Sharing my USB printer over the internet

[imported_HogDaddy]

I have been looking for an answer to this all night:

I use roadrunner, from the modem goes the router (just a D-Link 4 channel, works great) from there it goes into my computer and my wifes computer. I have a USB printer hooked up to my PC and I want to share it with my friend about 20 miles away. Now before I got the router, he would just goto the add a new printer wizard, tell it to look for the printer at my I.P. address, and it took off (he already has the drivers for my printer installed on his PC). But now that I'm behind this router, I don't know if If I'm typing a wrong syntax as to what the printer I.P. is or what, but he cannot find my printer at all, unless I hook my PC direct to the cable modem. Any help would be much appreciated.

By the way, his system and mine both run XP Pro. Thanks

 

[Nothinman]

Sharing a printer via the Internet is an extremely bad idea.

 

[martind1]

dont, do this, dont do this at all.


i think if you allow him to remote desktop into your computer, he can gain the share access to the printer.



sharing printers over the internet is a bad bad idea.

 

[JackMDS]

Welcome to the Network Forum.

You must have a very special printer.

I can tell you would I would do! The holidays are coming; there are Entry Level printers for $50. I will buy him one as a Gift, it will cheaper and less expensive than outcome of any other solution.:thumbsup:

However if you must.

Install on you computer VNC server (its free).

Install on his computer VNC viewer. Secure the installation with the encryption plug-in, and give him control of your computer when he needs to print. He can use VNC to transfer the file to your computer, start the application that uses the file, and print it.

Link to: Ultr@VNC - Installation, and Settings

It means that you have to trust him with controlling your computer for the duration of the printing action.

:sun:

 

[bsobel]

It would be simplier if you had a USB print server. Since you don't, you'd need to open the ports used by Windows file/print service on your router. This, as others have advised, is a really really bad idea.

Can you step back and talk about why you want to do this, there might be some other options (such as email with a rule to print messages with a certain subject or sender..)

Bill

 

[martind1]

i think an rd/vpn solution is the best way to handle this.


if it is reeally needed.