Networking 2 computers

[GELvdH]

I want to network 2 computers to be able to share the printers which are connected to one of them. Am having trouble finding a simple answer. Help.

[AndyMH]

You will have to provide a bit more info. What OS's are they running, mint, other linux, win, mac or something else? If mint which version? Are the computers accessing the internet through a router either wired or wireless?

[GELvdH]

Sorry for the lack of info. Both are desktops and they are ethernet connected via a router using Linux Mint 19.1.

[RIH]

I must admit that I haven't tried it to control a printer, but I found no machine particularly easy to install & use.
https://www.nomachine.com/download/download&id=6

There are certainly other alternatives, but they were all a bit to technical for me to get to work successfully.

[GELvdH]

Thanks for the info. If I am not mistaken 'NoMachin' is a program that lets you control another cpu over the internet. I want to network my computers.

[athi]

Sorry for the lack of info. Both are desktops and they are ethernet connected via a router using Linux Mint 19.1.

I use samba for file and printer sharing, not sure what version of Mint you are running, replace caja with nemo if using Cinnamon. This is how I get samba running on Mint Mate for the last few versions:
$ sudo apt-get install caja-share
$ sudo apt-get install samba system-config-samba cifs-utils winbind

Re-login and you should have the Sharing Option available in the right click context menu.

[athi]

Forgot to add, if auto discovery is not working after re-login, you can manually connect to the other machine. Select File-Connect to Server to open connect to server window, select Windows share from Type menu, input server IP address in Server box, check Add Bookmark and input name in Bookmark Name box and click Connect. To remove bookmark, right click on bookmark and click Remove.

[GELvdH]

OK, I will try it in the morning when I get access to the second computer. The better half is using the 47" Tv for watching her shows and it is the display for my second CPU. Thanks.

[GELvdH]

I tried it on my main cpu but I don't get any response from samba. Shouldn't I get a GUI display? I have never used samba so I am unaware of what I am supposed to see.

[RollyShed]

A "quick & dirty" method is to install Dukto on both computers. Run it up on both and drag & drop the file on to Dukto and it will be copied on the other computer, ready to print.

I'd use a deb package and I presume the 64 bit version for your use?
https://www.ubuntuupdates.org/package/g ... tdeb/dukto

[athi]

When I first started using Linux Mint, samba just worked out of the box. When I first start using this method (Mate 17 I think), there was a control center GUI but it was fairly useless. In 18 and 19, no GUI at all, not sure why but samba networking still works. The only indication is the Sharing Option in the context menu and when you share folders, the folder will be marked as shared

Screenshot at 2019-06-10 21-30-10.png (2.6 KiB) Viewed 855 times

You can also connect to the share on the network.

[AndyMH]

In LM19 cinnamon right click on a folder in the file manager and select 'sharing options', if needed the relevant bits of samba will be installed. Do this on both machines and you will then be able to see both PCs on the network and copy files from one to the other. Haven't shared printers via samba as all my printers are network printers.

[GELvdH]

OK, I installed the following scripts

$ sudo apt-get install nemo-share
$ sudo apt-get install samba system-config-samba cifs-utils winbind

Rebooted them, still nothing with the printers.
There has got to be a way to network in LM19.1 Cinnamon, anyone have any ideas, I will try anything (almost).

[altair4]

I can't speak to the printer issue. Printers just show up automatically for me. Problably the printers I use.

But as far as samba is concerned it's automatic between Mint19 machines the instant you install samba ( as in sudo apt install samba ). Samba and Ubuntu made it so.

I suspect you still have the same issue you had before:

Let's start with the easiest process because it should be working by default without any adjustments on your part - an all Linux network. We can get Win10 to play along later.

Make sure all the machines or at lest 2 of them are running Linux not Windows.
Make sure samba is installed on both.
You don't need to create any shares yet - we can do that later.

On one machine run this command and post the output:

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avahi-browse -at | grep Network | grep IPv4

All of your Linux machines should be listed. This is fundamental to how a modern Linux home network functions.

