Some multifunction printers can even connect to a phone line to send and receive faxes. The original purpose of a scanner, however, is to digitize a photo or document so it can be used on a computer.

If you have a wired printer that you want to connect to your Windows 11/10 PC, you can do so via the native Printer and Scanner settings. Here's how!

Many printer brands also offer their own software that lets you scan from your computer. For instance, if you have an HP printer, you can use the HP Smart app to scan documents.

To use it, you first need to add your printer to the PC if you haven't already. You can do this by plugging the printer in with a cable or connecting it to the same Wi-Fi network as your PC.

If not, you may need to temporarily connect your printer to your computer with a USB cable. Follow the on-screen instructions to connect your printer to your WiFi network.

With either of these options, I would suggest getting a USB print server so that you can print to the printer from computer 1 without having computer 2 turned on.

You can print on a Mac computer either wirelessly or with a USB cable. Here's how to set up a wired or wireless printer on your Mac and print files.