WIFI Printer, Remote Printing?

[Mark Bolton]

Anyone know if there is a simple solution for me to be able to print jobs on my work printer from a remote location (via the internet perhaps). I have a WiFi printer running through my ISP modem/router. Im often working on drawings and generating cutlists when Im home and it would be nice to somehow be able to print them from there so they're ready here at the shop in the morning?

Im not really interested in an option where I have to purchase something or a monthly deal of sorts. Wondered if there was some way to send the jobs where its all tied to the router anyway.

Thanks..
Mark

[Matt Meiser]

Some printers have a mechanism where you send a file to an email address which the printer monitors and pulls down and prints the file. I know HP has this, but can't recommend their printers. I think Canon might too.

Another option would be a VPN router. From home you could VPN into the shop and then the printer would appear to be local. I've accidentally printed files in the office from remote locations so I can tell you that works :D

[Brad Sperr]

I've never tried it, but it looks like Google Cloud Print would do what you're asking. Here's an article (http://lifehacker.com/5882060/google-cloud-print-its-actually-awesome-and-heres-how-to-set-it-up)about how to set it up. It doesn't look like there's any fee, but you have to be using Google Chrome browser, which is my favorite browser anyway.

[Mark Bolton]

Thanks Matt,
This is a Brother tabloid (but very inexpensive). I will have to read through the literature. I havent found anything yet that seems to be resident in the printer or software. It seems like it should be easy, but lots of things seem that way.

I'm looking into the columbus option too by the way, I cant seem to decide on the pneumatic vs. electric option but will get something figured out here soon.

Thanks

[Chris Padilla]

Yeah, just as Matt said: HP printers can do this. I just picked up a new HP printer and set it up to do this. It is kinda cool...the printer has its own email address. However, you do lose some control over what you print in terms of formatting and such. I wouldn't recommend it for pictures, for example.

[Matt Meiser]

My experience, twice in the last few years, was that I could not get an HP wireless printer to work on the network. And that's the only 2 devices I've ever had trouble with.

[Chris Padilla]

I've read that about HP printers but I bought one anyway. Setting mine up was slow but easy. The wireless has been fine on it thus far...2 months into ownership. :)

[Sean Troy]

If yours is a Wi-Fi capable HP printer, it should be capable of printing anywhere. I can send documents to my printer from any computer or cell phone. It's called e print with HP

[Dan Hintz]

I'd VP into the network the printer is on and print the same way you've always printed a document...

[Darius Ferlas]

Yes, VPN would be the easiest solution.
Alternatively, you could set forwarding rule in your router, usually port 9100, to the printer's IP. Install a new printer pointing to your external IP.

[Christopher Clark]

I would ask your IT folks for VPN access. Your workplace should be behind a firewall and not allow the world to access that network. A VPN connection 'proves' who you are.
BTW, do not accidently send a resume to your workplace printer. As Ricky Ricardo sez, 'you got some 'splainin' to do!' ;)

[Curt Harms]

I suspect that Brother accomodates this function as well though it doesn't use a dedicated email address. I know there are apps to print from iDevices and Android. This is getting well beyond my level of knowledge but for someone with reasonable networking savvy it sounds fairly simple. You could call Brother and ask them. The times I've called Brother's support line (not in the past couple years) they've answered promptly and speak English. I think they're in Knoxville, TN.


http://superuser.com/questions/332588/remote-access-for-network-printer

..........
Port 80 is for web servers, port 631 is CUPS' web server, and port 646 has nothing to do with Printing that i'm aware of. i.e., none of these are going to allow you to forward a printer through a firewall.

Try forwarding Port 9100 and mapping the printer as a JetDirect device. Brother's have supported JetDirect for quite some time (I map mine that way).
In Windows, adding is different:
Add Printer -> Local Printer Attached...(Uncheck auto detect) -> Select Create New Port, choose Standard TCP/IP Port -> Enter hostname, Port Name is abstract and can be anything (within reason) -> Select proper printer driver -> Done, Profit. Everything else should be standard options.
As long as you're forwarding 9100, in theory that should work...
If you're trying to get Windows printer sharing to work through NAT and a typical ISP, you're just opening yourself up to leagues of problems.
Just tested this with my Brother 2070 and a friend a couple of hundred miles away, worked great for us with just Port 9100 going through the firewall to the printer. YMMV.


Another option would be some sort of remote control software but you'd have to have a computer on in order to print using that option. One of the useful things about having a printer attached to a router instead of a PC is that you don't need a powered-up PC to print. With any of these options, you're venturing beyond firewalled LANs so security is a consideration.

