Installing a network printer through a router. Connecting the printer to your home network through a router in pictures

It is possible to connect the printer to your Wi-Fi router with a USB port using the built-in Print Server - it connects the printer to the router and provides access to it from any client computer on your network.

Connecting the printer to the router

In order to install a printer through a router, you need to connect the printer to the USB port of your router. In this article, I will tell you how to connect an Asus RT-N56U Wi-Fi router and a printer in Windows 7. Connecting a printer to this router is also possible using a special utility:

The utility allows you to automate the connection and configuration of a network printer and works only in Windows. Next, I will tell you how to connect the printer through the router manually.

Attention! Make sure your printer model is supported by the router! You can check the compatibility of the printer with the Asus router.

Connecting a network printer in Windows 7.

Check the connection of your printer using the web interface by opening any browser and entering the address bar http://192.168.1.1. In the window that appears, enter the username and password (admin and admin, respectively).

In the next window, you need to select the printer port (see Fig. 4). Go to item "Create a new port" and select from the dropdown list Standard TCP/IP Port.

After pressing the button "Further" the printer setup wizard will ask for the printer's IP address on the network, the printer's IP address corresponds to the router's IP address - 192.168.1.1. Enter it in the field Name or IP address and uncheck the box "Query printer and select driver automatically". We press "Next".

A window will open "Search TCP / IP port." Wait until a window appears asking you to enter additional information about the port.

Select device type Regular (Generic Network Card) and click Next:

Now you need to install the printer driver. Select your model from the list or Click the button "Install from disk..." and in the explorer specify the path to the file with the driver. Then click Next. Enter any printer name and click the Next button again. A window will appear with the printer installation process, after which the installation wizard will offer to set up printer sharing via the local network.

Choose an option "This printer is not shared" and click Next. The wizard will notify you that the driver has been successfully installed and offer to use the default printer. Now it remains to press the button "Ready" and configure port properties.

Open the menu Start - Devices and Printers. Find your printer, right-click and select "Printer properties". Go to tab "Ports" check the port you created earlier and click on the button "Configure Port..."

In the TCP port settings, select the LPR protocol and set the Name. Now click "OK" to save the settings.

If you are planning to buy a printer, then in this case, I advise you to consider buying a network printer. Prices for such devices have decreased in last years because almost every home or office has a wireless network! With a network printer and a wireless network, you can print from anywhere in the house from any device.

Here is what you need to do to set up a printer on your network:

1. First, connect the printer to your network by connecting one end of the Cat 5 cable that should have come with the printer to the router (router)

And the other end to the network port of the printer. Turn on your printer and wait until it is ready.

2. Next, you need to get the IP address of your printer. The IP address is what "says" where the printer is located on the network. All network printers allow you to print a configuration that lists basic information about the printer along with the current network configuration.

How to display this information about the printer, read the instructions that came with the printer.

IPAddress is what you need for the next step.

3. The last step is to add the printer to your computer. Click the Start button and then Printers and Faxes.

If you don't see it in the Start Menu, you can go to the Control Panel and then click on the Printers and Faxes icon. After opening this menu, click on the add printer icon, it is located on the taskbar on the left.

After that, the Add Printer Wizard will start, in the window that appears, click the Next button to start. In the next window that opens, you will be asked whether your printer is local or network. These options are confusing. Our printer is standalone and therefore you must choose Local printer connected to this computer and make sure you uncheck the box to automatically detect the printer.

Click the Next button, and a window will appear in front of you that will help you add TCP/IP printer port. In the first text box, Printer Name or IP Address, enter the printer's IP address from the configuration sheet you printed earlier.

If the network card for the printer cannot be identified, the wizard will ask you to select the card type. You can leave the default " General Network Cards” and click the Next button.

Click the Next button and then the Finish button. Then you will need to install the printer drivers, you can find them from the list offered to you in the printer setup wizard or install them from your disk through it, which will be much more reliable.

Ideas for wireless pairing with devices are ubiquitous. The trend has not bypassed equipment for displaying information. Therefore, it is necessary to resolve the issue of how to connect the printer to a laptop via WiFi.

The easiest way to connect

This method consists in using the wireless hardware installation wizard in Windows.

Before connecting the printer to a computer via WiFi in this way, you need to make sure that the printing equipment can connect using the wizard.

