I have to admit that Bonjour, Apple’s service delivery protocol is actually one of the more cooler aspects of the Apple/OSX stack. It even has a Microsoft Windows download.
We have an HP OfficeJet 5610 in the Citizen Space (thanks Ivan!) which is connected to an Apple AirportExpress – and thus available via Bonjour (BTW if you want one of these cool multi-printers, this is the current version).
However, getting it to install on Windows has been difficult because the installation process requires the printer to be connected locally via USB. The drivers can’t just be saved to a local drive and then accessed via “Have Disk…” during the install process in Bonjour. This is particularly common for the ‘all-in-one’/multifunction printers.
I’ve finally managed to do it, with some advice – so here’s my own little guide. Hopefully this will get indexed into Google and displayed when people search for ‘windows printer driver bonjour’ or similar.
How to install a printer on Windows via Bonjour that requires the printer to be connected locally during the driver installation
- Download and install Bonjour for Windows and your printer driver, if you haven’t done so already. In the case of HP drivers at least, you shouldn’t need to download ‘network drivers’ as these assume direct connection to the printer via the LAN. Therefore make sure you download drivers designed for local use via USB.
- Run the Bonjour Printer Wizard via the Start menu, and select the networked printer
- When presented with a list of driver options (this is Windows XP’s default driver list, which is often out-of-date) choose your printer model if it’s listed. More than likely it won’t be there, so choose one that’s close – ie if you have an OfficeJet 5610 then choose the generic ‘HP OfficeJet’ option, etc.
- Complete the installation wizard.
- Disconnect the printer from the Apple AirportExpress.
- Now run the actual driver install for your printer that you’ve just downloaded/have on CD, connecting the printer via USB first or during the install (as per the instructions of your printer).
- Complete the install, and confirm the printer is properly setup locally by printing a test page
- Disconnect the printer from your computer and reconnect the printer back to the AirPort Express
- In the ‘Printers and Faxes’ window of Windows, right click the printer you installed via Bonjour and select ‘Properties’
- Navigate to the ‘Advanced’ tab and locate the ‘Driver’ droptown – it should look like this. This is a list of all printer drivers you have installed on your machine.
- Change the Driver dropdown box from the ‘similar’ printer to the actual one that matches your printer type
- Delete the other printer driver instance – the one that was installed locally.
- Your Bonjour-enabled printer should now be ready to print, with the correct driver! Print a test page to confirm, making sure that the printer is correctly plugged back into the AirPort Express and viewable by Bonjour.
Useful advice thanks. It also works with the new Airport Extreme. It is important to remember to uninstall the printer from any previous attempts, before following your instructions, otherwise Bonjour seems to default to the origi.
Worked like a charm, so glad I found your advise. Many thanks for posting it.
I tried installing my HP PSC 1510 using your instructions and it didn’t quite work. I’m sharing the printer from my iMac to a windows xp laptop.
After installing Bonjour on xp, the printer was found straight away with no problems at all (printer and windows sharing turned on with my mac). I took your advice and installed the correct HP drivers for the printer (as I had installed it while connected via USB before and were in the list), but this didn’t work. A document would send from xp and the document would appear in the completed print queue on my Imac without it actually printing….
The fix was to select generic postscript drivers in XP (which was the first driver selected during installation, golly, apple even try and make things easier on windows for us, good old Steve Jobs). After this, printing worked with no problems at all.
Thought I’d throw my 2p’s worth of info in just in case someone has the same problem as me.
Just tried this using Vista and an HP 1020. It worked! I’ve struggled with this because of the Vista incompatibilities with the Airport Express software. I found a pre-release version of Bonjour that works on Vista (the CD version did not). Of course, the CD AE software didn’t work on Vista, either. Go figure!
10
Worked for my HP Photosmart 8100. May you have good karma for figuring this out and sharing your very clearly written instructions.
