Olga Weis
Last updated Apr 8, 2021
VirtualBox is an open-source virtualization solution that is developed by the Oracle Corporation. It was created to enable multiple operating systems to coexist on a single physical host computer. With VirtualBox, you can use a machine running Windows, Linux, or macOS to host several different operating systems simultaneously. By using the VirtualBox printer passthrough technique, you can print to a locally attached printer from within a virtual environment.
Not all virtualization solutions provide support for connecting to local USB devices. In some cases VirtualBox does not recognize the printer, making it impossible to print from VirtualBox virtual machine. To solve this problem you could try FlexiHub! It’s a light-weight software utility that allows you to share host printers with guest VirtualBox. Moreover FlexiHub recognizes USB devices connected to your host OS as if they were connected directly to your virtual machine.
FlexiHub
Note: May occur the problem on machines where VirtualBox is installed. After plugging a USB device into a USB port of the computer or after sharing/unsharing a USB device with FlexiHub, VBoxUSBMon.sys driver may crash causing BSOD.
To fix this issue, you can stop VBoxUSBMon.sys driver or use another virtual machine instead of VirtualBox.
As is known, the USB pass-through functionality isn’t something that all virtualization apps offer out-of-the-box. Sometimes, setting up a connection between your virtual machine and a USB printer plugged into the host computer becomes a real challenge.
Luckily, there’s a dedicated third-party solution that helps you forget about the problem of USB device redirection to a virtual environment once and for all. USB Network Gate is a handy software application designed to share USB peripherals over the network in such a way that they become accessible to almost any virtual machine.
Let’s see how to easily connect a USB printer to VirtualBox with the help of USB Network Gate in three simple steps:
This is it! Now the printer will appear in the guest operation system like it was a physically attached peripheral.
Note: You may share a Printer to a VirtualBox for free in a couple of steps with Flexihub 30-day demo period.
After you enable the VirtualBox USB printer redirection, you can access the shared printer in the guest operating system. The virtual machine will recognize the device and afford you the same level of functionality enjoyed through a direct physical connection to the peripheral. With this VirtualBox printer setup, you can use the virtual environment for remote printing.
FlexiHub
