Connecting a Printer to Telstra, Optus, TPG and NBN Modems (Australia Guide)

Australian NBN modems are supplied and firmware-managed by the ISP, and nearly all of them broadcast one Wi-Fi name across both bands with steering enabled. Home printers are 2.4GHz-only, so they either cannot see a network they can join or they join and then lose it. This guide covers the settings on Telstra, Optus and TPG equipment, plus the generic NBN modems used by smaller providers.

Quick fixes first

1. Set the printer up within a couple of metres of the modem, then move it back afterwards.
2. Check the Wi-Fi name and password on the modem's label if nobody has changed them.
3. Make sure the device you are setting up from is on the main network, not the guest network.
4. Turn off any VPN while setting up.
5. Run the printer's own Wireless Setup Wizard from its panel where the model has a screen.
6. If your network does not appear in the printer's scan list, split the 2.4GHz band using the steps for your modem below.

Why NBN modems cause this

Band steering exists to move phones and laptops onto the faster 5GHz band. It handles printers badly because printers use 2.4GHz only, sleep deeply, and reconnect infrequently, so the modem can treat them as gone. Boosters and mesh nodes make it worse by keeping one network name across multiple radios.

You will see one of three symptoms:

• The network never appears when the printer scans.
• The printer joins, works, and then goes offline days later.
• Everything reports connected, but no device can find the printer.

The general setup steps are in our wireless printer setup guide. What follows is modem-specific.

Telstra Smart Modem

Telstra Smart Modems, including the Gen 2 and Gen 3 units, merge the bands by default and are partly managed by Telstra remotely.

1. On a device connected to the modem, browse to 192.168.0.1. Some generations use 192.168.1.1; the label on the modem prints the correct address.
2. Sign in with the admin password from the modem label.
3. Open the wireless or Wi-Fi settings.
4. Where the option exists, disable the merged or smart Wi-Fi option and give the 2.4GHz network its own name.
5. Save, wait for the modem to apply the change, then join the printer to the 2.4GHz name.

If you use Telstra Smart Wi-Fi Boosters, set the printer up in the same room as the main modem. Boosters keep the same network name and can hand a 2.4GHz-only device between units unpredictably.

Optus modems

Optus supplies several gateway models depending on plan and vintage, including Sagemcom and Optus-branded units.

1. Browse to 192.168.0.1 or the address on the modem label.
2. Sign in with the admin credentials from the label.
3. Open the wireless settings and look for separate 2.4GHz and 5GHz configuration.
4. Give the 2.4GHz network its own name, save and reconnect the printer to it.
5. Find the printer in the connected devices list and reserve its IP address.

Some Optus plans include Wi-Fi boosters, and the same advice applies: connect the printer near the main modem.

TPG, iiNet and generic NBN modems

TPG, iiNet and other providers supply a range of modems, commonly TP-Link and Sagemcom units, and many of them expose full local settings.

1. Browse to 192.168.1.1 or the address printed on the modem.
2. Sign in with the admin username and password from the label.
3. Open Wireless and configure the 2.4GHz band separately, giving it its own name.
4. While you are there, look at DHCP or Address Reservation and reserve an address for the printer.

Because these are largely standard consumer routers, they usually offer more control than a Telstra or Optus unit, which makes the fix straightforward.

Modem summary

If you have replaced the ISP modem with your own router, make all these changes there; the NBN connection box itself has no Wi-Fi settings.

Reserve the printer's address

A printer that worked and then went offline has usually been given a new IP address by the modem.

1. Print the printer's network configuration page from its panel and note the IP and MAC address.
2. In the modem admin, find DHCP or address reservation and reserve that address for the printer's MAC.
3. If reservation is unavailable, set a static IP on the printer under Network › TCP/IP › Manual, choosing an address outside the modem's DHCP pool and copying the subnet mask and gateway.
4. Re-add the printer on your computers if the address changed after you added it.

Our printer keeps going offline guide covers identifying the DHCP range safely.

Guest networks and client isolation

Every modem above offers a guest network, and every guest network isolates clients from each other. A printer joined to guest Wi-Fi is invisible to your laptop; a laptop on guest Wi-Fi cannot see a printer on the main network. This is the single most common false alarm in home printer troubleshooting, so check which network each device is on before changing anything else.

Some modems also have an option variously called AP isolation or client isolation on the main network. It should be off for printing to work.

WPS and printers with no screen

Budget printers with buttons and lights instead of a display cannot run a setup wizard, so WPS or the brand app is the route.

1. Find the WPS button on the modem. Telstra, Optus and TPG units generally still have one, sometimes doubling as another function.
2. On the printer, hold the Wi-Fi button until the wireless light flashes, which starts WPS push-button mode.
3. Press the modem's WPS button within two minutes.
4. Wait for the printer's wireless light to become solid, then print a network configuration page to confirm the address.

If the modem has no WPS button, use the manufacturer's app instead: it passes the Wi-Fi credentials from your phone to the printer. Keep the phone on the 2.4GHz network while you do it, and grant the app the local network permission it asks for.

Distance, brick and tin

A practical Australian note: many homes have brick or double-brick internal walls, and older buildings often have foil-backed insulation or a tin roof, all of which attenuate Wi-Fi heavily. 2.4GHz copes better than 5GHz, which helps the printer, but a printer in a detached studio or a garage office at the end of a long run may simply be out of usable range. Check the signal strength on the printer's network configuration page: if it is weak, no modem setting will make the connection stable. Move the printer, add a booster near it, or run a cable.

If nothing worked

Test the printer's own radio. Turn on Wi-Fi Direct on the printer and connect a phone straight to it. If that works, the printer is healthy and the modem or its settings are the problem. If the printer cannot create its own network, the wireless module has failed.

Australian repair costs are the highest of the four markets we cover: expect roughly 100 to 180 Australian dollars for an initial bench fee or call-out from a local technician or a service such as Geeks2U, before parts. On a printer bought for under 300 Australian dollars, replacement is generally the rational choice, and buying a model with an Ethernet port avoids a repeat. Bear in mind that Australian Consumer Law guarantees can outlast the printed warranty, so raise a failure with the retailer, such as Officeworks or JB Hi-Fi, before paying for repair. Our repair versus replace guide has the detail.

If the modem settings look correct and the printer still will not stay connected, a second look at the configuration usually finds it quickly. You can get help from a printer specialist who can go through the modem and the printer's network page with you.