Gary Schnetter wrote:
OK, I think I am confused on what we are doing for sure. I have 2 issues. #1 is that I am signed in on my laptop and I "can" print when signed in under my airport connection, but when I change to HW8A7 (Vz router) to be connected then I cannot print.
If I can draw a diagram, it may make things easier.
Internet <- Ethernet/MoCA -> VZ 9100 EM <- Ethernet-> Airport
From a Wireless perspective...
Internet <-HW8A7-> WiFi Client
or
Internet <-Ethernet/MoCA-> VZ Router <-Ethernet-> Airport <-Airport SSID-> WiFi Client
If the VZ Router and the Airport allocate IP addresses and the ranges conflict, then routing can cause problems and the ability to see devices may not work.
If the Printer is connected to the Airport SSID, then any devices connected to HW8A7 cannot see the printer because it is "hidden" by the Airport internal network, very similar to how VZ hides your network behind the VZ router from the rest of the world (this is called a NATted network - NAT=Network Address Translation) . This is an island-within-an-island scenario. We are trying to figure out if that is the case or not. This is also called a "double NAT". The goal should be have a flat network behind the VZ router withe the VZ router allocating IPs to all devices within your network.
#2 is that I don't have any problems with the iMac, I haven't even set that up for printing wirelessly yet and I need help setting up the iMac to print to the same Pixma printer.
If it was a "flat" network, and the iMac could "see" the printer, you could see neighboring printers magically via auto discovery. If you go into System Preferences -> Printers and Scanners. There is nothing special needed. If the iMAC cannot find a driver for the printer (which is unlikely, because Apple used to resell Pixma printers). The worst-case scenario is the download the Mac driver from Canon website and install it on the iMac, but the visibility issues should be fixed first.
Regarding my laptop not printing from HW8A7, I went to my Utilities folder and found the Airport Utility, but when I open it up it shows a globe with Internet below it and my Airport base station, but says: "This version of AirPort Utility doesn’t support this base station. Go to AirPort Service and Support for more information." I have changed nothing except I have upgraded to Maverick's. So where do I go to find the Airport Utility to get the information for the airport configuration if that is what is needed to make my laptop print to HW8A7 also?
Upgrading to Mavericks updated your AU (Airport Utility) from 5.6.x which supports the dome 802.11b/g Airport to 6.3.x which does not. Here is a table AirPort Utility software and firmware downloads which provides a cross reference. If you have another Mac running an older version of OS X, you can run 5.6.x version which will allow you to view and make changes, if necessary, but at this point you cannot do that. The other option is to have a Windows machine and download AirPort Utility 5.6.1 for Windows and use that to configure the Airport. The last option is to disconnect the Airport and power it off.
I was just going to get rid of Airport since it is not necessary any longer. I bought it back when I only had DSL and wanted to connect wirelessly to both computers, but now with FiOS I really don't need airport, but if easier to leave it and just get my iMac to print wirelessly I guess I just need instructions on how to set that up to print wirelessly to my Pixma. FYI - I have an HP printer connected with ethernet now to that, but that printer doesn't work any longer. And although I don't print a lot from the iMac, I would like it set up so I can do it wirelessly when I do. I really don't have to be able to print using HW8A7 from either computer if I am keeping airport connected, just thought it may improve my speeds not having 2 routers.
Your Pixma printer is an 802.11b/g printer. If VZ upgrades your router which no longer supports 802.11b/g standard, you will be unable to use it. If you do not need the Airport now and cannot configure it due to limitations of Mavericks (or the lack of Windows machine), disconnect it and power it off. The downside is that the Pixma connected to the VZ router via wifi does not allow you to use higher speeds (802.11n) from the VZ router. One use would be to have the Airport be there just to have the printer visible to the rest of the network and you can name the SSID to say PrinterSSID. If you have older iDevices which do not support 802.11n, the Airport may be very helpful and can prevent some performance degradation by isolating the printer (and older iDevices) solely to the Airport.
It may be better in the long-run to have a single flat network and the printer be visible to all using this technique.
The loss in performance is almost negligible, because all 54Mbps Wireless traffic to the airport is going into a 100Mbps ethernet cable to the VZ router. Connecting the printer to the VZ router can slow all devices connected to the VZ down.
At this point, the 9100EM wifi configuration and the airport configuration will help address the current issues first.
