PDA

View Full Version : Need some advice from the real gurus



OBIO
March 8th, 2010, 21:49
I am working on my brother-in-law and sister-in-law's computers. Upating the two newer ones from Vista to 7 and the two older XP systems are being reformatted, reinstalled, updated, secured and cleaned up for the grand kids to use. For that stuff...I'm good to go and have the knowledge and skills needed to do that part.

But, I have never set up a net work with different Op Systems before...and really not sure how to do it properly or even it it need to be set up the way it was previously. Right now, the router in use is a Linksys...not sure of the model...that will handle 4 systems via wire and has wireless capability. The two newer systems, one XP system and the printer are all hooked into the router so that the printer can be shared by the computers. Following this set up, what router should I have my BIL buy that will handle all four systems and the printer and what is the best way to set it up?

Here's my thought...if we can set the printer up on a usb hub of some sort so that all four computers can print directly to the printer, then the current router will suffice to allow the four systems to be connected to the net at the same time. I know that at one time...back in the old school days...there were hubs that could allow multiple systems to share one printer....is there a modern version of that that is USB?

As the network is now...or was before I started doing the updating and refreshing....my BIL had Geek Squad set up the router/network...and the guy said that he had to put a fire wall between the older XP system and the Vista systems (the ones going to Win7). My BIL was not sure of the details for the need of a firewall between the XP and Vista systems...but he paid dearly for what Geek Squad did.

Any advice and tips that you gents can give me to give my in-laws the best working arrangement for sharing the printer and keeping costs down will be greatly appreciated.

OBIO

Moparmike
March 9th, 2010, 06:39
Hmm...not sure what the Geek Squad was on about with needing to firewall the two OSes from each other. Sounds like hookum to me.

The Linksys router you've got to work with should be adequate for the task.

I've got 5 rigs networked together on my home network at the apartment (7, XP, Ubuntu, & Debian OSes) through a Linksys router (running DD-WRT firmware) and a Linksys switch. Each machine except one has a shared folder (or partition) that all of the others on the network can access.

Does this printer have a LAN connection on it or is it just USB? If LAN, just set the IP according to it's manual and search for a network printer on each machine to find and set the right path to it.
If it's just a USB printer, you'll need to enable file and print sharing AT LEAST on the computer that has the printer hooked up to it. This will allow other computers to send print jobs to that printer via the computer that it's hooked up to.
My printer is hooked up to a small file server machine running XPPro with file and printer sharing enabled and all 4 other machines can access it with no problems.

Here's the tutorial I used to get my Win7 rig up and talking with the XP & Linux & printer network I already had set up...
The Homegroup feature in Win7 had me a bit stumped at first since that's not supported by Vista or XP...but that's explained here too.
http://www.howtogeek.com/howto/windows-7/share-files-and-printers-between-windows-7-and-xp/

Henry
March 9th, 2010, 07:26
i have set up many pc's with different os's
and shared printers
never had a problem unless the printer is not compatible with the os
i do not know the problem with a firewall i have never had a problem
a linksy router is fine
i have used them and never had a problem
H

OBIO
March 9th, 2010, 10:58
Currently the printer is hooked directly into the Linksys router, along with the two Win 7 systems and one XP system...putting the router at full capacity. There is still one more XP system to get connected...To avoid having to purchase a larger router capable of handling more connections, I will go with hooking the printer to my BIL system...since that one is on the most, and setting it up to handle the print sharing.

The firewall thing between the then-Vista and XP systems had me scratching my head as well. And it may be why their internet connection was so spotty...sometimes fast, sometimes slow, sometimes unstable. I do know that the internet speeds on my BIL's system (which has been fully ungraded to Win7) and the XP system that has been fully rebuilt and connected to the net....are much faster than on my Sis-in-law's system, which is still Vista and still running as Geek Squad set it up...with the firewall in place.

Thanks for the tips guys...I will put them to use and make sure that my BIL knows I got the scoop from people who truly know what they are doing.

OBIO

Moparmike
March 9th, 2010, 14:06
Another thing you can do to add more ports to your router setup is to add a small switch like I did on my network.
The one I added was the Linksys EZXS88W (8-port) for about $25 but there is also a 5-port EZXS55W available a little cheaper if you don't need the extra ports.
This is a simple unmanaged switch that basically replicates LAN ports...just plug it into one port on your router and plug more machines into the other ports on the switch. The router still does all the main traffic routing.

This would allow you to keep the printer on the network instead of bouncing through a computer.

OBIO
March 21st, 2010, 18:01
Here's how I ended up handling my brother-in-law's home network. The 2 Win 7 systems and the XP system that the older grand daughter uses is connected to the router via wire. The second XP system, used by the younger grand daughter who really isn't all that into computers yet...is connected using a wireless card that I had laying around in my computer junk drawer. The four computers can all print to the wireless printers through the router. No file sharing or printer sharing between the Win 7 and XP systems....though the two Win 7 systems have file sharing so my sis-in-law's system can be backed up through my bro-in-law's system to the external HD. My BIL is very happy with the improvement that Win 7 gives over Vista and with the fact that the internet speeds have increased without all the unneeded fire walls in place. OBIO