OT - Networking a Printer

[Snuffy "Hub Cap" McKinney]

You fellers are pretty knowledgeable about computers and have a lot more practical ideas than the geeks who live at computer groups dishing out opinions...

I've got this Epson WF-2630 ink jet connected via USB to a laptop with Windows 8.1, which is connected by ethernet to a router. There is another PC connected to the router that runs Windows 2000 and need to rig it up so I can print directly.

Right now, I'm converting files to PDF, transferring to 8.1 computer, then printing. That's OK for something now and then, but on a daily basis I need to print directly.

I already tried using XP printer drivers, generic drivers in W2K and installing from the printer's CD and no success.

Other than upgrading the old system, is there another way to print directly?

[trader_4]

That is the general process.

[gfretwell]

Did you share "files and printers" on the host machine? Does it connect when you browse printers on the client machine. Is that where the driver issue comes up? You should be able to get "driver details" from the host, copy those files to the share directory on the client and then point to them from the client printer driver.

[Art Shapiro]

As that printer is network-capable, it's probably "better" to not share it from a host machine, because that machine would always have to be powered up for the other machine(s) to use the printer.

As the first response's link suggests, I'd just plug it into one of the free network ports, ascertain the IP address assigned by the router, and then configure a printer on each machine to use that specific IP address as the port. Or ditto for the printer's apparent ability to use a wireless connection. Wired is more trouble-free if the printer happens to be situated near the router.

[trader_4]

That's a good point and better way of doing it, ie put it right on the network. I'd check the Epson website for install software to download to make it easy.

[philo]

Even though it's on a network, the printer still must have the correct drivers installed.

The mfg does not provide win2k drivers so if there is a "setup" program for XP that will not work.

That said, if it's a self-extracting exe file you can start the setup...then copy the files out of the temporary location and perform a manual install.

It should work as long as you use the 32bit XP drivers.

If not...The Win2k machine should be upgraded at least to XP or else replaced.

[Don Y]

You can always define the target directory (folder) for the PDF to be a network share *on* the 8.1 computer (or, a W2K share exported to the 8.1 computer)

[You could use any other portable format as well -- e.g., native PS]

Then, you'd need a daemon that just watched a particular "folder" and automatically "printed" anything that appeared in the folder.

[I suspect there are such beasts in the Windows world...]

While I can understand the reluctance to upgrade a machine (I only upgraded from w2K to XP a year ago!), it's probably time to bite that bullet (to XP, not anything beyond) -- unless you have some "precious" legacy devices/hardware that isn't supported under XP.

[Snuffy "Hub Cap" McKinney]

computer, then

Yes, you're probably right. I'll likely end up setting up a separate PC with XP and keeping the 2000 for old versions of Autocad that will not run on anything above 2000, RSLogix and other proprietary industrial programs.

[Don Y]

Build a virtual machine image of the W2K system and host it *under* the XP (or 7even or Linux or...) OS. The performance increase you will gain from the newer hardware (I suspect your W2K box is getting long in the tooth?) will more than compensate for the "inefficiency" (minor) of the hosting OS.

Try to decide what you *won't* need in the W2K image before building the VM as you can probably host some of the tools that you are running under W2K in the "native" XP system.

[Snuffy "Hub Cap" McKinney]

Good advice I'm sure, but it's been 15 years since I did any nuts and bolts computer work. Things have changed too much for me to keep up. Other than plugging in cables, I'm more of a user these days. Linux, virtual machine image, etc are Greek to me.

[Don Y]

Another "poor man's" way of doing it might be to stuff the W2K machine into a closet (figuratively) -- removing the need for the display and keyboard -- and install a VNC service on it. Then, a VNC *client* on the 8.1 machine.

This essentially gives you a remote display/keyboard for the W2K machine (allowing you to use the keyboard and display on your "regular" -- 8.1 -- computer for that purpose). I.e., what would normally appear on your W2K computer's display will, instead, appear

*in* this window on your 8.1 machine. And, anything that you type or click *inside* that window will be seen by the W2K machine as if it had been typed on the W2K keyboard/mouse!

So, connect to the W2K machine for program you want to run. When you want to print, print to a PDF (as you do now) -- on the W2K machine *or* on a network share exported from the 8.1 machine -- by issuing the appropriate commands ("clicks") in the VNC client "window" directed to the W2K machine.

Then, move the mouse out of the VNC window (so, your keyboard and mouse are now talking to the 8.1 machine's applications) and copy the PDF to YOUR printer.

I.e., this saves you the hassle of sneaker-netting the file from the W2K machine to the 8.1 machine -- and lets you do it all from a single display/keyboard/mouse.

(VNC is, IIRC, "free")