Well here is another day on which to excell, ha ha. I have my laptop and my desktops 1and 2 up and running mint, here is the response I got from my desktop with the linux script you provided.
+ enp1s0 IPv4 GUNTER-DESKTOP-1 Microsoft Windows Network local
+ lo IPv4 GUNTER-DESKTOP-1 Microsoft Windows Network local

And just as it was then the problem is you can only see yourself not the other machine in the network.

Ways that can happen:

** avahi-daemon isn't running on both machines:

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sudo service avahi-daemon status

** A firewall is in the way on both machines - so disable it:

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sudo ufw disable

** These two machines are not in the same network

[altair4]

I can't speak to the printer issue. Printers just show up automatically for me. Problably the printers I use.

But as far as samba is concerned it's automatic between Mint19 machines the instant you install samba ( as in sudo apt install samba ). Samba and Ubuntu made it so.

I suspect you still have the same issue you had before:

Let's start with the easiest process because it should be working by default without any adjustments on your part - an all Linux network. We can get Win10 to play along later.

Make sure all the machines or at lest 2 of them are running Linux not Windows.
Make sure samba is installed on both.
You don't need to create any shares yet - we can do that later.

On one machine run this command and post the output:

Code: Select all

avahi-browse -at | grep Network | grep IPv4

All of your Linux machines should be listed. This is fundamental to how a modern Linux home network functions.

Well here is another day on which to excell, ha ha. I have my laptop and my desktops 1and 2 up and running mint, here is the response I got from my desktop with the linux script you provided.
+ enp1s0 IPv4 GUNTER-DESKTOP-1 Microsoft Windows Network local
+ lo IPv4 GUNTER-DESKTOP-1 Microsoft Windows Network local

And just as it was then the problem is you can only see yourself not the other machine in the network.

Ways that can happen:

** avahi-daemon isn't running on both machines:

Code: Select all

sudo service avahi-daemon status

** A firewall is in the way on both machines - so disable it:

Code: Select all

sudo ufw disable

** These two machines are not in the same network

I've a suspicion the last one is the issue.

[athi]

If it is a network printer,
Restart the printer (mine tend not to wake up if in sleep mode too long)
Click Menu-Control Center-Printers to open Printers-localhost window.
Click Add to open New Printer window.
Expand Network Printer and printer should be listed. If not, let me know.
Click on printer and Forward to install driver

These steps are for Mint Mate 19.1, Cinnamon should be similar. Let me know if this works for you

[GELvdH]

This is for 'athi'.
I will deal with the printer problem later, right now I wan't to try to get my computers talking to each other. Does anyone know of any documentation which walks you through the steps to create a network in linux mint cinnamon 19.1?

[athi]

Here is a link for how to setup simple file sharing with explanation written by altair4 a while back viewtopic.php?f=42&t=23169

This is a youtube video that show how to setup user sharing follow by classic sharing https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=oRHSrnQueak

The 2 commands that I send you is to install caja/nemo sharing and packages needed for sharing with Windows network. Never knew that I was setting up user level sharing until I read this.

[altair4]

I will deal with the printer problem later, right now I wan't to try to get my computers talking to each other. Does anyone know of any documentation which walks you through the steps to create a network in linux mint cinnamon 19.1?

On the desktop run this command to find the hostname:

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hostname

Go to the laptop, open a terminal and ping the desktop from the laptop by that hostname with a .local attached to the end:

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ping -c3 desktop-host-name.local

For example:

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ping -c3 GUNTER-DESKTOP-1.local

And don't forget the .local part at the end of the hostname.

Now do it in reverse. Run hostname on the laptop, then ping the laptop from the desktop.

If you cannot ping each other this way the two machines are not in the same network.

[GELvdH]

OK altair4, I pinged and the machines are not on the same network, so far so good. Now how do I set up a network where the machines recognize each other. I understand about sharing individual folders but if I can't see the other machines that is useless. Everybody who has been contributing to solving my delemma, thank you.