• Some users have recently had their accounts hijacked. It seems that the now defunct EVGA forums might have compromised your password there and seems many are using the same PW here. We would suggest you UPDATE YOUR PASSWORD and TURN ON 2FA for your account here to further secure it. None of the compromised accounts had 2FA turned on.
    Once you have enabled 2FA, your account will be updated soon to show a badge, letting other members know that you use 2FA to protect your account. This should be beneficial for everyone that uses FSFT.

How much computing power do I need for a print sever?

A

athenian200

Gawd
Joined
Mar 29, 2012
Messages
837
I'm in a rather annoying situation. My printer was sold as having an Ethernet port, but it turned out the retailer made a mistake and it only has USB. The more expensive model has it, and the printer I have has the Ethernet port blocked off by a piece of plastic with nothing underneath it. :/

PKY222a.jpg


Also, the router Verizon provided me has two USB 2.0 ports, but they're essentially non-functional besides charging phones because they never implemented that in the firmware.

Because I don't want to buy a new printer or a new router, I need a print server. Preferably something low-power with a small footprint. I'm currently using an old Nintendo Wii that's been hacked to run Linux with Samba and CUPS, but that's annoying because I have to use my TV as a monitor whenever I reboot, which limits where I can put my printer.

The printer in question is a Samsung Xpress M2625D. So, what I'm wondering is how much computing power I need for a print server running a laser printer. Would an old Atom work? Maybe an ARM board? Or should I just try to find a way to hook my Wii up to a monitor? I don't actually need it as a game system anymore, because I have a second Wii, a Wii U, and a Gamecube.

Not sure what the best approach would be here. My original approach was leaving it hooked up to my desktop and having that run 24/7, but that seemed wasteful given that I spent most of my time on a laptop in the next room. That's when I moved it over to the Wii.

Any ideas?
 
Sell or return the printer. If this was truly retailer error they will take it back.

Get one with a print server built in.
 
evt said:
Try a Raspberry Pi.
Click to expand...

That was my initial thought. It would probably be overkill, but it would use so little space/power that it wouldn't matter.

Zepher said:
you could try something like this,
http://www.amazon.com/Monoprice-Net...d=1405749904&sr=8-3&keywords=usb+print+server

I had an HP one like this that was Parallel port and worked good.
Click to expand...

That looks affordable, although I do worry about Windows 8 support. I'll have to make sure I get one that definitely supports 8. If I can't find one, I'll probably go with the Pi.

450 said:
Sell or return the printer. If this was truly retailer error they will take it back.

Get one with a print server built in.
Click to expand...

Unfortunately, the version of this printer with an Ethernet port costs $50-$100 more than this one did, depending on where I shop. For that price, I could get a Raspberry Pi or something.

I could get a cheaper printer, but I really wanted a laser printer rather than an inkjet. Inkjets keep running out of ink on me, and replacing it adds up. Especially since it just dries up if you don't print anything for a while. Whether the ink dries or you print a lot, it ends up being more than the printer itself in a year's time.

It's been a good printer and I'm happy with the print quality, this one feature has just been an annoyance.
 
As an Amazon Associate, HardForum may earn from qualifying purchases.
athenian200 said:
Unfortunately, the version of this printer with an Ethernet port costs $50-$100 more than this one did, depending on where I shop. For that price, I could get a Raspberry Pi or something.

I could get a cheaper printer, but I really wanted a laser printer rather than an inkjet. Inkjets keep running out of ink on me, and replacing it adds up. Especially since it just dries up if you don't print anything for a while. Whether the ink dries or you print a lot, it ends up being more than the printer itself in a year's time.

It's been a good printer and I'm happy with the print quality, this one feature has just been an annoyance.
Click to expand...

$50 isn't much. Add up the costs of the RPi and you'll come close to $50. The Pi itself, a case, power supply, SD card if don't have one already. Plus the time you have to set it up. How much did you pay? Are you in the return window?
 
Last edited:
450 said:
$50 isn't much. Add up the costs of the RPi and you'll come close to $50. The Pi itself, a case, power supply, SD card if don't have one already. Plus the time you have to set it up. How much did you pay? Are you in the return window?
Click to expand...

I paid $99 for it.

Oh, right, I forgot the Pi doesn't come with a case. I already have a ton of SD cards that I use for various versions of Wii Linux, but still.

I actually purchased it last year when I was going to school. I printed stuff every other day during that time, and school had already started when I got the thing. So basically, I kept it because I didn't have any other working printer available at the time to use while it was being returned.

This particular printer is regularly $120-$140, so I got a deal on it. The other model is $150-$180, and is hard to find on sale.

At this point, I'm thinking the easiest option is to get a Wii2HDMI. My Wii is already set up with everything it needs to act as a print server, all I need is a way to output video on a computer monitor so I can move the Wii to where I want the printer. I can get one for less than $20, and I have plenty of HDMI cables.
 
That is thinking out of the box, I got my wii to hdmi adapter from amazon and it works fairly well... looks like they are about 12 -16 with some tricky shipping options
 
You must log in or register to reply here.
Back
Top