How to link to a network share folder from a Ricoh MP series copier

If your Ricoh MP series copier (MP C4000, MP C6003, MP 6002, etc.) is connected to your network, you probably have the ability to scan a document from the copier to a folder on your computer, or a folder on a server.  If the folder is already set up and shared, and you know its path, you can follow the steps below to link the copier to that folder, so that you can scan directly to that folder and not have to find it each time you want to scan.  (These steps will work for any Ricoh MP series copier with a touch screen, but they might vary slightly for copiers with the smaller touch screens, such as the MP 301 or MP C305.)

At the copier's operation panel, press the Scanner button, or select Scanner from the Home screen.  Select the Folder tab if it's not already the highlighted option.  Then, press the Prg Dest button on the screen.

You'll have two choices for linking to the network folder: you can browse to the folder, or you can type in the path manually.  To browse to the folder, select Browse Network and then navigate through the workgroups, devices, and folders until you find the folder that you want, then select OK.  (If this method doesn't work with your network, you may have to use the method below instead.)

To manually enter the network path, select Change and then use the soft keyboard on the screen to enter the path to your folder, using one of the two structures below:

\\computer's hostname\folder

or

\\computer's IP address\folder

Once you've typed in the path, select OK.  If you want, you can use the Connection Test option at the bottom of the screen to verify that the copier can connect to that folder.  While using either of these methods, you may be prompted to enter a valid username and password if your network requires authentication to access that computer and/or folder.

Select OK in the upper right corner, and you will be prompted to enter a display name for this folder.  This name is the description that will appear on the scanning screen for this folder.  You can use whatever name you want, but it should be descriptive enough so that you know which folder it is referring to.

After entering the name, select OK, then select OK again to finish the process.  That folder is now registered in the copier's address book, and you can scan to it simply by selecting it from the scanning screen and pressing the Start button.

(Originally published on Bubblews.com, November 2013)