Ricoh Aficio and Laserjet 4240 do not like my office network. Suicide questioned.

[dak125]

Any help would be GREATLY appreciated as I am opening for business after moving offices this upcoming Monday, and these two printers need to be online. Please note that of all things computing, networking is my least favorite. The fact that all of the computers are online right now makes me believe that there IS a man upstairs, anyways:

The space:
A timber loft that was completely wired for internet. By that I mean that there are plugs that are numbered with corresponding ethernet cables throughout the office. Those ethernet cables are plugged into my D-Link switch that I just purchased. As of right now, all of the computers are online. The problem lies solely in the two main printers.

The hardware:
-Six desktops of varying age, all of which are running Windows 7.
-Ricoh Aficio MP4500, big mama jama that prints, faxes, scans, cooks dinner, and weighs 300 pounds. I loathe this machine.
-HP Laserjet 4240N. A midsize B&W Printer that I thought was going to be the easy one.
-D-Link DES-1024D 24 port ethernet switch.

Troubleshooting done thus far:
-I have plugged the printers into the switch, and the cable modem directly, neither worked.
-I have plugged each printer into one of the aforementioned outlets, that didn't work.
-I changed the Ricoh's IP to auto and tried adding a local printer via TCP/IP, it didn't find it.
-I tried innumerable times, on multiple PC's to search for a printer, that didn't work.
-I've tried adding the HP 4240 to a PC via TCP/IP, that didn't work.
-There is a third printer that will only be used by one person (an HP Laserjet 8500 little POS that was purchased for $200 from Office Depot), just for fun and the PC picked it up via a network scan IMMEDIATELY, I proceeded to pull my hair out. And by 'plug-in', I should mention I plugged it directly into one of the wall ports.
-I have installed individual drivers for both the HP & Ricoh and that didn't do anything. The drivers were installed just fine, but they didn't read anything.

I think that about sums it up. I'm going to take some pictures momentarily to offer a visualization. Any help would be tremendously appreciated. Also feel free to watch the 9:00 Chicago local news for a man screaming from a rooftop about printers being the scorn of the Earth.

EDIT: The pictures are as follows. The computers, the printers, me not liking the printers, the numbered plugs throughout the office, the printers in relation to where the computers are.

 

[kevnich2]

You need to either assign an IP to both the printers, then add a tcp/ip printer and then add in the printer's specific IP's. The computer's won't just find the printers. If you set them both up with DHCP - then you need to find out what IP they were assigned, then add those IP's in via a tcp/ip printer port. Though I don't recommend using DHCP for printers as DHCP IP's can change. Assign the printer's an IP that is in the same subnet but out of the DHCP range.

If your subnet is 192.168.1.1, and your DHCP range is 192.168.1.100-199 then assign the printer's 192.168.1.10 and 192.168.1.11. Then go into the control panel > printer's > add new printer. Choose local printer but not to automatically search and find a printer. Then choose new printer port and choose standard tcp/ip, then hit next. Then type in the IP of the printer to add then hit next. Then add the driver's, next then finish. Should take care of it.

 

[Emulex]

dude you use DHCP for hp printers - always. trust me on this one.

then on a server or pc that is reliable i add the printer manually and then have disk to load the drivers (use the highest operating system version possible). this avoids the carpware. then share the printer.

i use dhcp lease reservations with the mac address to assign dns etc - it works.

for some reason this works 100x better especially when dealing with older models

 

[GeekDrew]

I'm familiar with both of those printer models; we have quite a few of them at work. Some of them get their IP addresses from DHCP, some are statically assigned. My advice is that if you know how to assign DHCP reservations (to associate a MAC to an IP address), do that. If you don't, static IP address *will* work. If you go the static route, make sure that the IP address is *not* in the range of IP addresses used by the DHCP server.

Also, if you change any network settings -- from DHCP to Static, or from Static to DHCP, or after you assign an IP address if you go the static route -- power down the device after changing the setting, before trying to use it again. By power it down, I mean save the settings, give it a minute, then hit the power switch. On the Ricoh, after you hit the power switch and it shuts down, pull the power plug. Then plug it back in and start it up.

After you've done that, go to the PC, and try to ping (open command prompt, type "ping 1.2.3.4" if 1.2.3.4 is the IP you assigned). That'll tell you if you can communicate with the printer. If you can, go ahead and install the drivers and print queue. If not, look at the ipconfig on the computer - make sure that it's in the same subnet as the printers. If it is, then check physical connectivity - make sure that everything is plugged in correctly.

 

[Emulex]

all hp printers can print their configuration from the control panel - btw. print it out it should show the status of networking. i'd guess you are connected - assuming a good cable - but have a 169.x.x.x ip address.

disable all protocols on those printers you don't need - appletalk/ipx/etc they usually are on and that causes broadcast junk(unrelated) - some of the modern switches that are web managed can take action against them (as they appear as a threat trying to broadcast storm).

did you put the printers on the same switch as the computers? get the long ass cat5 wire out.

