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A Three Networked Home - Computer is on one, Printer on the other
Greeting and Salutations: I have a conundrum here. I have within my home three networks that work fine with each other for the most part. All devices hook to each individual network and is able to access the internet. But I would like to understand how to configure my networks to use peripherals across multiple domains with different IP addresses, especially a printer, my Brother MFC 9330CDW. If I could make this work it would make life so much easier. I would like to keep them departmentalized to a certain degree so that I can see what is on the other networks but they cannot see me. This way I know what is going on and I can help the people that is on the upstairs from downstairs. Like monitor the Brother printer. Anyhoo... Here is my configuration: My primary network... (DHCP IP address: 192.168.1.1) ...consists of an Arris Motorola Surfboard broadband Wireless router with the wireless turned off. There are three devices connected to this router that are network cable driven. The TP-Link Archer C7 Dual Band 802.11ac WiFi Router. A Visio SmartTV, and a D-Link DIR-655 Wireless N 300 router. My secondary network... (DHCP IP address: 192.168.2.1) ...consists of the TP-Link Archer C7 Dual Band 802.11ac WiFi Router in which connects a Windows 7 32-bit desktop, a TiVo Premiere, a Windows 7 HP Pavilion and a couple of casting devices (an EZ-Cast and a Chromecast), and a Visio SmartTV that is wireless but I am utilizing a network cable. Since the TP-Link is a newer router with better features I took the liberty to bind the common MAC addresses to the router table and so that they will always have an IP address to obtain. I am still using the select the IP automatically setting on all devices but I just told the router to watch for the specific MAC addresses and leave those stated IP addresses open only for said devices peripherals or otherwise. This allowed me to limit my IP scope because I do not have a lot of guests that will use this network unless they are visiting me. My tertiary network... (DHCP IP address: 192.168.3.1) ...consists of the D-Link DIR-655 WiFi wireless N with 300mbps throughput max. Within this network I have it for use with my mother's Amazon Fire, a Chromecast, her mobile device, and it is also used for the guest network and my sister's wireless devices when she comes home. I know that I could have utilized a repeater when it comes to increasing the WiFi signal so that I can get maximum throughput off one WiFi network. But at the time the repeaters were too costly for me to purchase. So I used what I had purchased in the past the DIR-655. I used the Motorola Broadband as a WiFi source in the beginning but was not powerful to penetrate to the front of the house from within the back room. Once the dual band routers fell to a more affordable price I was able to get one and turn off the WiFi service on the Motorola and move the WiFi signal to a room in the front of the house with the DIR-655 N 300. That made it all together better for the signal upstairs, but now I cannot access the MFC 9330CDW from the network downstairs without switching to the network upstairs via the WiFi service. I also know that dealing with three DHCP routers in a small house is possibly overkill. However, my house was built is an old post World War II house built in the late 1940's and to get a non intermittent WiFi signal through solid concrete six inch thick basement wall is damn near impossible. LOL! So I punted and this is what I came up with from what I had to work with. Continuing... I know if some or all of you can guide me in the right direction this might be a post to help others out whom may need to do what I did and add a second (or a third -- depending on the square footage of the home) WiFi router to get ample signal to where it is needed, without a repeater. I will admit I am still learning and having fun doing this but I need a little nudge in the right direction, please. How can I get my networked printer to work on the TP-Link router while it is connected to another network upstairs? Should I disable the WAN Ping on all routers that are behind the primary firewall of the Motorola Broadband? Could this be the reason as to why I am not "seeing" my MFC on the Archer C7 network from the D-Link network? To give you a better perspective the common thread in this is the Motorola with the DHCP address 192.168.1.1, for example purposes. The other two networks on the WAN side have a IP address from the Motorola broadband router. I know this is the "common thread"; to get my network to "see" the printer on the Archer C7 network from the D-Link network. I really do not want to disable totally the individual firewalls that each router has. But I will if it is absolutely necessary. I also do not want to be able to ping the WAN from the outside if it is not absolutely necessary. In a nutshell this is what I am trying to accomplish... My printer is at IP address 192.168.3.7... My computer is at IP address 192.168.2.8... The WAN IP addresses (on the Motorola Broadband router) for each WiFi router are 192.168.1.4 and 192.168.1.6, respectively. How can I get my computer to see the printer. I know they are indirectly connected but I am almost sure it can be done, yes? Completely puzzled with this one... I am not afraid to try anything... Thanks....
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