Brendafromnm
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Q: how can I hook up my non wireless printer wirelessly to my airport extreme?

Currently I have my hp laser printer plugged into my airport extreme.  I want to be able to relocate my printer but not my airport.  Is there a way to make the connection from my computer to my airport extreme wireless?

Mac OS X (10.7.2)

Posted on Jan 14, 2012 1:57 PM

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Brendafromnm

Q: how can I hook up my non wireless printer wirelessly to my airport extreme?

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  • by Tesserax,Helpful

    Tesserax Tesserax Jan 14, 2012 2:00 PM in response to Brendafromnm
    Level 9 (54,906 points)
    Wireless
    Jan 14, 2012 2:00 PM in response to Brendafromnm

    Sorry, just want to be sure what you are asking ... do you want the connection between your computer & the AirPort OR the printer  & the AirPort to be wireless?

  • by Brendafromnm,

    Brendafromnm Brendafromnm Jan 14, 2012 3:05 PM in response to Tesserax
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    Jan 14, 2012 3:05 PM in response to Tesserax

    You are right to question.  I meant printer to airport wireless.  I want the computers on the wireless network to be able to print; but the printer will not be able to be hard connected to the airport in it's new location.  If I have two airports at opposite ends of the room will they interfer with each other? 

  • by Tesserax,Helpful

    Tesserax Tesserax Jan 15, 2012 1:51 PM in response to Brendafromnm
    Level 9 (54,906 points)
    Wireless
    Jan 15, 2012 1:51 PM in response to Brendafromnm

    I meant printer to airport wireless.  I want the computers on the wireless network to be able to print; but the printer will not be able to be hard connected to the airport in it's new location.

    In order for the printer to have a wireless connection to the AirPort router, it would have to be wireless Network-Ready. That means, it would have to have either a wireless card built-in or use a wireless Ethernet bridge to connect it by Ethernet. Which HP printer do you have?

  • by Brendafromnm,

    Brendafromnm Brendafromnm Jan 15, 2012 3:08 PM in response to Tesserax
    Level 1 (0 points)
    Jan 15, 2012 3:08 PM in response to Tesserax

    I have a hp Color LaserJet 2840 all-in-one.  Others have also told me it can't be done.  I will find another solution.  Thanks for your help.

  • by Tesserax,

    Tesserax Tesserax Jan 15, 2012 3:20 PM in response to Brendafromnm
    Level 9 (54,906 points)
    Wireless
    Jan 15, 2012 3:20 PM in response to Brendafromnm

    What you have been told is not true. The HP Color Laserjet 2840 is network-ready and has an Ethernet (wired) interface to connect to a wired network. Isn't that how you had it connected to the AirPort Extreme?

     

    As such you have a number of options to have it connect to a wireless network:

    1. Use an 802.11n AirPort Express Base Station (AXn), configured as a wireless Ethernet bridge. In this configuration, the AXn would join the wireless network provided by the AirPort Extreme and its Ethernet port would be enabled for the HP printer to be connected to for network access.
    2. Get a dedicated Wireless Ethernet bridge. A number of other router manufacturers offer these. The principle would be the same as how the AXn would be connected to the wireless network.

  • by Brendafromnm,

    Brendafromnm Brendafromnm Jan 15, 2012 4:30 PM in response to Tesserax
    Level 1 (0 points)
    Jan 15, 2012 4:30 PM in response to Tesserax

    Thank you very much.  I really appreciate the links.  I need to understand networking.  I think I'll look for a good tutorial. 

  • by Tesserax,

    Tesserax Tesserax Jan 15, 2012 4:55 PM in response to Brendafromnm
    Level 9 (54,906 points)
    Wireless
    Jan 15, 2012 4:55 PM in response to Brendafromnm

    If you plan on staying with Apple routers, the following two are really great starter tutorials:

  • by Brendafromnm,

    Brendafromnm Brendafromnm Jan 16, 2012 8:28 AM in response to Tesserax
    Level 1 (0 points)
    Jan 16, 2012 8:28 AM in response to Tesserax

    Thanks.  Is there interference problems if you use more than one wireless router?

  • by Tesserax,

    Tesserax Tesserax Jan 16, 2012 8:39 AM in response to Brendafromnm
    Level 9 (54,906 points)
    Wireless
    Jan 16, 2012 8:39 AM in response to Brendafromnm

    Potentially, yes. Depending on the network configuration, routers that are within range of each other should broadcast on different channels. For the 2.4 GHz band, at least 3-5 channels apart.

     

    Again, this is highly dependent on how you use the routers in the network configuration. For example, in a roaming network, this channel separation is essential to prevent Wi-Fi interference between routers. However, in an extended network, it is not as this type of network requires all routers to use the same channel.

     

    Finally, if you configure the AirPort to "join" another wireless network, the AirPort will use the same channel as the wireless network that it is joining so there is no requirement to use different channels here as well.