Answered by:
Laptop suddenly stopped printing on network

Question
-
I am subscribed to Live onecare using 3 pc's. A main desktop set as the hub and two other laptops connected wirelessly. Printing stopped a week ago on laptop 2.
I am using a Dell Dual Core dimension 9200, (2.4GHz, 1066MHz, 4 MB) as the hub, purchased 2006
Both Laptops are Dell Inspiron 6400 Core2Duo 1.73GHz, 533MHz)
All running windows XP
The main desktop/hub and laptop 1 print fine, no problems on either with printing. If i click printers and faxes then properties then ports both the hub and laptop 1 show the same.
This is as follows;
PORT= USB001
DESCRIPTION=Virtual printer port for USB
PRINTER=Epson Stylus DX 4000 Series.
On the laptop that does not print (laptop2), if i view the same print properties, the above printer port is missing, the add port feature is greyed out.
The printer is set as the default printer on the hub pc and if i right click the printer icon the blue 1 care sign = stop sharing printer.
On laptop 1 & 2 if i right click on the printer icon the blue 1 care sign = More information
If i view the print status through the hub pc using onecare circle it shows laptop(1)&(2) with
= No available printers, it does not show the hub pc, is this because i am viewing it from the hub pc?
If i view printer status through onecare on laptop 2 it shows the main hub pc with
= Onecare failed to install this printer, onecare will keep trying to install this printer.
Laptop 1 = no available printers. (although i can print from the hub pc and laptop 1) It is only laptop 2 that i cannot print from.
All other areas of OneCare work fine on all 3 pc's. Backups to external drive, updates etc.
All 3 pcs are shown with a green status i.e. GOOD
i have not changed or installed any software that may have interfered with the print status. OneCare is the only antivirus/firewall software i am using.
I have had no problems with any virus's.
Absolutley nothing has changed which may have caused printing to stop.
I have tried to get phone support but this has been unavailable for over a week now.
I have gone through the help section and written the above several times now only to be told; once submitted, that there was as error with processing, please try again....AGHHHHH tearing my hair out!
I have no idea why printing has suddenly stopped on laptop 2, or why the print port is not showing under print properties on laptop 2, but it is the main laptop that is used for business and is so, very important tht i get it back to printing ASAP.
I have gone through all other diagnostics and although i see an area which sugggest adding another port, i am very wary of doing this incase i mess up other settings. Plus why would i need to change any ports when it worked fine before. Please help ASAP.
P.S what happened to the free phone number i used a while ago to get help? I was very impressed with the prompt service i received which was the main reason i subscribed.
Thursday, January 31, 2008 12:19 PM
Answers
-
I'll answer the easy part first - phone support is still available for subscribers, though the process for accessing it has changed and it can be painful. See -
How to reach support (FAQ) - http://forums.microsoft.com/WindowsOneCare/ShowPost.aspx?PostID=2421771&SiteID=2
From your description, the hub is the host for the printer used by all 3 PCs in your Circle, but Laptop#2 has lost the ability to "see" the shared printer.
I'm not sure why this would happen, but I can tell you that all of the settings *should* happen automatically without you adding or configuring ports. The way the printer is shared in OneCare is through the virtual port - you can't add it, but OneCare does.
Here is the current troubleshooting topic for Printer Sharing in OneCare where a shared printer can't be used by a computer in the Circle, which sounds like your problem. I suggest going through these steps. If it works, please report back what the solution was. If you still can't print to that printer, please contact support per the above link (if the support form fails again, email me at sboots@mvps.org with OneCare Printer in the subject line and a link to this thread in the body of the message - also tell me what country you are in...)
-steve
Can't connect to a printer in your OneCare circle
When you attach and install a printer to one computer in your OneCare circle (A small network of computers that share the same Windows Live OneCare subscription.) , Windows Live OneCare automatically configures the printer settings so that other computers in your circle can also use the printer. If your computer can't connect to a printer that's attached to another computer in your circle, there may be a problem with the printer or with the other computer in your OneCare circle.
To troubleshoot this issue:- Verify that OneCare supports the printer that you're using. To determine whether OneCare supports your printer, see the OneCare unsupported printers list.
-
If OneCare supports the printer, generate a list of computers and printers that OneCare recognizes as part of your circle.
OneCare unsupported printers list.If OneCare supports the printer, generate a list of computers and printers that OneCare recognizes as part of your circle.
- On the computer that you want to connect the printer to, open OneCare.
- Under Quick links, click Change settings.
-
On the Printer sharing tab, click Refresh.
This generates a list of computers and printers that OneCare recognizes as part of your circle.
-
If you receive an error message, verify that your OneCare subscription is still active and that you used the same Windows Live ID (The user name and password that you use to sign in to any Windows Live, MSN, or Office Live sites and services. If you have a Passport Network, Hotmail, or Messenger account, you can use it as your Windows Live ID.) when you installed OneCare on the computers in your circle.
- On each computer in your circle, open OneCare.
- Click Help, and then click About OneCare.
Your Windows Live ID appears next to Subscription ID.
- Verify that the same Windows Live ID appears for each computer.
- If any computer doesn't have the same Windows Live ID, uninstall OneCare from that computer, and then reinstall it using the same Windows Live ID that you used for the other computers in your circle. For more information about how to uninstall and reinstall OneCare, see Install, reinstall, or uninstall Windows Live OneCare.
- Try one of the solutions that best describes the problem that you're experiencing:
The computer that the printer is attached to is not listed in the printer list - On each computer in your circle, open OneCare.
