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ValVashon · Jul 25, 2008, 08:35 PM

I'm such a newbie to windows it isn't funny. My wife had to install XP Pro to do some database creation in Explorer for Windows. I was able to add the HP inkjet printer we have connected via USB, but we would also like to be able to use the HP LaserJet printer we have connected to our router.

This is how things are connected: A cable modem feeds the 4 port ethernet router, which is assigning IP addresses. One of the router outputs is connected to the printer, two are connected to computers and the last one feeds an AirPort. The Mac with Windows is on one of the wired network connections. How do I find the IP address for the printer and how do I specifically format it to make XP "see" it? I think it's more than just http://192.196.99.101 for example. Unlike OS X, XP just doesn't automatically "see" this printer on the network. Downloading the HP drivers didn't help.

Val

Cold Warrior · Jul 25, 2008, 08:50 PM

Start menu > Printers and Faxes > add new printer, then browse for one.

ValVashon · Jul 25, 2008, 10:11 PM

That's just it- that procedure doesn't find the networked printer. I don't log in much under windows so I didn't remember that procedure enough to post it as what I had already done. "Adding a printer" only found the USB one, not the networked one.

Val

ibook_steve · Jul 25, 2008, 10:13 PM

I usually download Bonjour from Apple (http://www.apple.com/bonjour) and use the Bonjour Printer Wizard. It usually works quite well.

Steve

seanc · Jul 26, 2008, 06:36 AM

If you have the IP address & model number for the printer then I can walk you through some steps to install it.

ValVashon · 11:42 AM

Is the IP address on the printer test page that I can print? Or is there a way to discover it with OS X? It's a HP LaserJet 4MP.

Val

P.S.: Bonjour for Windows wouldn't discover it, either.

Cold Warrior · Jul 26, 2008, 11:54 AM

sometimes it shows up on a test page, depending on the model.
You can also see IPs and computer/device names in some routers. For example, in a Linksys router, you'd log in to the router's page (192.168.1.1, user = admin, password = admin unless you've changed any of the default) and go to Status > Local Network > DHCP Clients table (path/steps may vary slightly depending on model or firmware version).

edit: you could also check all your computers and other devices, annotate their IPs, then ping around the network to see if anything else returns a response (assuming the printer responds to a ping).

seanc · Jul 26, 2008, 01:15 PM

That's a rather old LaserJet, does it have a jetdirect card or external jetdirect printserver? If it's internal to the printer, it should be printed on the configuration pages, if it's on the external printserver then you should be able to print it to the printer. If you don't have the above, how is it connected?

ValVashon · Jul 27, 2008, 03:38 PM

It's got a JetDirect card in the printer itself. The test page shows an IP address of 10.8.24.39 on the "MIO" section of the page. In the router (a D-Link DI-604) it shows an IP address of 192.168.0.102, based on the log entry that was created when I turned the printer on.

Val

seanc · Jul 27, 2008, 04:09 PM

Strange that it shows a 10.x.x.x address, I take it the printer was in use somewhere else before you got it. You'll probably have to change the IP settings via the front panel if it has one.

ValVashon · Jul 27, 2008, 10:44 PM

Strange that it shows a 10.x.x.x address, I take it the printer was in use somewhere else before you got it. You'll probably have to change the IP settings via the front panel if it has one.

Yes- I got it off of the junk pile at work. It works fine for me after it had a good cleaning, it just couldn't take the sales department's printing demands. So I suppose I'll have to dig up a manual somewhere on the web to find out how to change the IP settings- and then what do I change them to? And furthermore, why can't XP just find the printer and work with it like OS X does?

Val

ghporter · Jul 28, 2008, 08:27 AM

XP can't find that printer because its network settings (10.x.x.x) are BY DESIGN invisible to your XP box (IP 192.168.0.x) Your network's net mask is probably set up so that any device (your XP box, for example) can see and interact with other devices whose IP addresses match the first three groups (192.168.0.x). So by the very nature of the TCP/IP system, anything whose address doesn't match ALL OF THE FIRST THREE GROUPS will be completely invisible. What IP does your Mac have? I'll bet it's a 10.x.x.x address in which the first three parts match the printer...