Guest Newtork for IoT: Is It Necessary For A Printer?

[PGB1]

Hello All!

My wife has an iPad Pro 9.7 inch with iOS 15.5. We also have a TP-Link Archer AC1750 C-7 router. On the router, our computers & the iPad are on the "real" network where we do banking & stuff.

We also have a Guest network set up for IoT things, like the Roku televisions. The guest network is completely isolated from the Real network. (Nothing on the Guest can see anything on the Real.)
Reason? I understand such items as televisions, thermostats, door bells & such are easy break-in devices.

She would like a printer to use 100% wirelessly via iPad's Airprint and the WiFi router.

Connecting the printer (probably Canon TR8620a) & iPad to the Guest WiFi network while keeping them isolated from the Real network seems to be impossible, per TP-Link. They said if I let the printer & iPad see each other on the Guest, they can also see the Real nework.

Plan B is to connect the printer to the Real network. But...
My question is if the Canon printer is safe on the real wireless network, are are printers easy break-in devices like Smart Light Bulbs & stuff?

Thanks For Your Advice.
Signed,
Confused In Detroit
(Paul)

 

[lclev]

The printer will have to be on your REAL network if you plan to use your ipad and computers to print to it. Your printer prints - the chance of it ever getting hacked or do anything nefarious on your network are less than none.

Also keeping your TP-Link router's firmware updated it a great way to prevent any hacking - breaking in from happening. And can I assume you have setup strong passwords for accessing your router plus strong passwords for accessing both your wireless networks? I actually reset a wifi password on a router for a friend by accessing it with the factory default password. You would not believe the number of people who do not create a new password on their actual router thinking the wifi password is sufficient.

And make sure your router encryption mode is set to WPA2 (AES) or WPA3 (AES). WPA3 is newer and not all routers will offer it.

That should prevent issues.

Lisa

 

[PGB1]

Thank You for your help & explanation Lisa. I appreciate it very much. Thanks, too, for the reminder of strong passwords & updated firmware.
Thanks Again,
Paul

 

[Lifeisabeach]

I use the same strategy as you do. IOT things are isolated to the Guest network. As Lisa pointed out, this unfortunately won't work for printers. The only way it could work is if your iPad could connect directly to it using Bluetooth for example (which it can't), or over the internet via a remote server, which I can't imagine would be a good idea.

 

[pm-r]

She would like a printer to use 100% wirelessly via iPad's Airprint and the WiFi router.

I don't know if it would work for your particular set up arrangement, but we had great luck with a third-party utility called "handyPrint", which was set up on the Mac the Canon printer was connected to.
handyPrint allowed any iDevice to print directly to it, using the share option I believe it was.

It worked a lot better than the recommended at the time "Printopia" which was also a lot more expensive.

Download handyPrint for Mac | MacUpdate

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Can you connect your Canon printer directly to your Wi-Fi router???



Any way, you can give it a try if you like.




- Patrick
=======

 

[PGB1]

Thanks Again All for helping & for ideas to consider.

Your idea of connecting the Canon to the router would be a simple solution, Patrick. But, this will depend on where my wife would like the machine set up.

I wonder if this would work:
Printer on Guest Network
Add Guest Network to the iPad
Switch iPad WiFi to Guest Network while printing.
Switch back to the Real network when done printing.

 

[pm-r]

I wonder if this would work:
Printer on Guest Network
Add Guest Network to the iPad
Switch iPad WiFi to Guest Network while printing.
Switch back to the Real network when done printing.

Personally, I would have to say that such a setup would drive me crazy and I'm sure it would do so for your wife as well.

Another easier alternative if it would work for you would be do you use your System Preferences > Sharing and set up the printer to allow your wife access to it.

Also I really wonder if the printer, regardless of network it is on could actually jeopardize any network security, after all it isn't exactly a smart device, nor do I understand how any other smart devices such as a smart light bulb could do so either, if it's actually true that they could.





- Patrick
=======

 

[PGB1]

Thanks for the idea of switching networks driving my wife crazy. I suppose it would.
Sharing is something for me to learn about. Never thought of it.

I also wonder if what I've read about Smart Devices being a way for a bad guy to access the network and connected devices is true. I suppose a television is far more likely to be a two-way transaction that a light bulb. (Or a refrigerator that I saw once which calls your grocery list into the store.)

All of these things make me glad someone invented firewalls.