How Do I Share a Printer on a LAN (Local Area Network)?[/b]

You can print from every PC on your network to one printer. To share a printer with the other PCs in your home you need to configure the PC to which the printer is connected and then install the shared printer on each PC that you want to print from.



This article explains how to configure Windows to share a printer on a home network. If you already have a local area network set-up in your home then continue with this article, otherwise first read our instructions on setting up a local area network.

If you have not already done so, set-up and install the printer onto a PC following the manufacturer's instructions.

The following instructions will vary slightly depending on which version of Windows you are using.

Turn on all of the PCs on your network and turn on the printer.
Start with the PC to which the printer is connected. Click Start, Settings, Control Panel, Printers.
In the Printers window, right click on the printer that you want to share on the network and choose "Sharing" from the menu.
If this is the first time anything has been set-up for sharing on this PC, you may receive a security warning. In the security message, click on "Just enable printer sharing" and then click "OK". Otherwise click on "Share this printer".
Enter a share name, something like "Laser printer in office". However, if you have a PC with Windows 98 on your network, you will have to use a name that is no longer than 8 characters and has no spaces or special characters.
Now click "OK"

The printer is now shared. If this PC has Windows XP, it will install the printer onto other PCs on the network automatically. However, for other versions of Windows, or to add a printer manually, follow the steps below.

How To Add a Network Printer

Click Start, Settings, Control Panel, Printers.
Click "Add a printer".
After the Add Printer Wizard starts, click Next.
Click on "Network printer" and then click Next.
Leave the name field blank and click "Browse" or "Next" to browse the network for the printer.
Find the printer in the list or click the "+" sign next to the PC name that hosts the printer.
Select the printer and click "Next"
If you receive a warning, click "Yes".
Choose "Yes" or "No" to make this the default printer for this PC. Click "Next".
Click "Finish".
The printer should now appear in your list of printers. You can now use this printer for all printing, as long as the PC to which the printer is connected is turned on.

Troubleshooting Tip:

In a worse case scenario, where you receive errors when trying to install the printer drivers onto one of the PCs, try this. On the PC that you are having difficulty, physically install the printer as per the manufacturers instructions. Connect the printer and install the drivers just as though this printer was intended to be connected to this PC. Once you can successfully print from this PC, disconnect the printer and move it back to its proper location. Back on the problem PC, leave the printer in the list of printers but now follow the instructions above to install a network printer. Because the drivers are now already installed on your PC, the network version should install without a problem.