StarTech.com Ethernet to Parallel Network Print Server, 10/100Mbps LAN, WebUI, Centronics Ethernet Printer Server Adapter, TAA

This adapter was able to turn our Zebra ZP450 UPS Label printers into network printers and we couldn't be happier with the results. Since Zebra does not even have a factory option for a network card on the 450, we are limited to USB, Parallel, or Serial. When you have an entire warehouse full of computers all trying to ship material, the absence of the 450's networking really start to show. Of course, you can connect the printer to one computer over USB and then share it out over Windows, but what happens when that computer is offline? What about when it gets shutdown accidentally? Or even when it's time to replace it? This adapter eliminates all of those concerns.The first step is just to power on the adapter (not connected to the printer) and connect an ethernet cable from it to your computer. On Windows, go to control panel and change your ethernet adapter's IPv4 address to 192.168.0.15 and subnet 255.255.255.0. Navigate to 192.168.0.10 in your web browser and the adapter/print server should show up right away. From within here, you can change the IP Address, DNS name, and other settings. I would recommend changing everything else besides the IP, and then doing that last. Once you have it all set, connect the adapter to your printer, power it back on, and try to connect to it over the network. If you're successful, the only step left is to install the printer like any network printer except for the changing the protocol to LPR. StarTech has some fantastic documentation on all of this, so make sure that check that out too.

Working just fine. There is some network fun you have to do to get it on your network. There is no software to install for the print server, just drivers for the printer. So I am not sure why others had issues with that.I do wish StarTech had this unit set for DHCP out of the box so I did not have to mess with that to get it to my network, but not a big deal.Connected right up to my Panasonic 24 pin KX-P2123 on Windows 11 and windows 10. Not bad for a printer from the 90s.I dd remove a star about the firmware. I had to contact support. They said that the product is too new to get a firmware update, but the firmware I have shows a date of 2021, so its been a few years. They also said they dont suggest upgrading unless you are having an issue. So getting firmware from them may never happen.

The ethernet to parallel print server completely restored my wide-carriage MX-100 from ballast to a printer useful for software debug. It worked the first time and the Window 10 driver was already installed although the driver was labeled as an IBM wide-carriage printer. The dot matrix graphics were also supported by the printer server and the Microsoft driver.

Garbage. Installing the software corrupted my Dell laser printer software and it took hours to get everything back. After ask that, while it did show up on my network, I could never print to it.

Did what it was supposed to do

Great for when those Parallel printers need an IP address!Easy enough to configure, then put into place. The ones I've used have been up and working for at least 5 years now.

Funciona a la perfección

One month later not working