Resetting the printer to print

Q Whenever I try to print to my AirPrint printer from my iPhone or iPad, they report that no AirPrint printers were found, until I turn the printer off and on again. Is this how AirPrint works?

A AirPrint shouldn’t require you to keep initialising your printer, but should find it easily when in Wi-Fi range. Problems like this are most likely when your local wireless network is misconfigured, resulting in your printer and devices looking for one another on different networks.

Sometimes this can be solved quickly by enabling support for both 2.4GHz and 5GHz connections in your Wi-Fi router. Otherwise you should check the IP address in each of the devices including the printer. On your iPhone and iPad this is in Settings > Wi-Fi, in the Info symbol next to the ticked network. Configure IP should be Automatic, then make a note of the IP Address and details, which should give your Wi-Fi router’s address.

All four should be on the same sub-net, with the first three figures in the IP address the same. If they aren’t they can’t see one another on the network, and you’ll need to reconfigure your router or printer. If the Wi-Fi icon on your printer’s LCD screen isn’t active, it may be using Wi-Fi Protected Setup (WPS), requiring you to select one of its WPS options within two minutes of pressing the WPS button in your router’s configuration. Refer to the printer’s documentation for a detailed explanation.

Once all your devices are on the same network, printing should become reliable.

Device network IP addresses are normally assigned by your router; check them for the active Wi-Fi connection in Settings.