anier614 said:
can anyone please tell me how to set up wireless printing,
i have a desktop computer and one wireless laptop with d link 524 router.
the printer(brother mcf 7420)is connected to the desktop i would like to be
able to print from my laptop. but i have no clue how to get started. please
help.
thank you, much
There are two steps: (1) get the computers networked and (2) share the
printer.
By having a router to share the Internet connection, you are part way to
achieving step (1). Here's general networking advice from MS-MVP Malke:
Run the Network Setup Wizard on all computers, making sure to enable
File & Printer Sharing, and reboot. The only "gotcha" is that this will
turn on the XPSP2 Windows Firewall. If you aren't running a third-party
firewall or have an antivirus with "Internet Worm Protection" (like
Norton 2005/06) which acts as a firewall, then you're fine. If you have
third-party firewall software, configure it to allow the Local Area
Network traffic as trusted. I usually do this with my firewalls with an
IP range. Ex. would be 192.168.1.0-192.168.1.254. Obviously you would
substitute your correct subnet.
If one or more of the computers is XP Pro:
a. If you need Pro's ability to set fine-grained permissions, turn off
Simple File Sharing (Folder Options>View tab) and create identical user
accounts/passwords on all computers.
b. If you don't care about using Pro's advanced features, leave the
Simple File Sharing enabled.
Simple File Sharing means that Guest (network) is enabled. This means
that anyone without a user account on the target system can use its
resources. This is a security hole but only you can decide if it
matters in your situation.
I would add to Malke's advice that if you do have a third-party firewall
software, turn off the XPSP2 Windows Firewall, because you do not want
to have more than one firewall active.
For step (2), go to Printers & Faxes, select the printer, and click on
"Share this Printer" (under Printer Tasks in the left pane). Give the
printer a share name (12 or fewer characters, no spaces or special
characters), and you should be good to go.
The catch with this sort of printer sharing is that you can only print
from the laptop if the desktop (to which the printer is connected) is
turned on.
