3. Change the Number of copies setting to the correct number, and then click OK.

NOTE: This change only affects one print job. The Number of copies setting in the workbook is still set to the original number.

Change the Printer's Default Number of Copies Setting

1. Quit Excel if it is open.
2. Click Start, point to Settings, and then click Printers.
3. Double-click your default printer.
4. On the Printer menu, click Properties.
5. In Printer Properties dialog box, locate the setting for Number of Copies to be printed.
   
   The location of this setting varies depending on the printer and driver that are installed.
6. Start Excel, and then open the workbook.
7. On the File menu, click New, and then click Blank Workbook on the New Workbook task pane.
8. On the Window menu, click the original workbook.
9. To select all the cells in the worksheet, press CTRL+A or click the selection box at the intersection of the row numbers and column headers.
10. On the Edit menu, click Copy.
11. On the Window menu, click the new workbook, and then on the Edit menu, click Paste.
12. Repeat steps 8 through 11 until all the worksheets are copied from the original workbook to the new workbook, and then save the new workbook.
13. On the File menu, click Print.
14. Verify that the Number of Copies setting is correct.
    
    This value remains the default number of copies printed when you print in Excel or when you drag the workbook to a printer shortcut on your desktop.

Microsoft has confirmed that this is a problem in the Microsoft products that are listed at the beginning of this article.