Setup Lexmark X8350 printer under Debian Linux using Virtualbox and Win XP

After installing Debian 8.0 Jessie I failed to locate drivers for my multifunctional Lexmark x8350 printer. The Windows printer driver support was available only up to Vista, there were no drivers for Windows 7 and above.  So I decided to try to setup Windows under Vrtualbox with pass-through USB device. First I tried with Windows 7 Virtualbox client (Under normal Win 7 install printer drivers for Vista worked fine), which was very very slow to install and I did not get it to print, only to scan. So the best option left is to install Win XP. This article will describe installation of Lexmark printer on Win XP Virtualbox client.

Step 1: Install and configure latest Virtualbox package and extensions

I am not going to go describing installation of Virtualbox and extensions. www.virtualbox.org download page has clear instructions on what to download and install. After installation is done make sure that your /etc/fstab has the following line:

none /proc/bus/usb usbfs devgid=500,devmode=664 0 0

The devgid has to match your gid of your vboxusers group. Also make sure that user you logged in as is member of the vboxusers group. Please log out and log back in after adding it to a group.

Step 2: Setup Win XP client and configure USP pass-through

Make sure that Lexmark printer is connected to USB. There is no need to turn it on yet.

Start Oracle VM Virtual Box Manager. Click New. If you have already setup Win XP client just click on it and scroll down to USB section in Options. Click on USB link. Select USB 2.0 (EHCI) Controller, click on icon with green cross and select your printer from list. Click OK.

Now you can start Virtualbox client and complete Windows XP and printer setup. You can use your disc that comes with printer or download drivers from Lexmark support site.

References:

• Virtualbox
• VirtualBox 2: How To Pass Through USB Devices To Guests On An Ubuntu 8.10 Host