Im thinking of buying a printer and due to the size and location I would like the printer to be upstairs and connect to it wirelessly.
So how do I make it wireless ? The options :
A) The printer has an Ethernet port but no wifi... should I buy a print server ?
B) Should I buy an Ethernet bridge to make it into 802.11g compatible ?
C) The 3rd option is a wifi router - could I buy a router and have a small ethernet cable hooked into it and then access the printer through the router wirelessley ? This way the router is alot better equipment and does the same thing as an Ethernet bridge / print server.
A) This is a good option if there is some added value to having the print server, such as additional buffering of print jobs. Some HP printers have that capability in their Ethernet cards, so there might be no benefit to having a wireless print server other than for the wireless interface.
B) The wireless bridge is probably the simplest, cheapest option. Be aware that some so-called bridges are only capable of operating as an access point (base station), not as a client.
C) If you have an existing wireless network, then your C) option may not be appropriate. You could use the existing router to connect to the printer's Ethernet port, but there should only be one router. If you turn off its router functions, it may not be capable of being configured as a bridge (client).
An exception to this is the 802.11g "Wireless Distribution System" (WDS), where several routers can be configured to do exactly what you want. A few brands such as Buffalo and Apple Airport have the WDS capability. All but the master have their routing functions disabled.
My current setup has three (firmware-updated) Buffalo WBR-G54 wireless routers, with one configured as the master and two as WDS clients. My printer happens to be connected to the master, but works equally well connected to either of the others. The WDS clients can also be set up to relay signals that originate at a distance from the master unit, if you need that capability.
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