If the MFP supports WEP and WPA encryption modes, the pairing will be successful. Connect the device in the following order:

1. In the device management menu, select "Settings" - "Network". The wizard will display a list of nearby access points.
2. We choose our Wi-Fi.
3. Enter the network encryption password.

Additional way

How to connect a wireless printer to a computer if the previous methods did not help? There is another way, but it is more complicated than the previous options. In such methods, there are always nuances that can play a certain role when connecting devices. Most often they relate to the factory IP address and subnet mask, which is provided by the provider.

But such a situation is unlikely, and therefore it does not hurt to connect the MFP. This is due to the fact that most equipment does not use static addresses, but dynamic ones. For printing equipment of this kind, it is only necessary to add the IP address available on the device in the computer settings. How to connect a printer to a laptop without a wire in this case? You should act according to the following scheme:

1. We go to the control panel.
2. Select "Devices and Printers" - "Install Printer".
   
3. 2 items will appear in the window that opens. Here you will need to select the "Add a network, wireless or Bluetooth printer" block.
   
4. The PC will start searching for suitable hardware automatically. When the MFP is detected, it will appear on the screen.
   
5. After that, you need to open the proposed block, where you need to enter the IP that the MFP has.
   

At the end of the connection procedure, a window will appear notifying you that pairing with the output device was successful. You can start working with printing equipment immediately after restarting the laptop.

It is possible to connect the printer to your Wi-Fi router with a USB port using the built-in Print Server - it connects the printer to the router and provides access to it from any client computer on your network.

Connecting the printer to the router

In order to install a printer through a router, you need to connect the printer to the USB port of your router. In this article, I will tell you how to connect an Asus RT-N56U Wi-Fi router and a printer in Windows 7. Connecting a printer to this router is also possible using a special utility:

The utility allows you to automate the connection and configuration of a network printer and works only in Windows. Next, I will tell you how to connect the printer through the router manually.

Attention! Make sure your printer model is supported by the router! You can check the compatibility of the printer with the Asus router.

Connecting a network printer in Windows 7.

Check the connection of your printer using the web interface by opening any browser and entering the address bar http://192.168.1.1. In the window that appears, enter the username and password (admin and admin, respectively).

In the next window, you need to select the printer port (see Fig. 4). Go to item "Create a new port" and select from the dropdown list Standard TCP/IP Port.

After pressing the button "Further" the printer setup wizard will ask for the printer's IP address on the network, the printer's IP address corresponds to the router's IP address - 192.168.1.1. Enter it in the field Name or IP address and uncheck the box "Query printer and select driver automatically". We press "Next".

A window will open "Search TCP / IP port." Wait until a window appears asking you to enter additional port information.

Select device type Regular (Generic Network Card) and click Next:

Now you need to install the printer driver. Select your model from the list or Click the button "Install from disk..." and in the explorer specify the path to the file with the driver. Then click Next. Enter any printer name and click the Next button again. A window will appear with the printer installation process, after which the installation wizard will offer to set up printer sharing via the local network.

Choose an option "This printer is not shared" and click Next. The wizard will notify you that the driver has been successfully installed and offer to use the default printer. Now it remains to press the button "Ready" and configure port properties.

Open the menu Start - Devices and Printers. Find your printer, right-click and select "Printer properties". Go to tab "Ports" check the port you created earlier and click on the button "Configure Port..."

In the TCP port settings, select the LPR protocol and set the Name. Now click "OK" to save the settings.

1. Unpack the printer.
2. Follow the setup instructions to remove the packing material.
3. Connect the power cable, turn on the printer, and install the cartridges. Wait for the printer to complete all initial setup procedures, including printing an alignment page (if applicable).
4. Choose one of the connection methods described below. If you select a (wired) Ethernet connection (if the printer supports it), connect the printer now and skip the section. Note. When using an Ethernet connection, the printer's wireless function is disabled.

To print wirelessly without using wireless router, see details about it .

The printer supports at least one of the following wireless network connection methods:

HP Auto Wireless Connect

HP Auto Wireless Connect- HP Auto Wireless Connect is a technology that automatically connects the printer to a wireless network without using any cables and without having to enter a network name and password. Many newer HP printers will have this feature as part of their standard installation. software.

To use this option, install the printer software and follow the on-screen instructions. When prompted, select the connection type "Network (Ethernet/Wireless)", then select "Yes, send wireless settings to printer (recommended)". Ready! The HP software will complete the installation.