I need to use the actual printer drives on my XP system when printing to my canon mx310 connect to my iMac running Mac OS X Leopard. I can do this to the AirPort Extreme but I have to use the generic postscript drivers when the printer is on the iMac. The AirPort Express presents a “raw” print queue using the HP protocol on port 9100. Leopard on the iMac presents IPP on port 631 which does not understand the canon printer protocol. When using the postscript driver I loose many settings specific to the MX310. Why can’t apple printing work as good as Windows XP printing?
It worked for me. Simple, when you have instructions. 🙂 Thanks!
Works perfectly with HP C5280 and Vista! Thanks!
worked like a treat. thank you for the advice.
Great post. Thank you
In my situation, I needed to get Vista talking to an OfficeJet printer on a Time Capsule. Everything looked great. The printer was recognized and the install completed. However, whenever I tried to print, I got an error. The solution for me was to go into the Printer Port (in the Control Panel|Printers|OfficeJet|Properties|Ports) click the Time Capsule port and click Configure Port. Turns out the Printer Name was wrong. I tried pinging the address and of course, it wasn’t resolving to the Time Capsule. As soon as I updated the Printer Name to the Time Capsule’s name and OK’d everything… Everything worked!
Thanks … this was helpful. A small update. On the new AE Extreme you may be able to skip a few steps. Specifically, I don’t think you need to first install with Bonjour using a “fake” driver. Here’s what I did.
1) Hook up the printer to the USB, and install using the install CD (as you note, this will install a printer in your printer list).
2) Restart if you need to, then plug the printer back into the USB on the APE. Give Bonjour a minute to find it, then run the Bonjour install wizard. It will “see” the new driver you installed in step one, and you can select it to finish the install.
3) After test pages, etc., go back and delete the local printer version that was installed in your printer list in step 1.
My MX310 worked after installing locally then configuring the IP port. I _did_ have to change from addressing the port by name to by IP address. And it was port 9101.
I have the same problem as Paul. The HP driver works fine but doesn’t allow me print edge to edge, control quality, etc.
and the canon driver won’t work.
Has any body else over come this?
i want install hp photosmart 8150
Thanks a lot explaination is crystal clear !
Bravo.
I have exactly the same problem but on a MAC running Mac OS X 10.4
In step 3 , I choose “officejet 9100” only choice offered for officejet
When I arrive to step 10, “bonjour” cannot see the name of my printer “officejet 5610” , eventhough the right driver is installed … proof .. I can print when I connect the printer through the USB cable.
Any idea how can I get “bonjour” ( on my MAC ) to recognize my officejet 5610 driver ?
Thx for your help.
ok, I must be moron, because no matter what I read and try nothing works, I do not get a test page to print. I tried going from my xp desktop to shared printers or just regulat, (I hate windows). can anyone offer a suggestions?
I screwed around for hours trying to print from XP laptop to a Brother HL-5250DN connected via USB to a Time Capsule. Tom above is right that Bonjour can now recognize my Brother printer driver (installed while connected directly to the PC). The problem as Jake Persofsky noted (at least for me) is the Printer Name was wrong. For some reason the Port configured by Bonjour was Time-Capsule.local (or something like that). I changed the Port Name to Time Capsule’s to IP_10.0.0.1, and the Printer Name to Time Capsule’s IP address 10.0.0.1, and it worked. Phooey! I found this old post helpful.
This old post is helpful http://tech.ifelix.net/1004.html
[…] on installing Bonjour for Windows, I came across Ben Metcalfe’s neat write up on “Bonjour on Windows and printer drivers“. Although superbly written and informative, it was presentation that caught my […]
I have Windows Vista Ultimate, printing to an HP Photosmart 7760 through the Airport Extreme USB Port. I followed all instructions, and printed test page successfully; however when I go to print a 2nd document, everything “acts” the same, but no document ever gets printed.
If I use my Mac (and before I attempt with Vista), I can print without any problems and as many different documents as I like. After I use Vista, my Mac stops printing too. I have to restart the whole Airport Extreme to get the Mac to print again.
Also when I restart, the PC will again work only for the first document (same problem occurs again).
Do you have any advise, or options to help me print from my PC? Thank you.
Did exactly what is described way above on a Windows XP laptop and does not work .. cannot print to HP printer connected to Airport Express.
