Windows XP Drivers for current machines

[JayPaul]

Hi, we have a potential big deal (for us) coming up to sell about 20 Ricoh P502 machines. We gave them 1 for trial use so they can see if it works on their outdated systems and software. All was going ok until they tried to install it on some PC's that are running Windows XP... yes that's right XP
Ricoh stopped putting out drivers for XP about 5 years ago because Microsoft wasn't supporting it any more. So I can't get hold of any XP drivers, the oldest they will go is Windows 7 but the customer tried Win 7 drivers and it will not install.
What on earth can I do to get around this? Telling them to update these prehistoric machines is not an option as they are connected to massive machinery that is probably the same age.
My first idea was to find a smiliar type of printer but a lot older with similar driver architecture but that failed as once again, they removed the XP drivers.
Any suggestions?

[copier tech]

Re: Windows XP Drivers for current machines

Hi, we have a potential big deal (for us) coming up to sell about 20 Ricoh P502 machines. We gave them 1 for trial use so they can see if it works on their outdated systems and software. All was going ok until they tried to install it on some PC's that are running Windows XP... yes that's right XP
Ricoh stopped putting out drivers for XP about 5 years ago because Microsoft wasn't supporting it any more. So I can't get hold of any XP drivers, the oldest they will go is Windows 7 but the customer tried Win 7 drivers and it will not install.
What on earth can I do to get around this? Telling them to update these prehistoric machines is not an option as they are connected to massive machinery that is probably the same age.
My first idea was to find a smiliar type of printer but a lot older with similar driver architecture but that failed as once again, they removed the XP drivers.
Any suggestions?

As these are a basic mono desktop printer you should be able to use a generic PCL driver that XP has built in.

[JayPaul]

Re: Windows XP Drivers for current machines

Do you mean something that is already installed as part of the Windows XP software on the PC (the drivers they come with as standard) or do you mean going to Ricoh website and downloading one of the 'PCL Driver for Universal Print' drivers?

[bsm2]

Re: Windows XP Drivers for current machines

Customer should NOT be run running Windows XP period as MS discontinued security updates years ago.. Unless its a Government Agency that is getting security updates from MS if so contact Ricoh support.

[copier tech]

Re: Windows XP Drivers for current machines

Do you mean something that is already installed as part of the Windows XP software on the PC (the drivers they come with as standard) or do you mean going to Ricoh website and downloading one of the 'PCL Driver for Universal Print' drivers?

Well both, but i'd start using the drivers that come with XP, either Ricoh of the generic HP PCL6 driver.

Are you in Southampton in the UK?

[JayPaul]

Re: Windows XP Drivers for current machines

I will have to try a remote session with customer and see if I can get some old universal drivers to work, providing there are some built in already. Not really something I can replicate and test from my office as I don't have any XP machines unsurprisingly.
Yes I am near Southampton, England. Unfortunately customer is about 90 minutes away from here.

[rthonpm]

Re: Windows XP Drivers for current machines

Windows 7 drivers will not work as Microsoft changed the underlying driver structure starting with Vista.

You should be able to just download a LaserJet 5 PCL driver and use that. I used to use the LJ5 driver for any old version of Windows even back in the XP days. As long as the MFP understands PCL, it will just work.

As others have mentioned, make sure these XP systems are not directly connected to the internet. We have several customers with XP (and older) systems for industrial or scientific equipment that are either on their own self contained network with no internet access or used completely offline. We even issue a contract statement that any end of life operating system connected to the internet or part of the overall network with no additional protections will prevent us from providing support to the customer.

Sent from my BlackBerry using Tapatalk

[JayPaul]

Re: Windows XP Drivers for current machines

As I've never had to use HP print driver with a Ricoh, it is ok because they both speak PCL language? I know sometimes different brands using each others drivers can cause absolute chaos printing. A bit like printing to a ricoh from a mac without post script you just get hundreds of pages of jibberish instead of 1 test page.
HP Drivers only seem to date as far back as Win 7 as well or Server 2003, where can I get this older version from?
I believe XP machines just to link up to big engineering machinery... anything beyond that involving the outside internet is on them. I am sure they are well aware of the security risks as they have a designated IT team.

