Connecting to Networked Printer via USB Port

[hreyes]

Hello,

I'm a consultant at a client site and currently have no access to
their networked printers. Since the printers do have USB ports I was
wondering if I could connect my Windows XP Pro laptop to one of these
printers via the USB port. Should I be able to do this? Would the
printer block the USB port from working if the ethernet connection is
on?

I already tried to download and install the printer driver but when I
try to print I get a print error. So, before I spend too much time
troubleshooting the printing problem from my laptop's point of view, I
wanted to make sure I wasn't trying to do something that would
inherently create a conflict between the printer's ethernet connection
and the USB port.

Thanks,
HR

 

[Alan Morris [MSFT]]

You would need to read the manual for the printer to determine if the USB
and Ethernet port can be enabled at the same time. When HP printers used to
come with USB and parallel, one port was disabled when you used the other
port such that two computer could not "share" the printer.

--
Alan Morris
Windows Printing Team
Search the Microsoft Knowledge Base here:
http://support.microsoft.com/default.aspx?scid=fh;[ln];kbhowto

This posting is provided "AS IS" with no warranties, and confers no rights.

 

[Cari \(MS-MVP\)]

Ooh I never knew that, how mean of them. Canons used to work with both
parallel and USB simultaneously.... and my Lexmark Optra is happily on
TCP/IP and parallel.

 

[Alan Morris [MSFT]]

HP usually works for both connections as well.

--
Alan Morris
Windows Printing Team
Search the Microsoft Knowledge Base here:
http://support.microsoft.com/default.aspx?scid=fh;[ln];kbhowto

This posting is provided "AS IS" with no warranties, and confers no rights.