Bad IP address keeping printer from connecting to Chromebook?

[CJ Mac]

I have a Dell All-in-One PC, a Brother HL-2280DW printer, and recently acquired an HP Chromebook. I have never been able to figure out how to get the Chromebook to print to the printer. After about 6 months, I finally decided I was going to figure it out today.

After a lot of searching online, I went to the Brother website to figure out how to find my printer's IP address. Instead of seeing the steps involved as expected, a pop-up chat encouraged me to ask my question in the chat box. Long story short, I got connected with a tech who did the "let me take over your computer to look" thing, and he discovered that not only was my IP bad (shouldn't have .000. in it?) but that there were many "unwanted IPs on the network" from clicking on Ads that come up in Google search. I was delighted that he was going to fix everything for me--but after quite some time of working with him, he told me it would cost $160!!! I promptly hung up.

How much of this is true, do you think? And how much can I fix myself? I can follow instructions, just not when I get instructions full of acronyms of which I don't know the meaning. Like DNS and DHCP, etc.

Appreciate any help you can offer!

 

[spARTacus]

...Long story short, I got connected with a tech who did the "let me take over your computer to look" thing, and he discovered that not only was my IP bad (shouldn't have .000. in it?) but that there were many "unwanted IPs on the network" from clicking on Ads that come up in Google search. I was delighted that he was going to fix everything for me--but after quite some time of working with him, he told me it would cost $160!!! I promptly hung up.

How much of this is true, do you think?...

Without more context, I'll suggest that something sounds odd to me about if someone is saying your device's IP addresses shouldn't include ".000.". In my experience, it really depends on how the subnet and subnet mask is set at the local network, plus also the range for DHCP to use.

At first blush, it also doesn't make any sense to me about someone saying multiple unwanted IP addresses are being created due to clicking on ads. I am pretty sure thats not how it works (unless an ad is creating new virtual machines or something like that, which I am not sure how that could even be possible).

There are folks in here that can probably help for your printer setup problems.

 

[Mr Bojangles1]

Re: Bad IP Address making it impossible to print from Chromebook?

First thing I would do is uninstall whatever program was used when that guy remote connected to your computer. Can you print to the printer over wifi from another device? Just to make sure it's working fine and it's your chromebook being the problem. Then follow these steps https://support.google.com/chromebook/answer/7225252?hl=en

If those steps don't help then scroll down to where it says "use the advanced setup process and try it that way". It may be that the printer isn't compatible with your chromebook.

 

[spARTacus]

Re: Bad IP Address making it impossible to print from Chromebook?

...And how much can I fix myself? I can follow instructions, just not when I get instructions full of acronyms of which I don't know the meaning. Like DNS and DHCP, etc.

Appreciate any help you can offer!

Unless something is really weird with your particular printer, home network, or chromebook, you should be able to resolve this yourself, with (if required) some help from folks in here.

In addition to the other suggestion thus far, you should probably also:
- make sure the chromebook has an up to date Android OS version.
- check to see if the printer manufacturer website has instructions on it for your particular printer model/series, or even a manufacturer app.

Let us know what you've been able to confirm thus far and then folks will chime in with help from there.

 

[B. Diddy]

Re: Bad IP Address making it impossible to print from Chromebook?

I'm assuming the printer is connected to your wi-fi network, and not via cable to your main Dell, correct?

 

[CJ Mac]

Re: Bad IP Address making it impossible to print from Chromebook?

Thank you, everyone! I probably won't be able to tackle this project again until Monday afternoon, but I will let you know how it goes.

B. Diddy, yes, my computer is connected via WiFi. Although, I have to admit that only today I had to pause and think about whether my devices work by Wi-Fi or Bluetooth. It may be that I'm able to print through Bluetooth which I have come to understand the Chromebook is not able to do. That's what made me start looking into my wireless setup, which then led me to look for my printer's IP address. And then THAT led me to...

... spARTacus: it was my inability to figure out where to find that IP address that made me do a Google search for "How to find IP address for Brother HL-2280DW." What came up was a link to a Brother Support page purportedly answering that exact question. But the page wouldn't load--just had a spinning circle going. While waiting, a pop-up box with a photo of an eager-to-please young woman said that I could ask my question there. Then that led to being asked for my phone number so a support guy could help me. He talked me through finding the IP through the menu on the printer: easy--thought I was done and was ready to hang up. But he said, "That is not a good IP address. there should not be 3 zeroes in it like that." Then THAT led to his taking over the computer to look at stuff and finding that I had 15 devices connected to my computer when I thought we had perhaps 6. He got into the ...well, in the old days, I would have said DOS, but I don't know what it is today (I studied programming in the 80s--I'm old.) He showed me that these other devices all had foreign IPs. Now I have to say that I just removed a VPN service yesterday, so perhaps that was responsible, but I didn't think of it at the time.

What I'm wondering now is A) Was that non-working page but working chatbox a ploy for Brother to get $$$ out of people? or B) was I not even on a genuine Brother page and the whole thing was a scam?

I hate that I can't keep up anymore with spotting what's a scam!

 

[CJ Mac]

Re: Bad IP Address making it impossible to print from Chromebook?

Reply to Mr. Bojangles1: Glad I was able to do a search on anything with .exe to find it as it downloaded in a crazy folder. It was LogMeInRescue, and I just deleted it. Will try your other advice on Monday. Thanks!

 

[B. Diddy]

Re: Bad IP Address making it impossible to print from Chromebook?

As long as the printer and your Chromebook are connected to the same wi-fi network, it should be easy to print. On your Chromebook, did you go to Settings>Printers>Add Printer​?

 

[CJ Mac]

Re: Bad IP Address making it impossible to print from Chromebook?

Oh yes, the printer is definitely shown in my Chromebook as ready to print to. But when I hit print, it just never happens. So I thought that perhaps my settings are wrong in the Chromebook.

Shut the front door! All I did was change the setting on my Chromebook to the newly-discovered IP address for my printer, and it printed!!!

So do I ignore all that other stuff about the IP address being bad and needed to get rid of those 15 other foreign IP addresses on my computer?

 

[spARTacus]

Re: Bad IP Address making it impossible to print from Chromebook?

...So do I ignore all that other stuff about the IP address being bad and needed to get rid of those 15 other foreign IP addresses on my computer?

I don't think you can have an IP address on your computer that is foreign to the subnet from your home router / network, or from what your ISP might give you for IP addresses. I think it would result in "un-routable" errors. If you are able to browse the internet, it's probably safe to say your computer has a "good" IP address from your ISP. You could still have something wrong or not right with your computer, but the way you explained it based on how that guy on the phone explained it, something was "off" (in my opinion) with what was being indicated.

 

[Laura Knotek]

Those other IP addresses could be other devices in your house such as family members' phones, smart TVs, tablets, game consoles, smart doorbells, etc.

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