The Hub: a shared printer screen for makerspaces, schools and farms
The Hub: a shared printer screen for makerspaces, schools and farms
The Hub is a simpler, stripped-down version of SimplyPrint built for shared printer rooms. It lives at its own web address, shows just your printers, and lets the people around them start prints under their own login - without handing everyone the full panel. This guide explains what the Hub is, the two login modes, and every setting you can use to lock it down.
What the Hub is
Think of the Hub as the screen you put on the computer next to your printers. It is a single page: your printers, and nothing else. There is no sidebar, no settings, no statistics - just a clean grid of every printer you have chosen to show, with their status, cameras and controls.
It is the same SimplyPrint underneath - the same printers, the same queue, the same slicer, the same user permissions. The Hub just removes the management clutter so anyone who walks up to the shared computer can find a printer and get a print going in seconds.
It is perfect for:
- A makerspace or workshop with a member computer by the printers
- A school or university lab where students share a bank of printers
- A print farm with a central operator station
- Any shared space where you want people to use the printers, but not poke around in your account
Your Hub link
Every account gets its own Hub address:
simplyprint.io/hub/your-organization-id
The last part is your organization ID, which you can change under organization settings (General settings). It has to be unique, so you can make it something memorable like simplyprint.io/hub/your-school-name and put it on a poster, a bookmark or a desktop shortcut. When you change the organization ID, the Hub link updates with it.
Permanent login vs temporary login
The Hub has two login modes. You choose one under organization settings, and it changes how people sign in and how long they stay signed in.
Permanent login
In permanent login mode, a person signs in once and stays signed in - the Hub shares the same login as the rest of SimplyPrint. This is the right choice for a trusted screen that one person (or a small, trusted group) uses. There is a Sign out option in the top-right corner, and a button to jump to the full panel when they need it.
In this mode the Hub is private: someone has to log in before they can see the printers at all.
Temporary login
Temporary login is built for a screen that lots of different people share. The printers are visible to anyone with the link, but the moment someone wants to do something - start a print, pause, cancel - the Hub asks them to sign in first.
They sign in with their SimplyPrint account (or register, or use single sign-on if your organization has it), do what they came to do, and the Hub quietly signs them back out after a couple of minutes of inactivity, or when they switch away to another tab. There is also a Sign out button in the top-right so they can sign out the moment they are done.
This is what makes the Hub great for shared spaces. One student signs in, slices and starts their print, and walks off. Even if they forget to sign out, the next person at the computer is signed out automatically and prints under their own name, not someone else's. Every action is tied to a real person, so you always know who did what.
Starting a print from the Hub
Using the Hub feels just like the panel, minus the navigation. Click a printer to open its controls. Click 1-click print (or the print button on a printer) to choose a file and send it. If you pick a model that still needs slicing, the SimplyPrint slicer opens right there so you can slice and print in one go. The print queue is one click away too, shown as a pop-up so it never takes you off the printer view.
Choosing which printers appear
You decide which printers show up on the Hub. Each printer has a Show on Hub setting (on by default) in its printer settings. Turn it off for any printer you want to keep off the shared screen - a private machine, a printer that is being serviced, and so on. If some of your printers are hidden, the Hub settings page tells you how many.
Access and security
You will find all of these under organization settings, in the Hub settings card.
- Approved computers - turn on "Only allow prints from approved computers", then click Approve device on each computer you want to trust. SimplyPrint stores a secure marker on that device, and only approved devices can use the Hub. This is ideal when there are one or more fixed computers in the printer room and you want to make sure the Hub is only used from there.
- IP restrictions - enter one or more IP addresses or ranges (comma separated) to allow only your building's network. Leave it empty for no IP restriction.
- Dark mode - render the Hub in dark mode, which often reads better on a wall-mounted screen.
- Redirect new users to the Hub after signup - when someone registers through your organization link and the Hub is reachable, send them straight to the Hub instead of the panel.
Permissions: who can do what
The Hub respects the exact same permissions as the rest of SimplyPrint. If a user is not allowed to start prints in your organization, they cannot start them on the Hub either - signing in does not grant any extra access. So you can let students or members operate the shared printers through the Hub while still controlling precisely what each role is allowed to do.
A few ways to use it
- Makerspace member station - put the Hub on the computer by the printers in permanent login mode for trusted members, or temporary login so each member prints under their own account.
- School lab - hand students the simplyprint.io/register/your-school link, turn on "redirect to Hub after signup", and they land on a clean screen with just the lab's printers.
- Print farm operator screen - a big wall display in dark mode showing every machine at a glance, locked to the farm's computers or network.
- Front-desk or reception - a public, view-only window onto the printers (temporary login) so visitors can watch prints without being able to touch anything.
Plan availability
The Hub is available on the Print Farm, School and Enterprise plans. See the pricing page for the full comparison.
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Updated on: 13/06/2026
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