Officejet Pro 8600 Plus connection to Router

[jscaldwell07]

I have an 8600 Pro which has the famous loss of connection problem with the computers in our house (Scan to Computer is currently unavailable, etc.). My understanding is that this happens because the printer loses it's wireless connection with the network briefly or something along those lines.

Since the printer sits next to the wireless router, I hoped I could solve the problem by simply connecting the printer to the router with an ethernet cable. That way it would seem that the printer would never lose connection with the network/router, right?

My question is, can I setup the printer in this way and if so, do I need to turn off the wireless connection on the printer? How will the computers in my house see the printer when it is connected to the router in this way? Any guidance/advice on this kind of setup is appreciated.

Thanks.

[Cloud_Strider]

Yes, you can have the printer connected through an Ethernet cable directly to the router.  The printer software on the computers uses a discovery protocol to find the printer and it should update automatically and continue to work.

Before connecting the Ethernet cable, I recommend restoring the network defaults.

This can be done by going to Setup>Network>Restore Network Defaults.

I generally recommend using an Ethernet connection over a wireless connection, but wireless is sometimes the only option for convenience.  

The issue, more than likely, is that the printer goes into sleep mode and loses the DHCP (automatic) IP information that was assigned to it.  The printer still maintains the wifi connection (wifi light should be solid blue still), but it does not send out the DHCP request to get the address information again to communicate on the network.

Whether using an Ethernet or wireless connection, I recommend setting a static IP address.  Static IP addresses have all the necessary information entered directly into the printer.  This eliminates the need for DHCP requests and bypasses the issue.

A static IP address can be set by following the step 6 in this document from HP.

[mitchellkp]

Let me extend this question.

I have a WiFi router. I prefer my laptop be connected via Ethernet and the printer connected WiFi (due to location and the hope to print from my other WiFi devices)

1) Can the printer be used by the laptop when it is connected via WiFi from the same router?

2) If I change the printer to an EThernet connection to the same router, can I leave WiFi on and have my WiFi devices print to it?

[Cloud_Strider]

@mitchellkp,

This will largely depend on your wireless router more than the printer itself.  The printer can only have one network connection at any time (wired or wireless).  However, most routers bridge wired and wireless devices so that they can communicate with each other regardless of how they are connected to the network.  Some routers do have wireless isolation enabled (may be worded differently from router to router).  If wireless isolation is enabled, then each wireless device is isolated from other devices and this would prevent wired and wireless devices from communication.  Having wireless isolation enabled by default is not very common.  Most routers will allow wired and wireless devices to communicate with each other freely out of the box.  

My router was originally closer to my printer and I used an Ethernet connection on the printer.  My wired and wireless devices communicated with the printer just fine.  I then got a new ISP and had to relocate my router away from the printer which I used wifi at that point.  My wired and wireless devices worked just fine with the printer.  

[Spivey1]

I have the HP Officejet Pro 8600 Plus, and need to connect it to my laptop via hardwired ethernt cable. Is this possible?