Will not scan. I get error message "Communication error, make sure computer is connected...." I am connected with a USB cable from...

Hello and welcome to ExpertHelp.com! My name is Mario V. and I'm going to do everything in my power to answer your question to your full satisfaction!

Before we get started, I want to remind you ExpertHelp.com is an independent professional support company. We are not associated with Epson nor are we paid to provide support on their behalf. However, we have helped hundreds of customers with similar questions and believe we can help you too. OK, let’s get started! :)

I’m available to chat now. Please let me know that you are ready by posting a response. I’ll leave my chat session open for the next 15 minutes or so and wait for your reply. If I don’t catch you this time, please respond with a few times (including your timezone) that work best for you and we can connect then.

Hi,

Thank you for waiting. As the first step towards the resolution, I need you to try the following:

1. Turn off the printer and unplug it from the outlet.

2. Disconnect the printer from the computer and re-connect it via USB connection. 

3. Restart your computer.

4. Re-plug the printer and turn it on.

Check the results and let me know what is the outcome, please.

Hi Steve,

Were you using Epson Scan software to scan? Also, could you please tell me what operating system do you use and what is the model of your printer?

Thank you, Steve. Please give me a few minutes. Thank you.

Thank you for waiting, Steve. Could you please confirm you can print via the Printers & Scanners menu but can't by using the printer panel?

Thank you. Steve, are you willing to reset the printer control panel to factory defaults? This could solve our problem, but first I need to know if you know the network key of your wireless network.

Yes. The key that you use to connect to your wifi. Please follow the steps below to reset the printer control panel:

1. Press the  Setup button.

2. Press the arrow buttons to select Restore Default Settings and press the OK button. You see this screen:

   

     - Reset All Settings: Resets all control panel settings. You see a confirmation screen.

4. Select Yes and press the OK button to reset the selected settings.

Let me know once you've done with the procedure, please.

Good. Now, please turn the printer off and turn it back on. Make sure it is connected via USB and wait for a few moments, then attempt to scan and let me know the results, please.

Yes, it could be that the cable is damaged. Do you have another same cable you can test with the printer?

For now I will research if there is anything else we could do. Sure, you can delete the extra printer by following these:

1. Choose Apple menu > System Preferences, then click Printers & Scanners.

2. Select the printer in the list, then click the Remove button .

If you delete the printer that’s set as your default printer, OS X selects another printer as your default. To set a different printer as your default, choose it from the pop-up menu in Printers & Scanners preferences.

Don't worry, I'm writing you the procedure to connect.

Sure, I believe it's because we haven't connected the printer via wifi yet. Here is the procedure:

1. Press the  Setup button.

2. Press the arrow buttons to select Network Settings and press the OK button.

3. Select Wireless LAN Setup and press the OK button. You see this screen:

   

7. Confirm the displayed network settings and press the OK button to save them.

8. If you want to print a network setup report, select Yes and press the OK button. (Otherwise, select No.) 

9. Press the Copy button to exit. The WiFi light should now be on, but not flashing. Note: If the WiFi light is off, you may have selected the wrong network name (SSID) or entered the password incorrectly. Repeat these steps to try again.

Please let me know if you have any difficulties.

 Steve, is the wifi light on? Could you please try to restart your wifi router/access point, check for few minutes before the network connection is established and try again?

 Yes, if your router doesn't have a power switch, please unplug and re-plug it.

First, please check the light. If it's light up steady, try to print something, Steve. Thanks.

I was referring to a wifi light.

Alright, let's try the following:

1. Go to the menu on your Mac, then select System Preferences.

2. Select Printers and Scanners, Print & Scan, or Print & Fax.

3. Do one of the following:

• If your printer is not on the list, go to step 4.

• If your printer is on the list, select your printer model and click the "-" (minus) button. Then go to step 4.

4. Click the "+" button. (If you see the Add Printer or Scanner... option, select it.)

  In the screen that appears, select your printer model as below:

  Select your EPSON Series product in the Use or Print Using drop-down list, then click the Add button.

5. Go to the menu on your Mac, select Software Update or App Store, then click the Updates tab.

6. Do one of the following:

• If you see an update from Epson, select UPDATE to install it.

• If an update is not available, you don't need to do anything more.

Please let me know once you're done. Thanks

Steve, are you able to scan via Printers & Scanners menu?

Yes. In that case please follow this link, then follow steps below:

1. Download the file. It contains the scanner driver and scan utility.
2. Double-click the downloaded file to create a disk image on your desktop.
3. Open the disk image.
4. Double-click the installer icon to begin the installation. Follow the installation wizard.

Thank you. Could you try to scan now?

It doesn't, but thanks for letting me know that. Alright, we still have to install one driver. Please click here, then follow these:

1. Download the file. Double-click on it. This file creates a disk image on your desktop.
2. Open the disk image.
3. Double-click the installer icon to begin the installation. Follow the installation wizard.

When the installation is finished, restart your computer, please.

Yes. You may bookmark/favorite this page and then re-open it or just follow the link in an email you receive from us.

Could you try to test if you can scan now?

By the way, when you scan via printer contol panel, after choosing Scan to PC, are you being offered to choose an USB Connection or a computer?

And when you press Start scan the error shows up, right?

