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Networking A Parallel HP All-in-One With A USB Print Server

F

FPSguy

Golden Member
My relatives have an HP 1170cxi All-in-One parallel port printer. They have two computers and are successfully printing to the printer from both computers using Windows printer sharing. Of course, that means the directly-connected computer must be running for the other computer to print.

I would like to get them on a print server so that computer A need not be on for computer B to print. They don't need to scan over the network -- only print -- so they will be okay with the more limited capabilities of a lesser printer driver such as the 550C printer driver (which should work over the network, according to this page from the HP site [link may not work due to sessions]).

The problem is that I currently have a USB print server, and the printer is a parallel port printer. So my question is, can I use a USB to parallel adapter, or do I have to buy a parallel print server? This page from the HP site (link may not work due to sessions) says I cannot use a USB to parallel adapter with this printer, but knowing HP they are saying that because the scanning features won't be supported. Does anyone here know if a USB to parallel adapter will work?

For those who wonder why I don't just test it and see, the answer is that I am going to visit them soon and I would like to make sure I bring with me everything I need to make it work. I am hoping to buy either a cheap USB to parallel adapter, or a more expensive parallel print server, but not both.
 
Hardly. Those all-in-ones are highly dependant on a direct connection to an actual computer, and their very specifically written driver. Even if you had an USB all-in-one it wouldn't work on a print server.
 
I hate to disagree with you, but I put another relative's USB HP All-in-One on a print server at their house and it works just fine. There was a document on the HP support site about how to do it. You just need to use a substitute printer driver for another HP inkjet printer (as opposed to the All-in-One driver) -- presumably so that the communication only goes one way. The trick is to find a printer driver that writes to your All-in-One okay. It seems like the HP support site is now saying that the 550C driver is going to print fine to most of their All-in-Ones. Thus, the only part of this that I think is tenuous is whether the USB to parallel adapter will work. If anyone has tried this, or even just tried a USB to parallel cable directly between a computer and a parallel HP All-in-One, I would appreciate hearing about your experience.
 
Update:

So I asked this same question of HP tech support by e-mail, and they basically responded that --
1. Networking the printer may work, using the 550C driver, though they don't support it; and
2. They don't recommend putting anything other than a parallel cable between the 1170cxi and the computer, because "This type of connection usually causes hardware or software conflicts that result in intermittent or total failure of communication between the computer and the AiO."

It still seems like a good USB to parallel cable would not be the source of problems, but I guess I'm not going to try it unless someone here has tried something similar and found that it works.

Anyone?
 
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