Can I Link Two Wi-Fi Systems To Same Wireless Printer?

[RSDonovan]

I have an HP ENVY wireless printer which works well and allows me to print from my iPad wirelessly from I.d. MYWIFI.

I recently installed a Wi-Fi extender. This set up a new extra Wi-Fi called MYWIFI_EXT. My iPad switches between the two available systems depending upon which has the stronger signal in the room I am using it.

Can I set up the printer so it will accept print jobs from either network? It doesn't seem too from the printer set up menu but I may be missing it?

Thanks in advance

[calmck]

I don't think so. I have the same set up and one WiFi is in the printer. I don't think a printer can automatically switch between the two WiFis but has to be done manually. Could be wrong

[Old_Geezer]

It ought not need to. One or other should be consistently better wherever you've sited the printer.

[Fitzer]

It's not the printer which is changing OG but the WiFi that the iPad is connecting to. If the printer is on MYWIFI but the OP's iPad is on MYWIFI_EXT it won't be able to see the printer. I've never understood why extenders have to give the network a new name. As to the answer I'm afraid I don't know

[Fitzer]

Ok, a bit of research, it is possible for your extended to have the same name network as your main network which would allow you to see the printer. However, this is not advised as your iPad would not then know to switch to the extender when the signal to the main hub got too weak as there wouldn't be an alternative network name to switch to, long explanation here https://routerguide.net/wifi-range-extender-best-setup-guide/ The other alternative is to invest in power line adapters to connect your printer to the router by ethernet cable so that it can be seen by both networks. You can get them with pass through plug sockets so you don't need to find a separate socket to plug them in, something like this Amazon.co.uk User Recommendation

[Etch]

If the iPad is able to connect to the internet, irrespective of which access point it is using, then it should also be able to connect to the printer. I have an additional router set up as an access point on my network: it doesn't matter which access point (main router or the second one, each identified by different names) a wireless device connects to, it can still see, and use, my network printer

[RSDonovan]

Thanks Fitzer. I'll investigate further. I won't spend too much time on it as I can easily move within range if I need to. Its definitely a first world problem and I'm being lazy but I'll have a look out of interest!

[RSDonovan]

@Etch the iPad can connect to the internet, but with an extender I have to select which of two SSIDs I connect to. When I set the printer up I have to tether it to one of the two, which is not necessarily the one I am currently connected to on the iPad.

[Etch]

Ok, the wireless devices I use (no iPad) just connect automatically to my local network using whichever SSID has the strongest signal. If I log into the main router it shows me all devices connected, wireless or wired, including the other router/access point, each with its own IP address as issued by the main router, because it is the main router that manages network connections. In other words the presence of the second router (which extends my network to the back of the house) is effectively transparent to devices on the network, even though it has its own SSID.

[RSDonovan]

@Edge Is it the fact that you have two routers that makes your system work? I only have one.

[Etch]

As far as my network is concerned, although the "second router" is capable of functioning as such, I have set it up to simply be an "access point". If I log in to it there is an option to "Use as Access Point", and on the page that comes up it says "The Router can be configured to act strictly as an Access Point, bypassing all of the routing and firewall functions". I was thinking that in this mode it is acting like your WiFi extender

[Etch]

Ok, I've just looked at the link given by Fitzer, and my setup is the one described under 'WiFi Extender With [Same Or] Multiple SSID', about three-quarters down the page. That also refers to "main router", as opposed to "range extender", so my "second router" is my "range extender" and there is actually only one device acting as the router for my network.

[smurfchops]

Can I just ask, when I print from my iPad mini to my HP Envy, the print comes out very large? Sorry to butt in ....