How To Find Printer On Network? Step by Step Guide
Printing has not only become a norm but plays an important role in business administration and communication.
No matter you are a student at school or a working professional, we all have to go through the printing process in one way or another; it doesn’t matter which trade you belong to, check also make printer offline to online.
Getting error messages is common when working with printers, and dealing with them is not such a difficult task.
On the other hand, there is one more thing that you may have faced and are unable to solve it, and that is not able to detect the printer on the network.
It isn’t comforting when you want to print some important documents, and you need them urgently.
This may not seem a big problem for you if you are a student, but it is noted as a serious matter for working professionals, and you find ways to fix the problem.
By now, you may have come across different things and steps to find the printer on the network, and none of them seems to be working for you, but as you are here reading this article, we will determine the root cause of the problem and then will suggest ways to find the printer on a network.
Not able to detect the printer generally occurs when you are trying to connect a new printer to your computer, or you want to use the printer which is already connected.
You won’t be able to use the printer if it does not appear or is detected. There are a number of reasons due to which computer does not detect the connected printer.
Failure to Find Printer on Network
Knowing the reasons why the computer is unable to detect the printer will help you in solving the problem effectively and quickly.
If you know the exact problem, only then will you be able to overcome it in a perfect manner. The most common causes are discussed below.
Printer Is Offline
The reason that can be easily detected is that the printer is offline. The computer will not detect the printer if the printer is switched off or does not have a live connection.
A green light at the back of the printer indicates that the printer is online and has a live internet connection.
Not Connected To The Network
The computer will not be able to detect the printer if it is not connected to the local area network correctly. Also, do check the physical connection by inspecting the connecting wires.
Printer Not Added In HomeGroup
Sometimes not adding the printer in your local homegroup makes it difficult to locate the connected printer. Homegroup makes it easier to share and locate the connected devices.
Network Discovery is Disabled
There is an option in the computer that allows you to disable the network discovery by which you won’t be able to find the printer on the network.
It is a setting which that tells whether your computer can see other devices or not and whether other devices can identify your computer.
Sharing is Disabled on the Print Server
Same as the network discovery option, sharing files and printers can be also be put out of action from the print server. If this checkbox is on, your printer will not appear on the network.
Steps To Find Printer on Network
Above mentioned points are the main reasons your printer is not visible on the search screen.
You don’t need to worry at all by seeing the number of points as now we are going to proceed towards the solution to find the printer on the network. Note that the steps applied to all the latest versions of windows. You may check and apply the below-mentioned steps in an orderly manner. so, Best Printers For Printing Checks
- First thing first, make sure that your printer is online and is connected to the network, and as mentioned above, you will see a green light to authenticate that it is properly connected to the network.
- If all seems set, restart your system and the printer as sometimes there are undetectable minor issues that cause the error and problems. Restarting often resolves these minor issues.
- If restarting the printer and computer does not help, there might be an issue in connected devices such as routers or modems. Therefore, also restart the connected router to see if the problem is resolved.
- Do check the network discovery option; if it is restricted, you need to enable it. To do this, go to the start menu, type Network in the search bar, and from the menu, click on the “Network and the Sharing Center.” Go to the advanced sharing setting and turn on the network discovery option. Save the setting and see if the problem is solved or not.
- In the same way, if the file and printer sharing option is disabled, you also need to enable it in order to find the printer on the network. To do this, go to the Network and the Sharing Center as mentioned in the above step, and see whether the file and printer sharing option is turned on or not.
- If you are using a shared printer, make sure that you have access to it because organizations restrict the sharing option for unauthorized people.
- The problem also arises when there is an update of the software, and the manufacturer makes it necessary to install it. Do check the windows update and drivers of the printer to see if there is any new update that you need to download and install.
This article will eventually save your time, energy, and resources, as we have mentioned all the possible ways to find a printer on the network.
We have also mentioned the major causes due to which your computer finds it difficult to discover the connected printer on a network.
All you need is to read the article thoroughly, follow the steps as it should be, and enjoy hassle-free printing on the go.
