With the Windows printer and the computer it's connected to active, and the printer set up for sharing, you're ready to add the printer to your Mac.
Adding an LPD Printer to Your Mac
- Launch System Preferences by clicking its icon in the Dock or selecting System Preferences from the Apple menu.
- Click the Print & Fax icon in the System Preferences window.
- The Print & Fax preference pane will display a list of currently configured printers and faxes.
- Click the plus (+) sign at the bottom of the list of printers and faxes.
- The Add Printer window will open.
- If the Add Printer window's toolbar contains an Advanced icon, skip to step 7.
- Right-click the toolbar and select 'Customize Toolbar' from the pop-up menu.
- Drag the Advanced icon from the icon palette to the Add Printer window's toolbar.
- Click the Done button.
- Click the Advanced icon in the toolbar.
- Use the Type dropdown menu to select 'LPD/LPR Host or Printer.'
- In the URL field, enter the IP address of the Windows 7 PC and the shared printer's name in the following format.
lpd://IP Address/Shared Printer Name
For example: If your Windows 7 PC has an IP address of 192.168.1.37 and your shared printer's name is HPInkjet, then the URL should look like this.
lpd/192.168.1.37/HPInkjet
The URL field is case sensitive, so HPInkjet and hpinkjet aren't the same.
- Use the Print Using dropdown menu to select a printer driver to use. If you're not sure which one to use, try the Generic Postscript or Generic PCL printer driver. You can also use Select Printer Driver to pick the specific driver for your printer.
Remember, not all printer drivers support the LPD protocol, so if the selected driver doesn't function, try one of the generic types.
- Click the Add button.
Testing the Printer
The Windows 7 printer should now appear in the printer list in the Print & Fax preference pane. To test whether the printer is working, have your Mac generate a test print.
- If it's not already open, launch System Preferences, and then click the Print & Fax preference pane.
- Highlight the printer you just added to the printer list by clicking it once.
- In the right-hand side of the Print & Fax preference pane, click the Open Print Queue button.
- From the menu, select Printer, Print Test Page.
- The test page should appear in the printer queue on your Mac, and then print through your Windows 7 printer.
That's it; you're ready to use your shared Windows 7 printer on your Mac.
Troubleshooting a Shared Windows 7 Printer
Not all printers will work using the LPD protocol, usually because the printer driver on the Mac or Windows 7 computer doesn't support this sharing method. If your printer isn't working, try the following:
- Update the printer drivers on both your Mac and Windows 7 computers.
- Try a different printer driver. For example: The specific driver for your printer may not work, but a generic version may, either from the same printer manufacturer or from a third party, such as CUPS or Gutenprint drivers.
