Introduction
Ever since my desktop PC went kaput. I have been using Raspberry Pi as my desktop PC replacement. Why?, you ask. Because I’m poor and can’t afford a proper desktop computer. Anyway I got the idea for this instructable when I tried to print from a Raspberry Pi. After I finished typing a note using leafpad word editor, when I clicked print menu, my networked printers were not showing in the printer dialog box as shown in the screenshot. Therefore, I couldn’t print. In this instructable, I will share the steps to solve this problem.
Scope
This instructable will show how to install and configure the necessary software to enable Raspberry Pi to print using a remote printer connected to a remote computer or networked printer.
This instructable will NOT show how to install and configure a Raspberry Pi to be a print server.
Audience
Anyone with the following conditions fulflled:
The Raspberry Pi is running on Raspbian OS
The Raspberry Pi is connected to the Local Area Network (LAN)
There is a networked printer or a networked computer that shares its printer in the (LAN)
Step 1: Get the IP address of the remote printer
The networked computer with the printer can either be a Windows or Linux machine. Each have a different method to find its IP address. Google to find ways to get the IP address.
Step 2: Install the necessary software on Raspberry Pi to enable printing
On Raspberry Pi, open a terminal emulator.
$sudo apt-get update
Install cups client Do NOT install cups-server.
$sudo apt-get install cups-client
Edit the cups-client configuration
sudo vi /etc/cups/client.conf
Add:
ServerName XXX.XXX.XXX.XXX ## XXX.XXX.XXX.XXX is your networked printer's IP sddress
Refer to the screenshot for comparison.
Save the file
Step 3: Print
On the leafpad word editor, when I click print menu, now I can see my networked printers. Refer to screenshot.
Source: Enable Raspberry Pi to Print to Networked Printers and Print Servers
