Sharing XP print server with Windows 7 network

Our home has a mixed-platform network composed of three Windows 7 machines, two Vista machines, and (hopefully) one Windows XP print server. I would love to upgrade the print server to Windows 7, but it doesn't have enough RAM.

How can I connect the Windows XP print server to my home network? I don't need the ability to share files over the network. I simply need to be able to print directly to the laserjet from any of my networked machines.

I've poked around the forums and elsewhere on the Internet, and have come across variants of this question but haven't found any clear-cut instructions that explain how to do this.

Thanks!

Aaron

Doc Brown,

Nice name. :) How did you make your network see the XP machine and vice versa? I started over from scratch, and currently have three Windows 7 machines connected to a homegroup. The workgroup name for these machines is "WORKGROUP." This is also the workgroup name for the XP machine. But the Windows 7 machines can't see the XP machine and vice versa.

Should I start over from scratch, bypassing the homegroup process?

Aaron

Thanks, DocBrown. I've changed my workgroup name to something unique and am bypassing the homegroup network. No luck so far, but I think I may be trying too many machines at one time. I'm going to start with the XP print-sharing computer and my wife's Vista-based PC. If I can get those to work, I may be able to add the Windows 7 machines back into the network one at a time.

I love Windows 7, but the use of the word "Homegroup" seems confusing from a usability standpoint. In theory, isn't it possible to have a networked machine identified as a "home location" without using the homegroup network?

Aaron

I'm very frustrated, but am slightly closer to solving this problem. After trying for several hours to see the XP machine on the network, I realized that I might need to upgrade that machine to SP3. Then, I realized that it also needed the Link Layer Protocol Responder added to the system, and a hotfix was required to make this work with SP3. Finally, managed to get all of that sorted out, and here is my current dilemma:

When I go to the network sharing center to view Network Computers and Devices, I can only see the two Windows 7 machines. However, if I click on "See Full Map," I've confirmed that the Windows 7 machines can actually see my XP system on the network. Woo hoo!

But I still cannot add the XP machine's shared printer. Sigh.... Does anyone have any ideas?

Aaron