[David C. Roseman]

Mark - Further to Brad's suggestion, take a look at Google Cloud Print. Very simple to use, and works with any printer. No fees. I believe that unless you use one of the new "Cloud Ready" printers, the printer does need to be connected to a computer running the Chrome browser at the time you print (doesn't have to be your exclusive browser). Very convenient to print remotely from anywhere you can get to the Internet, via wifi or connection. I print from my Android smart phone from time to time.

David

[Mark Bolton]

Hey guys,
Thanks for all this info, I replied this morning from my phone but must have missed the post button.

To Christopher, unfortunately "I am" the IT department :) I'm a small custom shop and do a lot of drawings/designs at home evenings and weekends. Im just trying to come up with a way to print large cut lists and have them waiting for me when I get in in the morning. Also would be nice to print punch lists for employee's so I can just hand them a sheet and say "get out of my hair" :D

I am going to look into the port 9100 VPN option as I think I understand it. Been about 15 years or more, but I use to love tearing apart computers, fighting with configurations, and so on. But thats all back in the days of windows 3.x, 95, and so on. Ive purged much of that data from my memory banks as I kinda burnt myself out on it.

David, that was on my search yesterday. I found the cloud print on brothers site however after a bit of reading and checking my printer its not cloud print compatible. I can still do it but you have to have a computer sitting aside the printer if its not a compatible device. I dont keep a computer running here at the shop. I simply work from a laptop with an external large LCD extended desktop.

Im not sure if the VPN requires a machine here at the shop or if Im able to simply do it in the router.

Im working on it today at lunch so we'll see.

Thanks again everyone,
All very much appreciated.

[Mark Bolton]

Wow guys, Im not 100% sure but I think I got it!!

I logged into my modem/router (admin) and scoured through until I found port forwarding. Using Curt's info above, and a bunch of internet searching, Set up TCP forwarding, I put in the printers IP address, port 9100, then added a TCP/IP Network printer on my laptop with that IP. Windows detected the printer, use driver already installed, and asked to print a test page. I said yes, it printed, and thats where Im at. I have no idea how to confirm that in printed over the internet?

Seems like it may have been too easy, but we will see. I suppose now my next hurdle will be remembering to keep the paper full and wondering if there is a jam :eek:

[Matt Meiser]

Seems like it may have been too easy, but we will see. I suppose now my next hurdle will be remembering to keep the paper full and wondering if there is a jam :eek:

Webcam. Too bad I just recycled an old one that I could have sent you.

[Mark Bolton]

Would a web cam work on just a router? I have always wondered about that for remote monitoring the shop. I have been kicking around the idea of a camera on my dumpster to nab people leaving stuff on/around it.

[Matt Meiser]

Doing something very similar to what you did, yes. I've got a 4-camera DVR system from Costco here that I can access from anywhere.

[Mark Bolton]

Well, I did something wrong. Away from the shop it just says the printer is off line and the print job is just sitting there. Im wondering if what I did wrong was to set up my printer with the printers IP address when I should maybe have been sending it to my routers IP and the 9100 port? Is that the mistake I made.

I set it up with the typical 192.168.x.x IP and wondering if that on applies when Im on my LAN?

[Myk Rian]

I set it up with the typical 192.168.x.x IP and wondering if that on applies when Im on my LAN?
That is correct.
Not going to work the way you want. I'm watching this thread for the easy answer to it.

[Darius Ferlas]

Well, I did something wrong. Away from the shop it just says the printer is off line and the print job is just sitting there. Im wondering if what I did wrong was to set up my printer with the printers IP address when I should maybe have been sending it to my routers IP and the 9100 port? Is that the mistake I made.

I set it up with the typical 192.168.x.x IP and wondering if that on applies when Im on my LAN?

The 192.168.0.0/16 will work only from within your LAN as this is a private address block. Hence you need to do port forwarding. When outside your home's/office's internal network, you need to connect to to your router's external IP. Upon receving your print job the router will look its port forwarding table which says any traffic sent to port 9100 should go to your printer's internal IP address, i.e. 192.168.*.*

This external setup may also work from within your office, but that will depend if your router has a loop back functionality. Some don't.

[Mark Bolton]

Thanks Darius,
I'm on the 6-7 day a week schedule so back to the shop shortly. Ill look up the routers IP and give it another shot. I'm pretty sure I've got the port forwarding covered in the router.

Fingers crossed.