-
Verify that all computers appear in your circle.
- From a hub PC (A computer from which you can monitor or manage the other computers in your OneCare circle.) , open OneCare.
- Click Your OneCare circle.
- Make sure that all the computers appear as part of your circle.
- If the computer doesn't appear as part of your circle, go to that computer, open OneCare, and then try to make the computer a hub PC. For more information, see Manage your OneCare circle from a hub PC.
- If you can't make the computer part of your circle, uninstall OneCare from that computer, and then reinstall it. For more information about how to uninstall and reinstall OneCare, see Install, reinstall, or uninstall Windows Live OneCare.
The computer that the printer is attached to is listed in the printer list, but you can't use the printer -
Verify that the computer that you're trying to print from and the computer that the printer is attached to connect to the same router.
On each computer in your circle, open your web browser and try visiting several websites.- If you can connect to the Internet, you have a working network connection.
- If you can't connect to the Internet, see Can't connect to the Internet.
-
Configure the computer that the printer is attached to.
On the computer that the printer is attached to, verify that the network is configured as a Home or Work zone.
- Open OneCare.
- Under Quick links, click Change settings.
- On the Firewall tab, click Configure firewall.
- Make sure that your zone appears as Home or Work. If Public place appears, click Change location.
-
Configure the computer that you want to connect to the printer
Verify that the computer that you want to connect to the printer can see the computer that the printer is attached to.
- Go to the computer that you want to connect to the printer.
-
In Windows XP, click Start, click Run, type cmd, and then press ENTER.
–or–
In Windows Vista, click Start, click in the Start Search box, and then type command prompt. Under Programs, right-click Command Prompt, and then click Run as administrator.
- Type net view, and then press ENTER.
- In the list of computers, verify that the computer that the printer is attached to appears. If the computer that the printer is attached to doesn't appear in the list of computers for your network or if you receive an error message, restart the computer and try again.
-
If the computer that the printer is attached to still doesn't appear in the list of computers for your network, reconfigure the firewall.
- On the computer that the printer is attached to, open OneCare.
- Under Quick links, click Change settings.
- On the Firewall tab, click Advanced settings.
- Select the File and Printer Sharing – for local network (subnet) check box and the File and Printer Sharing – for subnet and Internet check box.
- Click OK, and then click OK again.
- Try step one again.
- If the computer that the printer is attached to still doesn't appear in the list of computers for your network, contact the manufacturer of your router.
The computer that the printer is attached to is listed but the printer isn't For a printer to be part of your circle, it must be installed on and attached to one of the computers in your circle. For more information, see Can't share printer.The printer appears as "Previously rejected" in the list of printers on the computer that you want to connect the printer to - On the computer that you want to connect the printer to, open OneCare.
- Under Quick links, click Change settings.
- On the Printer sharing tab, click Clear.
- Click Close.
- When the Add a printer dialog box appears, click Add printer. If the Add a printer dialog box doesn't appear, click Refresh.
- Try to add the printer again. For more information, see Share and manage printers in your OneCare circle.
The printer is listed in the printer list, but OneCare couldn't install it This issue may occur because one of the computers is running a 64-bit version of Microsoft Windows and the other computer is running a 32-bit version. OneCare doesn't support printer sharing between computers that run 64-bit versions of Microsoft Windows and computers that run 32-bit versions of Windows. This issue may also occur if OneCare doesn't support the printer driver version.
-
Determine the Windows version that you're running.
-
In Windows XP, click Start, click Run, type sysdm.cpl, and then press ENTER.
–or–
In Windows Vista, click Start, click in the Start Search box, and then type system. Under Programs, click System.
- If x64 Edition or 64-bit appears, you're running a 64-bit version of Windows. Otherwise, you're running a 32-bit version of Windows.
-
-
If all the computers in your circle are running either a 32-bit version or a 64-bit version of Windows, update the printer driver.
- On the computer that the printer is attached to, open OneCare.
- Under Quick links, click Change settings.
- On the Printer sharing tab, click Manage printers individually.
- Right-click the printer, click Stop sharing printer, and then click OK.
- Visit the printer manufacturer's website, and then download the latest driver for your printer.
- Install the driver, and then restart the computer.
- Open OneCare.
- Under Quick links, click Change settings.
- On the Printer sharing tab, click Manage printers individually.
- Right-click the printer, click Start sharing printer, and then click OK.
The printer is listed in the printer list, but not all users can use it or when you try to use it, printing fails - Go to the computer that the printer is attached to, and then try to print a document. If the document isn't printed, restart both computers, and then try to print a document again.
-
If the document still isn't printed, configure the computer to be shared.
- On the computer that the printer is attached to, open OneCare.
- Under Quick links, click Change settings.
- On the Printer sharing tab, click Manage printers individually.
- Right-click the printer, click Stop sharing printer, and then click OK.
- Right-click the printer, click Start sharing printer, and then click OK.
- Try to print a document from the computer that you're trying to connect the printer to.
- If the document still isn't printed, contact the manufacturer of your printer.
Notes
- The OneCare icon precedes OneCare options on the printer menu. If you don't see a menu option together with the OneCare icon, restart the computer, and then try again.
- By default, file and printer sharing is turned off in networks that are configured as a public place. File and printer sharing must be turned on for computers and printers to be recognized correctly in your circle.
- OneCare doesn't support printer sharing between computers that run 64-bit versions of Microsoft Windows and computers that run 32-bit versions of Windows.
Thursday, January 31, 2008 1:49 PMModerator