What is a WPS Pin on a Printer

Cut the cord is about more than getting rid of your cable television subscription. In today’s mobile world, no one wants to fight with wires and cables — especially with your devices. Considering the rise of wireless high-performing printers, it’s pretty obvious that people don’t want to be physically tethered to tech anymore. So, if you own an HP printer, you’ll want to pay attention as creating a wireless connection between your devices and your printer requires a few specific steps.

The WPS PIN

WPS simply stands for a wireless network password. And with HP printers, during the configuration process, you’ll be prompted to enter a WPS PIN, which is a randomly generated code that’s required to connect your printer wirelessly. In most cases, during this process, you’ll only have 90 seconds to enter the PIN before it expires and you’ll need to request a new one. Although you can buy different types of printers, like laser and inkjet, the initial setup process is almost the same. You will need a WPS pin when setting up.

How it Works

To get to the “enter the WPS pin for your printer” stage, you’ll need to look for a prompt that appears on your device — such as a computer. Once the prompt appears, check your HP printer control panel where the PIN should appear.

But You’ll Also Need the Wireless Network Password

Along with the WPS PIN, you’ll also need the wireless network password to finish connecting your printer. Another way to protect your printer when connecting to a wireless network is using either WEP, WPA, or WPA2.

Consider Your Device

Depending on which device you’re using to connect to your printer, the password can be accessed in a few different ways.

Routers

Usually, the password is printed on the back or underside of the router and is often labeled as Wireless Security Key/Password, Network Password, Wi-Fi Password, or Network Key.

Windows 10 Devices

For Windows, find the Wi-Fi Settings dialogue from the Start menu in Settings. Select Related Settings and click Change Adapter Options. You’ll right-click on your wireless network name and select Status. When Connection appears select Wireless Properties and click on the Security Tab. Choose Show Characters to display the password.

Mac Devices

From Applications select Utilities and then select Keychain Access. Once there, select Passwords from the Category list. Double-click on the wireless network you want and select Show Password. If necessary, enter the administrator password.

Android OS

You’ll need to use the Share Wi-Fi function to find your password for devices running Android 10 or later. Open the Wi-Fi menu and select Saved Networks. Choose the desired network and select Share. When prompted, enter your password PIN and the Wi-Fi password will appear under the displayed QR code.

iOS Devices

iOS devices rely on the iCloud Keychain Sync so you’ll need to ensure that this feature is on in the iCloud sub-menu under Settings. From the main Settings menu, select Cellular and choose Personal Hotspot. Next select Allow Others to Join. Return to the previous screen and the Wi-Fi password will be visible. If you prefer, you can change it to something else.

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