Not all computers or network settings are compatible with HP Auto Wireless Connect. In this case, an alternative method for setting up a wireless connection will be offered. Compatibility with HP Auto Wireless Connect technology is subject to the following conditions:

1. Having a computer running an operating system Windows systems Vista (or later) or Mac OS X 10.5 (or later).
2. The computer uses a wireless network connection and the operating system monitors the wireless network adapter to allow the HP software to obtain the current network settings.
3. The computer is connected to a 2.4 GHz network. NOTE. HP printers are not compatible with 5.0 GHz networks. The printer can be connected to the network using other setup methods, as long as the router also supports 2.4 GHz (most routers do). To learn more about this, go to the Routers section. This page provides additional configuration methods.
4. The computer is not using static IP address
5. The printer is in HP Auto Wireless Connect mode. Before connecting to the network, the printer will remain in this mode for two hours from the time it was first turned on during the installation process. ADVICE: If the printer has been powered on for more than two hours and the software has not yet connected the printer to the wireless network, you can reset this mode using the Restore Network Settings or Restore Network Defaults function on the printer control panel. You can do this in the Network menu or by tapping (or pressing a button) on the wireless icon and then going to Settings or by tapping on the gear icon. Detailed information See your printer documentation for information about restoring network settings.

The ability to use the HP Auto Wireless Connect feature is also subject to a number of other technical and environmental factors.

If you were prompted to use the HP Auto Wireless Connect feature during the installation process, then that feature is the recommended setup method. At some point in the setup, you must temporarily disconnect your computer from the wireless network. At this stage, Internet access will be unavailable. Therefore, before proceeding with the configuration using this method, save the results of your work on the Internet and / or downloaded data.

If you were not prompted to use the HP Auto Wireless Connect feature during the installation process, or if the feature does not work properly, you will be offered another method to set up your wireless connection.

WPS (Wi-Fi Protected Setup)

WPS (Wi-Fi Protected Setup) - WPS has two models for connecting devices over a wireless network. One is called "button press" and the second is called "PIN". Button press is more in a simple way. The WPS push button connection is described below, PIN code connection is not described.

For instructions on using the WPS function on the printer, see the printer's manual. However, to use WPS push button mode, the following conditions must be met:

• The printer and wireless router must support WPS push button mode. See the printer and wireless router manuals.
• The wireless router must have a WPS button.
• To ensure network security, you must use WPA or WPA2 technology. Most WPS wireless routers do not support connecting using WPS if WEP security technology is used or security is not configured.
• Most WPS wireless routers do not support connecting using WPS if the manufacturer's assigned network name is used or security is not configured.

To connect a wireless printer to a wireless router using WPS, follow these steps:

• On the printer, enable WPS push button mode.
  For instructions on using the WPS function on the printer, see the printer's manual.
• Hold down the WPS button on the router for 2 minutes.

HP Wireless Network Setup Wizard (for touch-screen printers)

Wireless Setup Wizard launched from the printer's control panel. (Not available for printers without a touch screen).

1. Make sure you know the network name and security password (WEP, WPA, or WPA2).
2. On the printer control panel, go to the menu Net or tap the wireless icon and then go to settings. Select Wireless Setup Wizard. The Wireless Network Setup Wizard will display a list of available wireless networks.

   Note. The settings button may be in the form of a wrench icon, depending on the model.

3. Select a wireless network name from the list.
4. If your wireless network is not listed, enter its name manually at the bottom of the list. Manually specifying the network name must be accurate and case-sensitive.
5. Enter the WEP key or WPA passphrase. Specify the key or passphrase accurately and case sensitive. The printer must be connected to a wireless network. If the printer is not connected, print a Wireless Network Test Report to help determine the cause of the problem.

Setting up wireless communication using a USB connection (for printers without a touch screen)

Setting up a wireless connection using a USB connection- Printers without a touch screen can use this wireless setup method when installing the printer software.

During installation, temporarily connect the USB cable to the computer and printer. Connect and disconnect the cable only when prompted by a program that provides instructions for setting up a printer's wireless connection.

In some cases, the program may automatically search for wireless network settings.

To establish a wireless connection between a wireless printer and a wireless router using a USB connection, see Installing the Printer Software