So if I plug my printer to my router will it be plug&play ?

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Subzerok11

Gawd
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So currently I have my PC connected to the printer with a USB cable and my 10 year old printer works just fine. I'm turning my desktop into a wireless desktop for the time being and going to install a WiFi pci card in the tower. Once I get my computer connected online wireless. So if I take the printer USB cable from the back of the PC tower and plug it into the back of the router will the printer work right away or do I have to setup the printer within the routers 192.... page ? or will I have to install any extra router software programs on the PC to get the printer to work ? I'm just wondering what my steps will be.
 
It really depends on your router. Some routers do have that functionality and are "smart" enough to realize what to do with a printer attached via USB ports. Some may require you to configure it on the router's setup, and others may not let you network your printer at all that way. You should probably count yourself lucky if your router does it at all... my router has USB ports, but they're basically only good for charging a phone... they planned a firmware update to do more with them, but it never came through.

The most foolproof way to network a printer is to get a model with an Ethernet port or a Wi-Fi card built into the printer that's just designed for networking. Any computer on the network will then "see" the printer and be able to install drivers for it without the router having to be smart. Failing that, you might have to plug the printer's USB cable into a computer of some kind... but the catch is, it doesn't have to be very powerful or large. A $5 Pi Zero or a $30 "print server" off Newegg would do the job. Basically, any old computer lying around with USB ports could most likely work as a print server if it can be configured with CUPS and the appropriate version of Samba.
 
It really depends on printer and I tried to explain that earlier in your other thread that you probably want 3rd party support for such things, OpenWRT does this fine using p910nd unless it's a GDI printer that loads it firmwire upon the power up sequence. I've successfully used both a TP-Link TL-WDR3600 (Atheros) and a D-Link DIR-860L B1 (MT7621) along with an old OKI B4100 printer just fine. As far as wireless goes get a wireless bridge instead of a USB/PCI card, they work a lot better in the end and aren't more expensive.
 
Hello Subzero, not sure about how well that will go with such an old printer. I got my brother branded b/w laserjet networked mfp on amazon around black friday 2012 or 2013, has been great. I literally just plugged it into my main switch and bam, everything on my LAN can print to it without installing jack squat in terms of drivers/sw on any of them. Thing cost less than $100, I think I paid 60 something on sale.
 
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