Accessing Network
Printers
Finding
the printers DNS hostname:
You’ll need to know the DNS hostname of your printer
before accessing it from your computer. Ex: myprinter.chem.cmu.edu
- Find
the printer’s IP address or Ethernet hardware address.
Usually this is done by printing a network test page from the printer
itself. For older HP printers with two buttons, pressing both
buttons at once for 5 seconds usually prints this page. Newer
printers with LCD menus have menu options to print this page. For
example, the Dell 3100cn will print the configuration page by selecting Menu,
Configure, Reports, Printer Settings. Printers connected via a
JetDirect External Print Server have a test button on the print server
box that prints the network configuration page.
- Visit http://netreg.net.cmu.edu, search
machines (this assumes the machine is registered under your user ID),
and enter the information you found above. The
‘hostname’ is the DNS hostname. If the printer
isn’t registered under your name, email me the hardware address or
IP address and I can look up the hostname for you. You can also
just use the printer’s assigned IP address in place of its DNS
hostname, but IP addresses do change from time to time, so it is best to
only use the DNS name.
Registering
a new network printer:
If you’ve just bought a new network printer,
you’ll need to register it at http://netreg.net.cmu.edu
in order for it to be assigned a campus IP address, just as if it were a new
computer.
- Find
the printer’s hardware address. Step 1 from ‘Finding
the printers DNS hostname’ has suggestions on how to do this.
- Register
it at http://netreg.net.cmu.edu
and write down what IP address netreg assigns to your printer.
- It
takes about 15 minutes before information about newly registered
machines propagates through the campus infrastructure. Wait 15 to
20 minutes and reboot the printer.
- Verify that the printer has picked up the new address,
usually by printing a network configuration page or going through the
printer’s menus
Windows XP (also Windows 2000/NT4):
- From the
Start menu, select Printers and Faxes. (Windows 2000/NT4: Start menu,
Settings, Printers)
- On the
left side of the window, in the Printer Tasks section, click on the link
for Add a Printer.
- In the
Add Printer Wizard window, click Next.
- In the
Local or Network Printer window, select Local Printer. Uncheck
‘Automatically detect and install my plug-and-play printer’.
Click Next.
- In the
Select a Printer Port window, choose Create a new port. From the Type of
port list, select Standard TCP/IP Port. Click Next.
- In the
Add Standard TCP/IP Printer Port Wizard window, click Next.
- In the
Printer Name or IP Address field, enter the DNS hostname of your printer
(ex: myprinter.chem.cmu.edu). The Port Name field can usually be
anything you like (without spaces), like ‘lp0’ or
‘print’ or the DNS hostname. Click Next.
- Click
Finish. It may take a few moments before the next window appears.
- From
the Manufacturers list, select the printer model of the printer you wish
to use. From the Printers list, select the model number of your printer,
followed by the designation (ex: HP LaserJet 4000 Series PS). Click
Next.
- If you
are asked whether you want to keep an existing driver, select Keep
existing driver, then click Next.
- In the
Printer name field, put the DNS hostname of the printer. This is
actually the display name of the printer for just this machine and can
be anything, but it’s a good idea to set it to the DNS name as a
visual reminder that it’s an IP printer that can be used from
anywhere. Most IP printers also have built in web servers that
display status information about the printer, so recording the DNS name
here can be a reference to use when typing in the printer’s web
address, like http://myprinter.chem.cmu.edu.
- If this
is the printer you will be using most often, select Yes to use this
printer as your default printer; otherwise, select No. Click Next.
- If you
are asked whether you wish to share the printer, select Do not share
this printer. Click Next.
- When you
are asked whether to print a test page, select No. Click Next.
- Click
Finish.
- If you
receive a message that a Microsoft digital signature was not found,
click Yes to continue the installation.
- To
check if the printer is working correctly, go to Start > Printers and
Faxes. Right-click on the newly created printer and pick Properties, and
choose Print Test Page.
Mac OS X:
- Find
the printer’s full DNS name using the instructions at the top of
this page.
- Go to
Applications, Utilties, Printer Setup Utility.
- Click
Add.
- Select
IP Printing. Some inkjet printers may install their own section,
like ‘hp IP Printing’ or ‘Epson IP
Printing’. If so, select that instead.
- Leave
the printer type at its default value of LPD/LPR
- In the
Printer Address field, put in the full DNS name off the printer, such as
myprinter.chem.cmu.edu.
- Leave
the queue name blank.
- Select
the appropriate printer model. (If your printer model isn’t
listed, download and install the OS X driver for your printer from the
printer vendor’s website and go back to step 2)
- The
display name of the printer can be anything, but it’s a good idea
to set it to the DNS name as a visual reminder that it’s an IP
printer that can be used from anywhere. Most IP printers also have
built in web servers that display status information about the printer,
so recording the DNS name here can be a reference to use when typing in
the printer’s web address, like http://myprinter.chem.cmu.edu.
Unsupported Operating Systems:
Windows 95/98:
Windows 95/98 does not come with IP printing capabilities.
Intelliscribe (http://www.intelliscribe.net/)
is a commercial product that can add this feature.
Mac OS
8 - 9:
- Once
you have the address of the printer, you need to launch the Desktop
Printer Utility. This can be found on your Macintosh HD in the
Applications->Utilities directory.
- Click
"Printer (LPR)", then click "OK".
- Click
the "Change" button in the PostScript Printer Description
section.
- Select
your printer from this list. If you printer is not found in this list,
you will need to select "Generic". Make your selection, then
exit with either the "Generic" or "Select" button.
- This
will bring you back to the previous dialog box. You now will need to
click "change" next to the "LPR Printer Selection"
section:
- Enter
the DNS name you obtained at the beginning of this process in the
"Printer Address" section. Leave the "Queue" section
blank. You can click "verify" to make sure you entered a valid
address. When you have finished, click "OK".
- Again,
you will be returned to the previous dialog. Click "Create"
here to proceed. You will be prompted to give a name to this printer:
- The
printer icon should now appear on the desktop.
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