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I use a Brother MFC-J5910DW printer and it seems to automatically download drivers and updates. Unfortunately, the updates are making problems for me, making me change full cartridges etc. I don't want to get into the discussion of why, however. I need to block the printer from accessing the internet altogether.

Any help would be appreciated.

I use Windows 7 professional on my PCs and some Ipads and other on the network.

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    You say it's downloading drivers, but usually those would be downloaded to your computer itself. Are you sure that isn't the problem...?
    – Andrew Lott
    Mar 11, 2013 at 14:07
  • @Andrew Lott I will deal with that separately. But Business printers are not the same as printers which hang off the PC's USB port.
    – DKean
    Mar 11, 2013 at 14:13
  • How do you know the printer is updating? Drivers are specific to the PC, not the printer. The driver gives the computer the ability to communicate with the printer. Windows Update may have updated your software, but I could not find anything in the Advanced User Manual for that printer which discusses what you are thinking.
    – CharlieRB
    Mar 11, 2013 at 15:35
  • I did no want to get into that issue from the start. The question is simple. And if you doubt me check your communication with your printers, if you have a recent one that they do not communicate directly on the internet. You will find that they do and I do not want to get into this any more than this. I just want to block them. I guess updating some table in the router will do the trick. I was just hoping that one of you knew anything about that. Maybe the firewall...
    – DKean
    Mar 11, 2013 at 16:47
  • My network-connected Brother printer talks to the internet to download FIRMWARE, not drivers. Maybe that's what OP meant.
    – pbpb
    Mar 23, 2023 at 18:37

1 Answer 1

Reset to default
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Take out the settings for the default gateway on the printer. You may have to set a static IP to be able to do this if it is currently getting DHCP.

If it's downloading drivers, it won't be the printer doing that, it'll be the printer software on your computer doing that.

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  • That is the case with the printers attached to the PC USB port, but now days the business printers seem to get the drivers on their own because they are connected to the router directly.
    – DKean
    Mar 11, 2013 at 14:09
  • +1 for removing the default gateway. That will prevent the printer from connecting to anything which is not on the local network. It is simple, uninvasive and persistent.
    – Hennes
    Mar 11, 2013 at 15:09
  • Seems like an interesting idea. I do not know where to make that change, though. But I will go through the settings on the printer. Thanks
    – DKean
    Mar 11, 2013 at 16:49

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