A simple Windows setup for sharing USB devices over a network
USB/IP lets one a USB device that is physically plugged into another computer over the network. The need came up while building skyPC, a solution. is a paid option with a $49 tied to the host computer hardware.
Its has no install limit, but the free version shares only one USB device at a time. USB/IP is free and , with an optional donation link for the developer. The setup described is for a Windows host and a Windows client.
On the host, open PowerShell as an administrator and run `winget install usbipd` to install usbipd-win. After installation, Windows creates a usbipd-win service automatically, and `usbipd list` shows the USB devices connected to the host.
Key points
- USB/IP makes a USB device usable over a network.
- costs $49 for a tied to the host hardware.
- 's free version shares only one USB device at a time.
- USB/IP is free and .
- On Windows, install usbipd-win with `winget install usbipd`, then list devices with `usbipd list`.