# Printer connection issue **URL:** \ **Category:** Factual Questions\ **Created:** [April 29, 2021, 2:44pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/printer-connection-issue/941036 "2021-04-29T14:44:45Z")\ **Posts on this page:** 13\ **Page:** 1
**Author:** ![Munch](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/munch/32/5281_2.png) [@Munch](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Munch)\ **Post date:** [April 29, 2021, 2:44pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/printer-connection-issue/941036/1 "2021-04-29T14:44:45Z")
I’ve had an HP printer (8600) for several years, and it’s worked fine. Until a few days ago, when it decided that it couldn’t connect to the server. Nothing has changed in that period of time. My computers (both my Windows 7 PC, as well as my Chromebook) can see it, but say that they “cannot connect to printer”. I removed the printer from the PC, and it can’t add it back on. In fact, going through the HP Smart printer setup, it finds the printer, then when I go to connect it, it says “cannot find this printer”. Everything’s on the same network, I’ve checked multiple times. I’m happy to just go buy a new printer, but I don’t want this same issue to happen. Any quick suggestions? Is a new printer going to do the same damn thing? ---
**Author:** ![Northern\_Piper](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/northern_piper/32/5304_2.png) [@Northern\_Piper](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Northern_Piper)\ **Post date:** [April 29, 2021, 2:58pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/printer-connection-issue/941036/2 "2021-04-29T14:58:32Z")
I had a similar problem with an HP printer. After many frustrating hours, I just gave up and bought a Canon. The sales person at Staples said that she’d heard that HP printers have “connectivity issues”. Didn’t sound surprised by my tale of woe. ---
**Author:** ![ThelmaLou](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/thelmalou/32/390_2.png) [@ThelmaLou](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/ThelmaLou)\ **Post date:** [April 29, 2021, 3:06pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/printer-connection-issue/941036/3 "2021-04-29T15:06:54Z")
I have an Epson. It was supposed to be wireless, but for a long time it would not connect over wifi. Whatever. I gave up and ran a cable from it to my computer. Then one day the cable was unplugged because I had been using the USB port for something else and lo and behold, I gave a print command and it printed fine. No idea why. But sometimes it won’t print over wifi, so with the cable right there, I just plug it in. Sometimes whether the cable is plugged in or not, I get the message “printer is offline” when I haven’t changed anything. I wouldn’t rush out to buy a new printer just yet, because if you don’t have that problem, you’ll have another. You might try connecting with a cable and maybe you can morph into the annoying but functional on-again-off-again relationship I have with my printer. Don’t expect the store sales people to know much of anything. Sorry, but true. My conclusion: all printers are the work of Satan. I’d like to know of one that the owner doesn’t hate. Or have a ~~love~~ like-hate relationship with. ---
**Author:** ![running\_coach](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/running_coach/32/15836_2.png) [@running\_coach](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/running_coach)\ **Post date:** [April 29, 2021, 3:12pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/printer-connection-issue/941036/4 "2021-04-29T15:12:47Z")
> [@ThelmaLou](#): > > My conclusion: all printers are the work of Satan. I’d like to know of one that the owner doesn’t hate. Or have a ~~love~~ like-hate relationship with. Brothers laser printer, 7 years old. Never a problem though I’ve never even tried to do wireless. [https://www.amazon.com/gp/product/B00450DVDY/ref=ppx\_yo\_dt\_b\_search\_asin\_title?ie=UTF8&psc=1](https://www.amazon.com/gp/product/B00450DVDY/ref=ppx_yo_dt_b_search_asin_title?ie=UTF8&psc=1) No, I have no idea why it’s 4x the price I originally paid. ---
**Author:** ![Dewey\_Finn](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/dewey_finn/32/4222_2.png) [@Dewey\_Finn](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Dewey_Finn)\ **Post date:** [April 29, 2021, 4:06pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/printer-connection-issue/941036/5 "2021-04-29T16:06:03Z")
Is the printer getting an IP address? If so, can you ping the printer? Can you connect to it via a web browser and see the configuration screen? You may want to see if there is updated firmware for the printer. ---
**Author:** ![Munch](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/munch/32/5281_2.png) [@Munch](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Munch)\ **Post date:** [April 29, 2021, 4:14pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/printer-connection-issue/941036/6 "2021-04-29T16:14:52Z")
It gave me an IP address of 10.0.0.5, and nothing could find it (I have a Network Config printout, and that’s what it tells me). After a lot of fiddling, it somehow changed its IP to 10.0.0.45. Additionally, it has Web Services that can connect to my Google Drive (and Dropbox, which I don’t have active). I printed what I needed just fine that way! Ridiculous. But it won’t scan things to Google Drive, so now I’m stuck back at square 1.5. I guess I can scan it to a thumb drive. ---
