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I’ve got a myriad of devices that connect to the internet, including Printers. With a recent re-install and new router I’m got myself in a heap of trouble.
I got a new router so that I could place some of my devices on a guest account for security. Now I’m thinking that some things, like printers have to be on the “main” account or they won’t work. Is this correct thinking?
The second part of my question is do you have to select: “Private or Public” network profile for a printer to work?
Mike
Wanted to add that the router is a TP-Link Archer AX55. The guest account is isolated from the main(private) account. There are two options in the guest account but I don’t see that either would solve the problem. Checking either would make things less secure.
As the guest network is isolated from your main network you will not be able to see devices on the guest network, including your printer.
There isn’t an easy / cheap way to use a printer and not allow it to have access to the internet.
do you have to select: “Private or Public” network profile
Where are you seeing this option?
If the printer has this setting you need to know what it dis/allows under each setting.
If it’s on your PC you should have the network set to private if you want to connect other devices. If not, public is fine.
cheers, Paul
Normally printers aren’t exposed to outside IP addresses. If you enable web based printing then they are, but I don’t do that.
Guest network is best for Alexa’s and Internet of things.
Computers and printers are on the internal network.
Susan Bradley Patch Lady/Prudent patcher
The difference between a static IP address and one that is assigned to the printer by DHCP is that the static address will not change (unless you specifically make the change) whereas there’s no guarantee that the DHCP address will not be assigned by the router to a different device later on. Some routers will allow you to specify that whatever DHCP address a device was assigned will be reserved for that device and so will function similar to a static address. Bottom line, if your printer has an IP address that changes, your computer won’t be able to find it.
Rereading your post a little more closely, it seems like you are using the T-Mobile router’s DHCP server and you turned off the one in your own router. That seems kind of backwards to me, but maybe the T-Mobile won’t allow you to turn the DHCP off. If it isn’t possible to switch that around then another solution would be to connect your printer to your router via Ethernet; that should allow stable access to it.
Moving the printer to the Main account might be working now but I don’t think there’s any guarantee it will continue to work if DHCP is involved.
Over the years, each time I came across a network printer that lost access, it was due to an IP address assigned via DHCP. In this particular case, I broke a major rule of troubleshooting by trying to fix a problem before fully understanding what that problem was; I tried to help and wasted everyone’s time.
I apologize. It won’t happen again.
but I don’t think there’s any guarantee it will continue to work if DHCP is involved
It is just not true that using the router assigned address (via DHCP) is likely to cause printer problems. The printer advertises its presence, as do other devices and Windows sees these devices because they are all on the same network – as evidenced by Mike’s ability to print after moving the printer to the main network.
BTW, my printers are always DHCP and I never have printing issues – except with HP printers that go to sleep and never wake up unless you power cycle them. 
cheers, Paul
The reason why your DHCP printers “work” is probably because they don’t get powered down and never disconnect from the network so DHCP never has to reassign an IP address. The HP printers go to sleep and thus give up their IP address, so when they wake up the DHCP server looks for an available IP address to assign; it might be the same as before or maybe different.
Or at least that’s how I figure it…….
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