Computer Help

AppleTalk Information

Many changes are being made across campus to increase reliability and performance of network resources, including having an IP-only backbone network infrastructure. This means that non-IP traffic, such as AppleTalk, will no longer be handled as of June 2006.

How does this Change Affect Macintosh Users?

Though it is recommended that all Macintosh users use an IP-based service to connect to printers or fileservers rather than AppleTalk where possible, users will still be able to use AppleTalk to connect to printers or fileservers within the Chemistry Department Network. That is, no changes will need to be made to connect to in-network printers or fileservers.

However, Macintosh users who are using AppleTalk to connect to printers or fileservers outside the Chemistry Department Network (e.g., Pharmacy or Biochemistry) will need to transition to IP-based services where possible, reselect printers and reconnect to fileservers. Instructions are below.

For versions of Mac OS X 10.2 and newer, there is an IP-based method called Rendezvous (based on Zeroconf and Multicast DNS) that allows printers and other computers to find one another without configuration or knowledge of the IP address for the device. In addition to Rendezvous, Mac OS X uses Service Location Protocol (SLP) to locate other computers on the local network. For more information about Rendezvous, visit http://www.apple.com/macosx/features/bonjour/

If you have any questions, please contact us.

Connecting to a Fileserver

On a Mac, use the Chooser or Connect to Server items to locate and connect to chemistryfs or chemistryfs2. You will be prompted for a name and password.

Mac OS X:

  1. Select Connect to Server... under the Go menu
  2. Type "smb://", then the IP address or the name of the fileserver in the address field (e.g., for the chemistry file server, chemistryfs, type smb://chemistryfs)
  3. Log in to the server using your department username and password.

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Instructions for Connecting to a Printer Using IP

The following are instructions for making a transition to using an IP-based connection.

IP Addresses of some printers in the Chemistry Building:

Mac OS 8.x and 9.x

  1. Open Desktop Printer Utility
  2. Select Printer (LPR)
  3. In the "Printer Description File" section, click Change and select the printer model if appropriate
  4. In the LPR Printer Selection section, click Change
  5. Type the IP address or name of the printer in the Printer Address field
  6. Click OK
  7. Click Create

Mac OS X:

  1. Open Printer Setup Utility (formerly Print Center) in /Applications/Utilities
  2. Click Add
  3. Select IP Printing (or LPR Printers using IP) from the popup menu
  4. Type the IP address or name of the printer in the Printer's Address field
  5. If applicable, select the printer model from the list
  6. Click Add

...or, for newer printers on your local network that support Rendezvous:

  1. Open Printer Setup Utility (formerly Print Center) in /Applications/Utilities
  2. Click Add
  3. Select Rendezvous from the popup menu
  4. Select the appropriate printer from the list.

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