**Author:** ![Thudlow\_Boink](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/thudlow_boink/32/320_2.png) [@Thudlow\_Boink](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Thudlow_Boink)\ **Post date:** [April 29, 2021, 4:42pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/printer-connection-issue/941036/7 "2021-04-29T16:42:17Z")
> [@running\_coach](#): > > > [@ThelmaLou](#): > > > > My conclusion: all printers are the work of Satan. I’d like to know of one that the owner doesn’t hate. Or have a ~~love~~ like-hate relationship with. > > Brothers laser printer, 7 years old. Never a problem though I’ve never even tried to do wireless. Yeah, my laser printer (a Canon) has been perfectly satisfactory for at least that long. Not wireless, but so what? ---
**Author:** ![Munch](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/munch/32/5281_2.png) [@Munch](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Munch)\ **Post date:** [April 29, 2021, 4:57pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/printer-connection-issue/941036/8 "2021-04-29T16:57:13Z")
> [@Thudlow\_Boink](#): > > Not wireless, but so what? Well, my printer is on the other side of the house as my PC, because we had to set up a new office for my wife. And so everyone has to be wireless now. But yeah - if your computer is near your printer, I’d absolutely just wire it in. ---
**Author:** ![Folly](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/folly/32/3219_2.png) [@Folly](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Folly)\ **Post date:** [April 29, 2021, 5:02pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/printer-connection-issue/941036/9 "2021-04-29T17:02:43Z")
My HP printer (color laserjet) will connect and print…as long as it is turned off and on every day. Sigh. Otherwise, it will _say_ its connected, but it’s a big fat lie. ---
**Author:** ![Hari\_Seldon](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/hari_seldon/32/5173_2.png) [@Hari\_Seldon](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Hari_Seldon)\ **Post date:** [April 29, 2021, 5:03pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/printer-connection-issue/941036/10 "2021-04-29T17:03:22Z")
When I have a printer problem, the first thing I do is unplug it (it has no on/off switch). Even if it is just an out of paper error, just putting more paper in continues to report an error. I pull the plug, wait 10 seconds and plug it back in. Same with a paper jam. Clearing it does not change the error. Rebooting it does. YMMV. ---
**Author:** ![Munch](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/munch/32/5281_2.png) [@Munch](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Munch)\ **Post date:** [April 29, 2021, 5:18pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/printer-connection-issue/941036/11 "2021-04-29T17:18:30Z")
Yeah, I unplugged it for a while, and plugged it back in. That may have been what reset the IP? I dunno. Now I can print from my PC, but can’t scan to it. But I did set up the “scan to email”, which sends it to my email account, which is fine. But when I try to connect my Chromebook to it, it finds the printer, but still just says “can’t connect to printer” when I try to print. How the hell can it find the printer, but not connect?! I hate HP so much… ---
**Author:** ![LH75](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/lh75/32/4438_2.png) [@LH75](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/LH75)\ **Post date:** [April 30, 2021, 2:38am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/printer-connection-issue/941036/12 "2021-04-30T02:38:28Z")
I have just trashed my last HP printer. Maybe one out of four or five times would I be able to just print without tinkering with it. I was unaware that there were other people with connectivity issues, but I have had enough. HP’s smart cartridges would continue to shut themselves off while the supply app said they were still a quarter full. The cartridges also were pretty limited in capacity. ---
**Author:** ![Melbourne](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/m/b5e925/32.png) [@Melbourne](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Melbourne)\ **Post date:** [April 30, 2021, 4:46am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/printer-connection-issue/941036/13 "2021-04-30T04:46:15Z")
> [@Munch](#): > > How the hell can it find the printer, but not connect?! I hate HP so much… They use a ‘discovery’ protocol which is bloated and complex, but after the printer has been ‘discovered’, it’s just identified as ‘already installed’ or ‘not installed yet’ – and your printer driver (which is the thing you actually use) isn’t correct or corrected. Changing IP can be a symptom or a cause of the problem – your printer has been ‘discovered’, but your printer driver persists or insists on using the wrong IP. The main solution is always to completely uninstall the printer driver and associated apps, to clear up this confusion. In my childhood, a printer was wired directly to the computer. There wasn’t any ‘discovery’ or ‘identification’ – you had to tell the computer what was connected. Welcome to the brave new world where printers advertise and are recognized (ha!)