Recipe 3.18. Resolving Failed Network Printing with Internet Connection Sharing

Problem

You cannot print to a networked printer after setting up Internet Connection Sharing.

Solution

Using the printer's setup features

1. Access the configuration menu for your networked printer or network printer adapter.

2. Change the network address of the printer to a value within the same 192.168.0.x TCP/IP subnet that Internet Connection Sharing uses. Valid addresses are 192.168.0.1 through 192.168.0.254, although your PCs are probably using the first few addresses, so setting the address to 192.168.0.10 should work.

3. Go to the Start menu, or through the Control Panel, and select Printers and Faxes.

4. Remove the networked printer, then select Add a Printer and reinstall the printer using its new IP address (step 2) for the TCP/IP port, or rerun the printer's installation software and configure it with the new address.

5. Repeat steps 3 and 4 on every PC that uses the networked printer so all of them can communicate with it on the proper subnet.

6. Send a test page from each PC to the network printer to be sure things are properly set up.

Discussion

Internet Connection Sharing uses the 192.168.0.x TCP/IP subnet for all computers that use this feature to communicate between networked/LAN-based computers to the Internet connection on the PC that is sharing the connection. If your LAN uses a different TCP/IP subnet, and your other PCs and printer may be able to communicate with each other, but they will no longer be able to communicate with the PC that has ICS installed and running. The necessary correction is to configure all PCs and networked devices to use the ICS-compatible network addresses.

This situation applies if you are using a printer that has a TCP/IP connection, or a network printer adapter, and your workstations print directly to its IP address. This does not apply if you share a printer from another computer or on a server.

See Also

Generic networked printer troubleshooting is covered at www.microsoft.com/hardware/broadbandnetworking/10_ts_printeronecomputer.mspx, while print server related troubleshooting is well-covered at http://www.windowsdevcenter.com/pub/a/windows/2004/09/28/printer_problems.html.