 

[dak125]

Thanks for all of your responses!

dude you use DHCP for hp printers - always. trust me on this one.

then on a server or pc that is reliable i add the printer manually and then have disk to load the drivers (use the highest operating system version possible). this avoids the carpware. then share the printer.

i use dhcp lease reservations with the mac address to assign dns etc - it works.

for some reason this works 100x better especially when dealing with older models

Unfortunately I can't get to the point of the computer even acknowledging the existence of either printer. I cannot ping either of the addresses.

I'm familiar with both of those printer models; we have quite a few of them at work. Some of them get their IP addresses from DHCP, some are statically assigned. My advice is that if you know how to assign DHCP reservations (to associate a MAC to an IP address), do that. If you don't, static IP address *will* work. If you go the static route, make sure that the IP address is *not* in the range of IP addresses used by the DHCP server.

Also, if you change any network settings -- from DHCP to Static, or from Static to DHCP, or after you assign an IP address if you go the static route -- power down the device after changing the setting, before trying to use it again. By power it down, I mean save the settings, give it a minute, then hit the power switch. On the Ricoh, after you hit the power switch and it shuts down, pull the power plug. Then plug it back in and start it up.

After you've done that, go to the PC, and try to ping (open command prompt, type "ping 1.2.3.4" if 1.2.3.4 is the IP you assigned). That'll tell you if you can communicate with the printer. If you can, go ahead and install the drivers and print queue. If not, look at the ipconfig on the computer - make sure that it's in the same subnet as the printers. If it is, then check physical connectivity - make sure that everything is plugged in correctly.

As of right now I cannot gain access to either printer through the network. The subnet mask for the HP is not the same as the computer. Pinging the printer results in a timeout.

The Ricoh has decided that it doesn't want the touchscreen to work anymore - except the far upper right corner of it which results in being able to see how many pages it has printed, that's it. Any thoughts on the touchscreen?

all hp printers can print their configuration from the control panel - btw. print it out it should show the status of networking. i'd guess you are connected - assuming a good cable - but have a 169.x.x.x ip address.

disable all protocols on those printers you don't need - appletalk/ipx/etc they usually are on and that causes broadcast junk(unrelated) - some of the modern switches that are web managed can take action against them (as they appear as a threat trying to broadcast storm).

did you put the printers on the same switch as the computers? get the long ass cat5 wire out.

The HP is plugged into the switch right now. The IP I'm getting is 10.10.20.xx and for the computer I'm getting 10.1.10.1xx. I cannot gain access to the HP via it's IP. Unfortunately I do not know what any of this really means

 

[GeekDrew]

Thanks for all of your responses!

Unfortunately I can't get to the point of the computer even acknowledging the existence of either printer. I cannot ping either of the addresses.

As of right now I cannot gain access to either printer through the network. The subnet mask for the HP is not the same as the computer. Pinging the printer results in a timeout.

The Ricoh has decided that it doesn't want the touchscreen to work anymore - except the far upper right corner of it which results in being able to see how many pages it has printed, that's it. Any thoughts on the touchscreen?

The HP is plugged into the switch right now. The IP I'm getting is 10.10.20.xx and for the computer I'm getting 10.1.10.1xx. I cannot gain access to the HP via it's IP. Unfortunately I do not know what any of this really means

If the Ricoh touchscreen is dead, you'll need to have a repair company service it. You're not going to be able to do much with it if you can't use it. Has that machine been particularly abused? I've never had a touchscreen fail, and of all of the machines I've used, Ricoh machines have been among the most reliable.

As for the networking, at least as far as the HP goes. Verify that both the PC and the printer are set for DHCP, and then restart them. Then check the IP address again. If they're still different, then either 1) your DHCP server is all kinds of screwed up and you'll have to either 1a) fix the DHCP server config or 1b) switch to static addressing, or 2) you have multiple DHCP servers operating on your network.

I'd be inclined to believe that you have multiple DHCP servers running. The most common reasons I've seen for this are 1) the internet modem is directly connected to the switch, rather than through a router; 2) the router between the internet modem and the switch is misconfigured; or 3) there are multiple routers or modems attached to the switch simultaneously. What kind of modem and router do you have? Do you have multiple of either of them, or just one? Do you have any other network equipment attached to the switch, such as a router configured to be a wireless access point?

 

[dak125]

If the Ricoh touchscreen is dead, you'll need to have a repair company service it. You're not going to be able to do much with it if you can't use it. Has that machine been particularly abused? I've never had a touchscreen fail, and of all of the machines I've used, Ricoh machines have been among the most reliable.

As for the networking, at least as far as the HP goes. Verify that both the PC and the printer are set for DHCP, and then restart them. Then check the IP address again. If they're still different, then either 1) your DHCP server is all kinds of screwed up and you'll have to either 1a) fix the DHCP server config or 1b) switch to static addressing, or 2) you have multiple DHCP servers operating on your network.

I'd be inclined to believe that you have multiple DHCP servers running. The most common reasons I've seen for this are 1) the internet modem is directly connected to the switch, rather than through a router; 2) the router between the internet modem and the switch is misconfigured; or 3) there are multiple routers or modems attached to the switch simultaneously. What kind of modem and router do you have? Do you have multiple of either of them, or just one? Do you have any other network equipment attached to the switch, such as a router configured to be a wireless access point?

