How to install an old printer on Windows 10

Trying to connect the old printer you used on your previous and less updated computer to your brand new PC with Windows 10, you could not get it to work and would like a hand to try to understand how to solve? I would say then that, luckily for you, you came across the right tutorial, at a time that couldn’t have been better. Today, in fact, I wanted to explain to you just how to cope with this type of need.

If you want to then find out how to install an old printer on windows 10, all you have to do is make yourself comfortable, take a few free minutes just for you and concentrate on reading (as well as putting into practice, of course!) the instructions on what to do that you find below.

I already anticipate that if you do not have the printer installation disk you will have to search and install “manually” the drivers to use. In any case, you don’t have to worry about it, it’s not difficult, even for you who don’t consider yourself a great IT expert. Now, however, just chat and let’s take action. Good work and good luck for everything!

Index

Preliminary operations

Before getting to the heart of the tutorial, going to explain what needs to be done to be able install an old printer on Windows 10, there are some preliminary operations that it is good that you do, to make sure that everything goes the right way.

First, I suggest you make sure ofactual compatibility with Windows 10 of the printer that you intend to connect to the computer, so as to ensure that you can really configure and use it in conjunction with the computer. To do this, the quickest and most immediate thing you can do is to do a search on Google, by typing in the appropriate field of the search engine keywords such as “Compatibility [marca e modello stampante] with Windows 10 “, then pressing the key Enter on the keyboard and consulting the various results available.

If from the research carried out it emerges that the old printer you own can actually be used with Windows 10, you need to worry about finding the related driver for your PC. To do this, if you own the installation disk of the printer you can try to use it.

If you do not have any CDs or if the resources on the media are incompatible with the operating system, you can always search for the drivers you need through Google, using a keyword of the type “driver [marca e modello stampante] per Windows 10”. Then when you will be shown the page with the search results, select only and exclusively the links that referring to manufacturer’s website of your printer – so as to avoid any viruses, malfunctions and more generally unpleasant surprises – by clicking on it and following the instructions shown on the screen to complete the download.

If you don’t feel like going on your own and feel you need some more guidance to make sure you are downloading the correct drivers, you can check out my specific guides on how to find HP, Canon, Samsung and Epson drivers. If your printer manufacturer is not among the ones I have just listed, you can also read my tutorial on how to recover missing drivers.

The preliminary operations to be carried out also and above all include the connection “Real” printer to the computer. Depending on the type of technologies supported by the printer, it can be done in one of the following ways: via parallel port LPT (it is the most common connection method among old-fashioned printers, it works through a cable called “tray” with 25 pins which is usually light gray with the part where the blue pins are), through door USB (by inserting the appropriate connection cable into the port on the printer and into the one on the computer) or via network wireless (acting from the printer settings, using the keys and the display on it or previously from a computer, to connect it “wirelessly” to your Wi-Fi network). For all the details of the case, I recommend reading my specific tutorials on how to connect a printer and how to configure a Wi-Fi printer.

How to install an old printer on Windows 10 with CD

After taking the preliminary steps above, we can finally get to the real action! To begin with, let’s find out how to go about it install an old printer on Windows 10 with CD.

In this case, after connecting the printer to the computer, the first step you need to take is to insert it into the CD player connected to your PC (if you don’t have one, you can consider buying an external one by following the “tips” you find in the my buying guide) the installation disk printer and wait a moment for it to start.

If the printer disk does not run automatically, to remedy this, start the CD “manually” by clicking on the File Explorer (the one with the yellow folder) that you find on the taskbar, then on the voice This PC present in the menu on the left and double clicking on the icon CD-ROM located on the right. If necessary, manually run the driver installation file, which should have a type name setup.exe, install.exe, setup.msi or installa.exe.

At this point, you should see a window through which the wizard configuration procedure of the printer. Then stick to the instructions on the screen and that’s it. Unfortunately I cannot provide you with detailed information on what to do, as the proposed procedure may vary depending on the brand and model of printer, as well as the version of the software used. In principle, however, what you need to do is accept the terms of use and always click on the buttons Forward O Next, select the connection type to use, the printer reference at the appropriate time and press the buttons Install O Install e Fine O Finish. If requested, also provide a restart the computer at the end of the procedure.

When installation is complete, I recommend that you set the newly installed printer as the default on your PC. To do this, click on the Start button (the one with the Microsoft flag) that you find at the bottom left of the taskbar, select the icon Settings (the one in the shape of gear wheel) from the menu that opens and select the item Devices that you find in the window that appears on the desktop.

Next, select the item Printers and scanners from the menu on the left and remove the check mark from the box next to the item Let Windows manage the default printer located on the right. At this point, click on printer name that you find in the list Printers and scanners located a little higher and press the button Set as default attached to the next screen.

How to install an old printer on Windows 10 without CD

You do not have the installation disk of your old printer or you cannot use it and, therefore, you have found the necessary drivers from the Internet and now you would like to understand how to proceed? Then read on! Below, in fact, you will find indicated, by thread and by sign, how to do for install an old printer on Windows 10 without CD.

To begin with, after connecting the printer to the computer, the first move you need to make is to install the drivers downloaded from the Internet. Most drivers install automatically, simply by double-clicking on the executable file proceeds.

If proceeding as I have just indicated you are unable to install the drivers or in any case if the file you obtained does not install automatically, to remedy it, proceed as follows: click on the Start button (the one with the Microsoft flag) that you find at the bottom left of the taskbar and select the icon Settings (the one in the shape of gear wheel) from the menu that appears.

In the window that you see appear on the desktop at this point, click on the item Devices and select the wording Printers and scanners found in the sidebar on the left, then locate the section Related settings which is on the right and click on the link Print server properties below.

In the further window that is now shown to you, select the tab Driver, click on the button add, select the processor of your computer and click on the button Forward, press the button Disco driver located at the bottom right, then on the button Browse and select the printer driver file you previously downloaded from the Internet. Then click on the button OK, on that Forward and follow the wizard proposal to finalize the “manual” installation of the drivers.

After completing the above steps, go to the section again to install the printer Devices of the Settings Windows 10 as I indicated earlier, select the item Printers and scanners from the sidebar, click on the entry Add a printer or scanner located at the top and wait for the printer to be detected by the system, then select the printer Name.

If your printer is not automatically detected by Windows 10, click the link The desired printer is not in the list you see appear. In the new window that opens, make sure the option is selected The printer is not recent. You need assistance to find it. and press the button Forward. Then wait for the printer to be detected by the system, select the Name from the list and follow the installation and configuration wizard procedure that is proposed to you.

If your printer is not found by Windows 10 this way, after clicking on the link The desired printer is not in the list in the screen above, select another of the following options attached to the window that opens, based on the type of connection that the device supports: Select a shared printer by name, Add a printer using a host name or TCP / IP address, Add a Bluetooth, wireless or network discoverable printer or Add local or network printer with manual settings. Stick, then, wizard that is proposed to you, selecting the appropriate items and options and that’s it.

I also point out that the same procedure to install an old printer on Windows 10 that I have just described to you, can also be implemented by Control panelby selecting the relevant connection that you find in menu Start, then the voice Devices and printers it’s the Add a device (depending on the type of display set) in the window that opens on the desktop and following the instructions attached to the window that opens on the screen.

After being able to complete the process to install your printer on Windows 10 without the aid of the CD, I suggest you set the latter as default on the computer. To do this, you can follow the instructions on what to do that I gave you in the final part of the previous step.