[copier tech]

Re: Windows XP Drivers for current machines

As I've never had to use HP print driver with a Ricoh, it is ok because they both speak PCL language? I know sometimes different brands using each others drivers can cause absolute chaos printing. A bit like printing to a ricoh from a mac without post script you just get hundreds of pages of jibberish instead of 1 test page.
HP Drivers only seem to date as far back as Win 7 as well or Server 2003, where can I get this older version from?
I believe XP machines just to link up to big engineering machinery... anything beyond that involving the outside internet is on them. I am sure they are well aware of the security risks as they have a designated IT team.

Exactly many drivers are identical.

[bsm2]

Re: Windows XP Drivers for current machines

Exactly many drivers are identical.

Print drivers are model specfic unless generic so some features may or may not work also printing some fonts could be an issue

Why is this account still using XP? Getting new copiers with old Pc's makes no sense.

[BillyCarpenter]

Re: Windows XP Drivers for current machines

XP, huh? I'd be more concerned with scan to folder...if they want that? Does XP have SMB 2.0?

I have a couple of customers still running Windows 7 but not XP. I asked them why they were still using Windows 7 and the best I could gather is that they were afraid of learning a new operating system.

[copier tech]

Re: Windows XP Drivers for current machines

XP, huh? I'd be more concerned with scan to folder...if they want that? Does XP have SMB 2.0?

I have a couple of customers still running Windows 7 but not XP. I asked them why they were still using Windows 7 and the best I could gather is that they were afraid of learning a new operating system.

Printer is an a mono desktop printer (no scanner)

Thats why I suggested a generic driver.

[rthonpm]

Re: Windows XP Drivers for current machines

Print drivers are model specfic unless generic so some features may or may not work also printing some fonts could be an issue

Why is this account still using XP? Getting new copiers with old Pc's makes no sense.

Drivers are model specific only in that they include the features available for that device (e.g. an MP 2550 driver isn't going to offer you seven paper trays). The underlying printer languages (PCL, PostScript, etc) are identical so any PCL driver will work with any PCL device, you may just get a slightly different offset in terms of print space margins, slower output, or lower resolution, but the device will understand the actual print language submitted to it.

[JayPaul]

Re: Windows XP Drivers for current machines

A bit like if you had MPC 3002, used the pcl 6 driver for that machine and they upgrade to MPC 3003, you can leave it on the same driver, then upgrade to MPC 3004 and IMC 3000 it will be ok. Usually any differences are so minimal people wouldn't really notice. However I've never had to go back as far as an XP machine, as soon as it sees you are trying to install a Win 7 driver it prompts an error saying it can't be done. That is where my problem is, getting a driver that it sees and says yep thats ok printer installed. I have just dug up an old XP based laptop which is now loading at a snails pace, when it finally does in the next century I can try ricohs universal or the HP universal pcl drivers to print to an IMC 3000 I have here. I can already print to it using a Win 7 HP PCL driver on my Win 10 PC but need to do it on this crusty ol' laptop.
I already stated why they have some XP machines there.

[bsm2]

Re: Windows XP Drivers for current machines

A bit like if you had MPC 3002, used the pcl 6 driver for that machine and they upgrade to MPC 3003, you can leave it on the same driver, then upgrade to MPC 3004 and IMC 3000 it will be ok. Usually any differences are so minimal people wouldn't really notice. However I've never had to go back as far as an XP machine, as soon as it sees you are trying to install a Win 7 driver it prompts an error saying it can't be done. That is where my problem is, getting a driver that it sees and says yep thats ok printer installed. I have just dug up an old XP based laptop which is now loading at a snails pace, when it finally does in the next century I can try ricohs universal or the HP universal pcl drivers to print to an IMC 3000 I have here. I can already print to it using a Win 7 HP PCL driver on my Win 10 PC but need to do it on this crusty ol' laptop.
I already stated why they have some XP machines there.

You should ALWAYS install the correct print driver. Period
Maybe the customer will have a problem is NOT a Solution its a problem waiting to happen.

Try calling tech support next time and tell them old firmware wrong driver and report back what they said and You Don't understand what could be the problem.