[Myk Rian]

Looking at my own router config., it looks like you would setup DDNS through http://www.dyndns.org/
From my router help file:

Using Dynamic DNS
The Dynamic DNS service allows you to alias a dynamic IP address to a static host name in any of the many domains DynDNS.org offers, allowing your network computers to be more easily accessed from various locations on the Internet. DynDNS.org provides this service, for up to five host names, free to the Internet community.
The Dynamic DNSSM service is ideal for a home website, file server, or to make it easy to access your home PC and stored files while you're at work. Using the service can ensure that your host name always points to your IP address, no matter how often your ISP changes it. When your IP address changes, your friends and associates can always locate you by visiting yourname.dyndns.org instead!
To register free for your Dynamic DNS host name, please visit http://www.dyndns.org.
Setting up the Router's Dynamic DNS Update Client
You must register with DynDNS.org's free update service before using this feature. Once you have your registration, follow the directions below.
1. Enter your DynDNS.org user name in the "User Name" field (1).
2. Enter your DynDNS.org password in the "Password" field (2).
3. Enter the DynDNS.org domain name you set up with DynDNS.org in the "Domain Name" field (3).
4. Click "Update Dynamic DNS" to update your IP address.
Whenever your IP address assigned by your ISP changes, the Router will automatically update DynDNS.org's servers with your new IP address. You can also do this manually by clicking the "Update Dynamic DNS" button.

This one: http://www.noip.com/ is a free service.

[Mark Bolton]

Myk,
Yeah, This morning it dawned on me that this is an issue. I think I knew the static IP thing in the back of my mind but for some reason was too dim to figure it out.

I just spoke with my ISP and to get the static I have to upgrade accounts, blah blah blah, not gonna happen.

Your option is a great one if I had a work station/PC sitting here to install DynDNS. 25 a year would be fine with me.

I guess at this point I just print my jobs and they sit in the queue until I walk in the shop start up the laptop. Its no big deal really, just a couple extra minutes.

Sure wish I'd thought of it when shopping for a printer. The Google icloud print is the ticket but as always I wound up with a printer that doesnt support it. That said, this is a very inexpensive printer that does tabloid and automatic two sided, two paper trays, blah blah blah. All things I use daily for shop drawings where the remote would just be handy.

Thanks again for everyone's input.

[Matt Meiser]

You might be able to set up DynDNS in the router. If you have the ISP's router that might not be in their customized firmware though. If you have who I think you have and use their force-upon-you router, you can put it in a pass-through mode and use a regular off the shelf router.

[Mark Bolton]

Matt, I have frontier. I will have to look and see... I believe I have a spare router at the house... the saga continues!! But always hope... :D

[Mark Bolton]

Wholly cow, low an behold in searching through the router the DynDNS optioin is in there... sheesh..

[Myk Rian]

My Belkin does also (DDNS). It's tied through http://www.dyndns.org/ ,which requires me to pay.
I had a noip.com account years ago. I'll have to find the logon info. Maybe I wrote i down. Or not.

Not sure how well I like this Belkin. I Usually have D-link routers.

[Matt Meiser]

I've got Frontier too but mine's in passthrough so I couldn't easily check. Glad you found it.

Myk, Frontier knows best and doesn't always give us access to everything--hence passthrough on mine which they are not happy about when I've called support.

I've been a DynDNS customer since the dude was running it out of his dorm room or something like that. I donated $15 bucks or something like that way back and when they grew they kept those of us who did that grandfathered in forever. What I've got now would be really expensive. That they did that gets them a lot of respect from me.

[Mark Bolton]

Matt,
I setup the DynDNS but havent figured out how to make sure I have it lined out correctly. Ive read a lot of shakey stuff about opening port 9100, which Im not actually sure I have to do yet. But at this point I have the DynDNS setup and am still piddling around with it. I set up my router for remote access so I can fiddle with it tomorrow.

I think the real glitch on my end is where I have no computer here and it all has to be through the modem its a bit more confusing for me... but problem solving, while not always productive, is appealing to me.

Back to building cupboards and drawers...

[Darius Ferlas]

No port is is more or less secure than any other port. The problem is the device/software accessible through that port. The moment you connect a device to the internet you're taking a chance. That is pretty much similar to taking a walk in the park. Someone can menace you.

Depending on the models of your printer and router, you may enforce certain security measures to decrease, but not to eliminate the risks. Let's face it, if they can break into the DoD servers they can surely break into a printer.

On the destination side look if:

- the printer has any kind of authorization requirements to accept print jobs and other connections
- see if the router can port forward based on the source address (or address range) and/or based on MAC address (http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/MAC_address).