Need to update folder location with new IP address

Question

Moved office locations. IP address changed. My printer scans to a folder on my comper. It is unable to locate the folder. I need to update folder location with new IP address. How do I do this?

Answer 1

Hi Bruce Vander Vennen,

Welcome to the Microsoft Q&A forum.

When an office location changes, it’s common for the PC’s IP address to change as well. If your printer is still pointing to the old IP address, it may no longer be able to locate the scan folder.

Here are some possible settings that you can try to restore the scan-to-folder function on a Windows Home PC:

1, Check the PC’s current IP address

• Press Windows + R, type cmd, and press Enter
• Run ipconfig
• Note the IPv4 Address (this is the new IP)

2, Confirm the scan folder is shared

• Right‑click the scan folder > Properties > Sharing
• Open Advanced Sharing
• Ensure Share this folder is enabled
• Confirm the account used by the printer has Read/Write access

3, Update the printer’s scan destination

• Access the printer’s web page (type the printer’s IP into a browser) or use the printer control panel
• Locate Scan to Network Folder / SMB settings
• Replace the old PC IP with the new one
• Re‑enter the Windows username and password if prompted
• Save the changes

After these steps, try sending a test scan and confirm the file appears in the folder.

If supported by the printer, using the PC name instead of the IP address for the scan path can help prevent this issue if the IP changes again.

Let me know if you need further assistance, feel free to ask me by clicking "Add Comment" or "Add Answer" if you cannot add comment so your response will be visible. Thanks for your effort.

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Answer 2

Update the folder location in the printer’s scan-to-folder settings so it points to the new IP address of the computer that hosts the shared folder.

Typical steps (exact wording varies by printer model):

1. Find the new IP address of the computer
   • On the Windows PC that has the scan folder, open Settings > Network & Internet.
   • Select Wi‑Fi or Ethernet (whichever is in use), then note the IPv4 address (for example, 192.168.1.25).
2. Confirm the scan folder is still shared
   • In File Explorer, right‑click the scan folder > Properties > Sharing tab.
   • Ensure it is shared and that the user account the printer uses has Read/Write permissions.
3. Update the path in the printer’s web interface
   • On a browser on the same network, go to the printer’s current IP address (for example, http://<printer-ip>).
   • Sign in as admin if required.
   • Go to the Scan, Scan to Folder, Address Book, or Network Folder settings (name varies by brand).
   • Edit the existing scan-to-folder destination that no longer works.
   • Change the folder path from using the old IP or computer name to the new IP, for example:
     • Old: \\192.168.1.10\Scans or \\OLDPCNAME\Scans
     • New: \\192.168.1.25\Scans
   • Confirm the username/password used for access are still valid.
   • Save/apply the settings.
4. Test scanning
   • Use the printer’s panel to scan to that folder and confirm the file appears in the Windows folder.

If the printer uses a stored “address book” entry, each entry that points to the old IP or old computer name must be edited in the same way.

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References:

• You are unable to update the target location of offline file shares in the Offline File client side cache without administrative permission in Windows Server 2008 R2 or in Windows 7