The Ricoh touchpad went kaput last night as I was messing with it. It only works on the top right part of the pad. After doing some searching I found a way to get to the calibration tool, unfortunately that doesn't work either.

You're right, the modem is connected directly to the switch. I got the impression that this was problematic and added a basic Linksys to the mix a little while ago. All of the computers lost internet connectivity at that point. The modem is SMC8014. I just gained access to it's admin menu with the help from another user at a different forum.

Thoughts on having the router involved? Is that necessary? I had the modem-->router-->switch and restarted all of them. As I mentioned, all of the computers lost connectivity. The router is a Linksys befsr41, but it's not connected to anything at this point.

Thanks for your help!

 

[Emulex]

change your laptop to the same subnet or change your subnet mask to 255.0.0.0 and then http into the HP.

ie manual setup static ip on your pc/laptop to 10.1.10.69 (guess) one that doesn't collide, set the default gateway to the same as it is now (cmd ipconfig /all) its probably 10.10.20.1 or 10.10.20.254 based on guess), set subnet mask to 255.0.0.0, set dns to 8.8.8.8,8.8.8.4, then http://10.1.10.1xx to the hp and change the networking to a safe place on your subnet.

like 10.10.20.69..(copy rest of info from another pc just move the ip out of dhcp range).

 

[GeekDrew]

The Ricoh touchpad went kaput last night as I was messing with it. It only works on the top right part of the pad. After doing some searching I found a way to get to the calibration tool, unfortunately that doesn't work either.

You're right, the modem is connected directly to the switch. I got the impression that this was problematic and added a basic Linksys to the mix a little while ago. All of the computers lost internet connectivity at that point. The modem is SMC8014. I just gained access to it's admin menu with the help from another user at a different forum.

Thoughts on having the router involved? Is that necessary? I had the modem-->router-->switch and restarted all of them. As I mentioned, all of the computers lost connectivity. The router is a Linksys befsr41, but it's not connected to anything at this point.

Thanks for your help!

Unless you have a very specific reason to do so (such as if you've purchased static IP addresses for each of your devices from your ISP, and understand the security implications of doing do), you definitely do not want to have your modem attached directly to the switch. Here's an outline of what I would do:

- Power everything down. *All* of it. PCs, printers, switches, routers, modems, etc.
- Plug the modem into the router's WAN port.
- Power up the modem. Wait until it has finished starting up.
- Power up the router. Wait until it has finished starting up.
- Plug a PC directly into a LAN port on the back of the router.
- Power up one PC. Check to see what IP address you're assigned. Use "ipconfig /all" to also see what your subnet mask, DNS, and default gateway is set to.
- Try to get online. If you can't, refer to the router's manual for configuration procedure. (Tip: the router's IP address is *probably* the default gateway IP address that you will see in "ipconfig /all". Type that IP address into your browser of choice to access the router configuration, if necessary.) If you can't get into router configuration because it just won't load, or for any other reason, unplug the router, reset it to factory defaults (usually a mini-button on the back or bottom), and try this list again from the very beginning.
- If you can get online, yay. Start up each of the other PCs, and make sure that they all have the same subnet mask and default gateway, and that they can get online. If they do not have the same subnet mask and default gateway... you have a problem somewhere with DHCP, or with a PC having a static IP address, that needs to be resolved.
- Once the PCs are working again, set the HP printer for DHCP, and reboot it. Print a configuration map to see what IP address it was assigned. If it has the same subnet mask and default gateway as the PCs, then your troubles are gone, and you will be able to install the printer on the PCs. If it doesn't get an IP address, or if it isn't similar to the PCs, then you still have a configuration issue with your router or switch or some other device that is attached to your network and acting as a DHCP server.

 

[Emulex]

ditch the ricoh - get a new hp mfp. unless you are lovin' that thing or on a contract its a dinosaur.

hp - universal pnp pcl6 driver - lovin' it - no more 10 drivers for 50 different printers.

you gotta admit that it just rocks. no host based hp's though

 

[Bashbelly]

the hp 4250 you got is really easy to setup manually via the menu. I believe the screens you go through look something like menu>config>eio 1 (jetdirect)>set to manual> then put in ip/subnet mask/gateway. Although sounds like you got bigger issues on what exactly your network looks like.

 

[dak125]

Thank you all for your help and responses, everything is working. A quick run down of how it was solved:

-The Ricoh finally changed IP's by being left unplugged for an extended period of time. The touchpad is still broken so I have been unable to change the IP to a static one. The web based control panel doesn't allow changes to be made, I can only view current settings. A repairman is coming in tomorrow afternoon to replace the touchpad, then I can switch the sucker to a static IP.
-After countless unplugs, reboots, and network setting printouts I was unable to get the HP to start talking to the network. The problem was that the IP was still from the old office. After quite a bit of Googling, I was able to find a 'cold restart' function. The cold restart was exactly what needed to happen and it refreshed the IP. I was then able to access the control panel and switch the IP to a static one.

All of the computers can print to both printers which is awweeeesssommmee. I may need some help getting the scan function to work on the Ricoh once the touchpad is repaired.

Thanks for all of the help!