How tp access printer via name rather than IP address

[cisco501pix]

Hello...absolute cisco home user beginner here so please bear with me. I have a networked printer on my home LAN. It is configured for DHCP and is getting an address from the 501 OK. My problem is I can't seem to print to it using when setting it up using it's name in the printer setup dialog...I get an "unrecognized host" error which I think indicates the name isn't resolving to an IP address. If, by pinging the devices on my network to determine what address was assigned to it by the 501, I use that instead of it's name, then I can print to the printer just fine. Can anyone provide any help with setting things up so I can get to the printer using it's name? How do I get the 501 to talk to the printer without using an IP address?

Thanks in advance for any feedback.

[m.mcconnell]

The root of the problem is a lack a DNS, and setting up DNS in your evironment, as it is, will be difficult if not impossible. Reason for this is because the DHCP service on the PIX does not interact with DNS other than providing DNS IP addresses to DHCP clients. DHCP on the PIX is a simple low-end service and the solution to your issue exists outside of the PIX.

The are a couple possible solutions. Leave the PIX on and leave the printer on all the time. Then the printer will always have the same IP address. Then you can set up a host file on the PC(s).

Or you could put DHCP/DNS service on a PC and disable DHCP on the PIX.

-Mark

[cisco501pix]

Thanks...that makes sense. One other question if you don't mind - I seem to remember in all the reading I did prior to purchasing the 501 that it was possible to assign a device a static address outside of the pool reserved for the DHCP use (by reserving fewer addresses than allowed for the DHCP pool) but still in the allowable range...that way I could just set the printer to a static address in it's setup and I should be good to go. Is this possible or am I misremembering?

thanks

[m.mcconnell]

Static IP on the prnter is a third option I did not think of. Real simple, look at the DHCP scope you have set up and give the printer an IP address outside of that range. The 501 only allows for 10 IP addresses in ints DHCP scope and most people put a subnet on the inside interface that allows for 254 hosts (mask is 255.255.255.0).

-Mark