Thank you, Steve. Unfortunately, I am scheduled to go offline now. Is this question an urgent request or should we continue tomorrow? I am sorry the instructions I provided didn't work. If you agree, we will uninstall the printer drivers tomorrow and install all them from scratch.

Anytime between 5am and 5pm?

I wrote hours in your local time :)

I'm from Croatia.

Sure, you can contact me using this page. If you don't I will send you a message and you will receive an email notification. Is that okay?

Hi Steve,

Yesterday we agreed we will try to uninstall the printer drivers and install them from scratch. If you're ready to do that, please follow these steps to uninstall the drivers first:

1. Download the uninstaller here.
2. Double-click the downloaded file to create a disk image on your desktop.
3. Open the disk image.
4. Double-click the installer icon to begin the installation and follow the wizard.
5. When the installation finishes, proceed to the next step.
6. If the printer/scanner remains in the Printers & Scanners, select it and click the – (remove) icon to remove it.
7. Restart your computer

Now we need to re-install the drivers. Please follow these steps to install a printer driver:

1. Do one of the following:

2. Go to the menu on your Mac, then select System Preferences.
3. Select Printers and Scanners, Print & Scan, or Print & Fax.
4. Do one of the following:

• If your printer is not on the list, go to step 5.
• If your printer is on the list, select your printer model and click the "-" (minus) button. Then go to step 5.

5. Click the "+" button. (If you see the Add Printer or Scanner... option, select it.)
6. In the screen that appears, select your printer model as below:

7. Select your EPSON Series product in the Use or Print Using drop-down list, then click the Add button.
8. Go to the menu on your Mac, select Software Update or App Store, then click the Updates tab.
9. Do one of the following:

• If you see an update from Epson, select UPDATE to install it.
• If an update is not available, you already have the latest Epson driver for your printer.

To install the scanner driver and utility, please follow these:

1. Download this file.
2. Double-click the downloaded file to create a disk image on your desktop.
3. Open the disk image.
4. Double-click the installer icon to begin the installation and follow the wizard.
5. If you're scanning over a network from Mac OS X, open the Applications folder, click Epson Software, and click EPSON Scan Settings. Make sure the Connection setting is set to Network, then click the Test button.

We can also install the Event Manager Utility. This utility allows you to activate the Epson Scan Utility from the control panel of your Epson product. Note the EPSON Scan Utility must be installed prior to using the Event Manager Utility. Here is the procedure:

1. Download this file.
2. Double-click the downloaded file to create a disk image on your desktop.
3. Open the disk image.
4. Double-click the installer icon to begin the installation and follow the wizard.

Once you're done with all the steps from above, please test if you can print. Then test if you can scan by opening the Applications folder, opening the Epson Software folder, and double-clicking the EPSON Scan icon. Click Scan. If you can scan by using the EPSON Scan program, test if you can scan by using the printer control panel. If there are any problems, let me know, please.

Thank you,

Mario

Good. Could you please try to follow the steps from my previous comment? When you're done, please let me know if you see any error messages.

Could you please write me what are these items?

Thank you. Yes, uninstall all of them.

I don't think so; if you followed all the steps then you don't need to run through all of that again. Steve, when you opened the EPSON Scan Settings under Applications folder > Epson Software and clicked the Test button, did you get any error messages or has the test passed?

Did you get a window like this one?

Could you check if you have any Epson folder under Applications > Epson Software?

Or Epson Scan Settings?

When you click on the Test button, do you get any messages?

Steve, was the Network or Local radio button selected?

Was the USB cable connected? If it was, could you reconnect it to some other USB port on your computer?

And test again?

It could be, since the connection setting was set to local. Please try to connect the printer via USB and click Test again. Let me know what you get, please.

Alright, thank you. When you open the Epson Scan Settings, at the top window you have a Select scanner option and 1 or 2 options to choose under drop down menu. Can you test both options/scanners via local connection? Let me know if both fails.

And you are stil unable to scan, right? Are you able to open the Applications folder, open the Epson Software folder, and double-click the EPSON Scan icon?

I undestand. Let's test now if it works via the printer control panel, do you agree? Please press the Scan button on the control panel, choose Scan to PC > USB Connection and then press the Start scan button to start scanning.

Now the scanner does print but only when you select SteveSchellMBP, and not the USB connection, right?

Do you think we solved the problem when the printer won't scan through the control panel? However, I am not sure why you can't print when you select Printers & Scanners in the Systems Preferences anymore. Do you think you can use the EPSON Scan program under Applications > Epson Software folder instead of that?

Do you have any other issues for now? Oh, we also need to install the Epson Fax Utility, if you use fax.

No, there won't be a problem. You can define a default printer if needed by choosing it from the pop-up menu in Printers & Scanners preferences.

Thank you :) Have a good day, too Steve!

Dear Steve, It was a pleasure helping you with your Epson issue. Here is a summary of the resolution.

Issue identified : Epson scanner will not scan via USB and by pressing the scan button on the control panel.

Solution Implemented : Uninstall the drivers and re-install them. Re-connect the USB cable and test scan through the Epson Scan Settings under Applications > Epson Software folder.

If issue resurfaces : Please follow the same steps again if the issue resurfaces. Also you can contact our support by email at s**t@experthelp.com or by phone at ***-***-**** .