coxorange

Q: Printer Sharing via LAN - EPSON  XP-335

Hello,

We are using 3 Macs, connected via LAN (Ethernet, we don't use Wi-Fi).

I have connected an EPSON XP-335 via USB to Mac #1, and it prints fine.

On all Macs I have installed the EPSON printer software and activated "Printer Sharing" via Preferences > Sharing,

but when I try to print from Mac #2 or #3 I only get this "not connected" message:

epson.png

What do I have to do?

Many thanks.

iMac (Retina 5K, 27-inch, Late 2015), OS X El Capitan (10.11.4)

Posted on Jul 11, 2016 5:00 AM

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Q: Printer Sharing via LAN - EPSON  XP-335

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  • Helpful answers

  • by tim_135,Helpful

    tim_135 tim_135 Jul 16, 2016 2:01 AM in response to coxorange
    Community Specialists
    Jul 16, 2016 2:01 AM in response to coxorange

    Hi coxorange,

     

    Thanks for using the Apple Support Communities for help. From your post, I understand that you are unable to access the printer that is connected to one of your iMacs, from the others in the house. I know it's nice to be able to print from all of your devices, so I'm happy to help provide some direction for this.

     

    From the information you've provided, it seems that there is some confusion about how the printer is shared on your devices. In order to have a shared printer, you only have to share it from the computer it is connected to. From there, you can connect to that printer with other computers. Perform these steps on the iMac it is connected to:

     

    How to share a printer:

    1. Open Sharing preferences if it isn’t already open (choose Apple menu > System Preferences and click Sharing), then select the Printer Sharing checkbox.

    2. Below Printers, select the printer you want to share.

       

      When you share a printer, all users on your network (“Everyone”) can use it by default. If you want to restrict access to specific people, continue with steps 3 and 4.

    3. Click the Add button  at the bottom of the Users list, then do any of the following:

       
         
      •  

        Select a user from Users & Groups, which includes all the users of your Mac.

         
      •  
      •  

        Select a user from Network Users or Network Groups, which includes everyone on your network.

         
      •  
      •  

        Select a person from your contacts. Create a password for the person, then click Create Account.

         
    4. When you add people to the Users list, access to the shared printer is reset to No Access for users on your network (“Everyone”). To provide access to Everyone again, click the triangles, then choose Can Print.

    Source: OS X El Capitan: Share your printer

     

    Once the printer is shared, you'll want to set it up on your other computers. Check out the second section of this article, titled "Add a Wi-Fi or network printer":

    OS X El Capitan: Add or remove a printer

     

    If you continue to have difficulties with your printer configuration, here are some additional articles which may help you identify the issue:

    OS X El Capitan: Printing troubleshooting

    Resolve printer issues on your Mac

     

    I hope you have a great rest of your day, cheers!

  • by coxorange,

    coxorange coxorange Jul 13, 2016 10:26 AM in response to tim_135
    Level 1 (57 points)
    Mac OS X
    Jul 13, 2016 10:26 AM in response to tim_135

    Hi Tim and thanks for your answer.

     

    I modified the settings on the other Macs, but we still can't print from these Macs (same message as above).

     

    When I bought the printer I did exactly what EPSON wrote in their description: downloaded and installed their latest software & documentation on all 3 Macs. I can't imagine that this was wrong.

     

    What can I do now? Thanks again.

  • by MoonJ.,

    MoonJ. MoonJ. Jul 13, 2016 10:37 AM in response to coxorange
    Community Specialists
    Jul 13, 2016 10:37 AM in response to coxorange

    Thank you for using the Apple Support Community. Due to the nature of your issue, you may find more information by using another one of Apple's support resources:

    Contact Apple Support

     

    Cheers.

  • by coxorange,

    coxorange coxorange Jul 13, 2016 10:48 AM in response to MoonJ.
    Level 1 (57 points)
    Mac OS X
    Jul 13, 2016 10:48 AM in response to MoonJ.

    Thanks for your suggestion, but I really would prefer to solve this here if possible.

     

    • Should I try to delete the downloaded EPSON software?

    • Or should I right click on the printer and "Reset printing system..."?
    (Would this also delete or deactivate the downloaded EPSON software?)
    Many thanks.
  • by Eric Root,

    Eric Root Eric Root Jul 13, 2016 12:35 PM in response to coxorange
    Level 9 (72,634 points)
    iTunes
    Jul 13, 2016 12:35 PM in response to coxorange

    Try the reset. Also try turning the printer off/on.

     

    Reset the printing system - OS X El Capitan

  • by coxorange,

    coxorange coxorange Jul 13, 2016 1:41 PM in response to Eric Root
    Level 1 (57 points)
    Mac OS X
    Jul 13, 2016 1:41 PM in response to Eric Root

    Thanks. In the meantime I found the solution.

    I just added the printer via [+] button in "Printers & Scanners" a second time.

    It found the printer @ the first Mac (where it is connected via USB).

    As soon as the new one appeared in the list, I deleted the old one (probably installed as local).

    Now it works.

     

    There is only one thing that bothers me: On one of the two Macs (where the printer is not connected), App Store Update offers me an update for the printerdriver - but not on the other Mac!

    When I look in "Printers & Scanners" under "Options & Supplies...", on both Macs the SAME driver version 9.65 is displayed!

    Shall I install this update on the one Mac? Why is it not offered on both?

    Thanks again.

  • by greg sahli,Helpful

    greg sahli greg sahli Jul 16, 2016 2:01 AM in response to coxorange
    Level 7 (25,395 points)
    Jul 16, 2016 2:01 AM in response to coxorange

    The update issue is a mystery at this point - but go ahead and do it.

    One clarification for future situations - printer sharing is supposed to be turned on on only the Mac that has the printer connected - it's the server.

    If I mis-read - nevermind...

  • by coxorange,

    coxorange coxorange Jul 14, 2016 5:00 AM in response to greg sahli
    Level 1 (57 points)
    Mac OS X
    Jul 14, 2016 5:00 AM in response to greg sahli

    Thanks for your suggestion:

    greg sahli wrote:

    The update issue is a mystery at this point - but go ahead and do it.

    Before installing the update I've asked EPSON support, and just got an answer:

     

    EPSON support:

    In response to your email, the software update 3.2 sounds as though it is an Apple printer driver update, as such we would be unsure as to why this is only appearing on one Mac and you would need to contact Apple directly as it is an Apple update. If there are currently no problems when printing, then it would be recommended to ignore any updates.

    Now I don't know what to do!  I don't like it to always see this suggested update in App Store,

    which won't go away if I don't install it...

     

    How can I see if on the other Macs that version 3.2 is already installed?

    My thought is that maybe for some reason the 3.2 version on the one Mac just got damaged,

    and therefore it's offered to re-install. Would that be a possibility?

     

    Nevertheless I would like to check first if 3.2 is already installed on the other Macs...

    But how?

  • by coxorange,

    coxorange coxorange Jul 15, 2016 4:34 AM in response to coxorange
    Level 1 (57 points)
    Mac OS X
    Jul 15, 2016 4:34 AM in response to coxorange

    I had a look at the other two Macs' "About This Mac > System Report..." and saw under

    "Software > Installations..." that EPSON Printer Software Update 3.2 (28/01/2016) was already installed,

    so I installed the recommended update on the 3rd Mac. No problems so far.

     

    This was really confusing:

    - When buying the printer EPSON recommends downloading and installing THEIR software.

    - Apple recommends NOT downloading manufacturer's software, because it's already included with OS X.

    (Really? All functions? Scanner...?)

    Why is there no common, mutual recommendation?

    How shall a customer decide what's better...?