The reasons for the breakdown of the scanner on the printer are various factors and situations. A software malfunction could occur, as a result of which the device simply turned off. Or some physical damage was inflicted. This article will discuss several popular reasons why the printer does not scan to a computer, and also provides ways to fix them.
What could be a provocateur?
The following is a list of situations and factors that may cause the scanner to stop working. Here is a list of them:
- a hardware error occurred while connecting to it;
- during operation, the computer stopped responding or was not detected when trying to connect;
- unable to scan at this time;
- Another reason why the printer does not scan to the computer is a failed scanning procedure;
- The device was not detected by the computer.
Now it’s worth starting to consider the most relevant solutions to this problem.
Reboot all devices
The first and most obvious thing that comes to mind is rebooting the printer and computer. For this:
- disconnect the print and scan device from the PC and from the power supply;
- close all applications and computer programs. Reboot;
- plug the printer’s power cable into a power outlet and start it;
- try the procedure with the scanner again.
ATTENTION! If the printing device is connected to power via a surge protector, try to find the possibility of turning it on directly. This may cause some problems with the device.
USB cable
Another reason why the printer does not want to scan may be because the USB cable is not working properly. To verify the guess, follow these procedures:
- try connecting the cable to other ports or to additional devices at all, if the problem is not solved, go to the next step;
- if the scanning device is connected via USB concentration or the docking station, but does not work at the same time, try plugging it directly into the computer;
- Another reason why the printer is not scanning a document may be a faulty USB cable: try connecting another, but its length should not exceed three meters;
- if almost all computer ports are occupied by different devices, try disabling some of them - the lack of voltage supplied to them can affect the printer.
Then repeat the scan procedure. If none of this helps, skip to the next section.
Remove all printer software
The next reason why the printer does not scan may be software. Most likely, during its work a conflict arose either with the drivers or with the operating system itself. To fix the error and install new versions of the software without problems, perform the following procedure:
- disconnect the print and scan device from the computer;
- using the search bar, find the section called "Programs and Features", run it;
- among the list of programs installed on the computer, find the official printer utility, click on it and activate the uninstall procedure;
- to successfully complete the process, just follow the prompts;
- after the program is completely removed from your computer, restart it.
Now you can proceed to the next step in resolving the issue of why the printer does not scan.
3rd party printers
After removing the special software of the scanning and printing device, you need to make sure that no other devices are installed on the computer. This is done according to the following algorithm:
- using the search bar, find the utility called "Devices and Printers", run it;
- if among the connected elements you find the icon of the old printer, then right-click on it with the computer mouse and delete;
- after that, disconnect the scanning and printing device from the computer and from the power supply;
- reboot the latter and wait for the moment when the operating system starts.
Now you can move on to the next step in analyzing why the printer is not scanning.
Reinstalling custom software
You must reinstall the scan and print device drivers. To do this, go to the manufacturer’s website on the Internet, download the latest software from there. Or just use the disk that came with the kit. Follow the instructions below:
- start the printer;
- Install the device driver itself.
Scanner Program
If you still couldn’t figure out why the printer doesn’t scan a document to a computer, then try using third-party software:
- download the utility called "Scanner" from the official Microsoft store (it is free);
- further actions depend on whether your printing device is equipped with an automatic document feeder, if any, place the document required for scanning on the printer glass, and then load it into the ADF;
- using the search bar, find and launch the Scanner application downloaded in advance;
- if an item called "Source" is available in the program, indicate the place where the document was downloaded;
- To change the resolution, color filter, or file location, open the "Show more" subsection;
- start the scanning procedure by pressing the key with the corresponding name.