But but but, now , I can print to the same printer connected to Airport Express with my MAC ibook. Thx to 3 linux drivers discovered by chance…
So summary, now can print wirelessly from iBook to HP5610 connected to Airport Express but still cannot print wirelessly from Windows XP laptop …
What a mess !!!!!!
Where do you open the bonjur printer wizard? please do not say the Start menu.
I was having issues printing from XP through my new Time Capsule (MBP working fine). Based on the post from wensley I changed my port from the Time-Capsure.local to IP_10.0.1.1 and all works fine now!!
I am glad it worked out for you Joe Soricelli. I recently had to reinstall Windows because of a nasty virus. I am glad I wrote in this forum, because I had forgotten how to configure the port. I googled my own name with some additional keywords and found this page again. Btw, in the old post I wrote the port name as 10.0.0.1, it should be 10.0.1.1 as Joe wrote.
Thank you so much wensley! I have been moving my printer’s USB cord for months now. I decided to give this a go again tonight and was getting very frustrated. When it printed I nearly jumped up and down for joy.
The only difference for me was I had to actually add the port because for some reason it wouldn’t let me change the printer name. So I added a TCP/IP port with the printer name 10.0.1.1 and port name IP_10.0.1.1. Then I just selected that port instead of the time-capsule.local port that it created.
BTW I am on Windows XP SP3 and HP LJ3050. Thanks again!
I have Windows Vista Home Premium and an HP Deskjet D1420. I have tried everything under the sun and nothing works. The problem specifically is that I only get through part of a test page and the print spooler chokes. Over USB the test page works fine. I have a feeling its a driver problem, but I can’t get any other drivers to work over Bonjour. I CAN communicate with the printer and my MBP works just fine. I need HELP because I am about ready to throw the Vista machine and the printer out the window!
IT WORKED!!! I’ve tried a thousand times to install my HP 5280, and Bonjour would only SEE, but not print to the printer on Airport. By adding a port (10.0.1.1), I could finally make the printer work. Thank you!
Thanks for sharing your thoughts and excellent and It also works with the new Airport Extreme. It is important to remember to uninstall the printer from any previous attempts, before following your instructions, otherwise Bonjour seems to default to the original..
Thanks for the port 10.0.1.1 info, now I can connect one printer. I have a second printer I would like to add to my airport extreme, what port would I use for the second one?
I have tried everything mentioned above. I have an HP photosmart 6180 and the printer works fine connected via usb, but I can’t get it to print through the airport extreme.
Bonjour recognizes the printer and selects drivers but when I push the finish intall on the bonjour wizard it locks up and doesn’t respond. I even tried installing via the TCP/IP address and it installs the printer but still won’t print.
Can somebody give me a hand?
Update to my earlier post. HDD in my XP machine died so new HDD and Win7 install was in order. Loaded the Bonjour client, added the IP_10.0.1.1 port and all works just fine.
I have 3 printers regularly used 2x canon and Epson. Could not get Bonjour to work. Kept trying to ‘Repair”. Eventually completely uninstalled Bonjouir and then reinstalled. Works a treat. As drivers were already on my computer, nothing else to do and wizard worked…. Thanks for all this advise.
After trying several other solutions, this is the one that worked. Need to make sure you have the correct version of bonjour and it installs correctly. after that, this is pretty flawless. THANK YOU!!
At last a found the solution in your excellent post!
Thanks!
Bonjour worked great for me but I had to reinstall once before I got it right. I would have had alot more problems had I not found this post before installing…thanks to all for the help!
Yes! This very clear and easy fix solved my frustrating problem. Thank you!
Once again a simple Google search has led me to a well thought out response to what feels like an oddball problem. This procedure helped me connect a 64-bit workstation running Windows 7, a 64-bit family PC running Vista and a 2006 iMac 20″ to our HP OfficeJet 5610. For scanning, I believe the printer will still need to be USB connected to a PC – a small price to pay since I usually scan stuff to PDF at work. Cheers to Ben, and Happy New Year everyone!