Printer Will Not Respond To Touch and Network Communication Is Lost

[VisionAiry]

Introduction

When asked what causes a printer to go to sleep and not respond, I have to sift through numerous resources, endless forum posts, and different websites discussing similar problems to provide scattered information on how to fix this.  Now you have one resource that covers every solution on how to prevent your printer from entering a non-responsive state.  I have a feeling this will get lengthy so I will do my best to separate this thread into segments for the different stages of troubleshooting.

Causes

It is hard to determine what actually causes this but it seems to happen most often to printers connected to a wireless network.  That leads me to believe it is based on your network environment but after a lot of research, every aspect of printing plays a role in it (hardware, drivers and software, as well as router settings).  This problem is not limited to one kind of printer or one kind of router and the method to resolve this is still undefined.  That is why I will list every possible solution in order from the most affective to the last resort. 

Conclusion

One thing I would like to ask of you in this pursuit of the ultimate fix is once you find the post that solves this problem for you, I invite you to post that resolution below.  It will be of great help to the community as most forums posts go on for pages and the fixes get lost in the mix.  It will be wonderful to know what the common solution is so that it can finally put an end to this.  I hope you find this to become your complete guide to troubleshooting lost network connections as well.

[VisionAiry]

Step 1:  Perform a hard reset by unplugging the power cord from the back of the unit while it is still powered on.  Next, remove the cord from the power source and wait approximately 1 minute before plugging the cord directly into a wall outlet and then into the back of the printer. 

Step 2: Ensure the printer’s firmware is up-to-date.  You can check first by printing a Printer Status Report from the printer’s Setup Menu and comparing the firmware version to the one available at your printer’s support page at www.hp.com/support.  If you are unable to tell or the numbers do not match, proceed with the download process by ensuring a secure connection with either an Ethernet cord or USB.  *An interruption of this process can render the printer useless, so be advised.

Step 3: Check your printer’s Settings and Preferences and make sure you have not scheduled the printer’s Auto-Off feature. The sleep function can be by-passed by adjusting settings within the printer’s setup menu, in its embedded web server, or by securing a connection via Ethernet and making sure the WIFI is off.

Step 4: Reset the network by turning off the printer and the computer and removing the power cord from the back of the router for approximately 10 seconds.  After plugging the router’s power cord back in, watch all the lights come back on before powering on the other devices because you may be experiencing other network-related issues.

Additional Resources:  HP has many documents pertaining to this exact issue to offer additional troubleshooting steps before continuing on to more advanced solutions.

The Printer Turns Off Unexpectedly After Being Idle for a Period of Time (Multi-function Printers)

The Officejet 8600 Plus Turns Off Unexpectedly after Being Idle for a Period of Time

A Network Connected Printer Cannot Access Print Apps, Web Services, or ePrint

Printer Does Not Maintain a Wireless Connection

Getting the Latest Firmware and Product Updates

[VisionAiry]

How to Set a Static IP Address for the Printer

Printers’ embedded web servers (EWS) differ slightly.  It is often suggested setting an IP for the printer that is outside of the DHCP range.  This is defined by your type of router.  Search the internet or support sites for the DHCP range of your wireless router. 

Step 1: Print a Network Configuration Page from within the printer’s Network or Wireless Menu to access the current information (as these IP addresses tend to change).  This page will include information that will be essential to properly set a static IP.

Step 2: Type the printer’s IP address into a web-browser and press “Enter” on the keyboard to access the printer’s embedded web server, also known as the EWS.  If you are unable to access the printer’s EWS, try a different browser.  If unsuccessful once again, you have a different problem than the one discussed in this thread. 

Step 3:  Depending on which printer you have will determine the next step to take to access the section within the EWS where you will set a static IP.  See examples below to find the image that best represents your printer’s embedded web server. 

Step 4: Setting a static DNS is also a good preventative measure to take.  If you have a web-enabled printer, this will also help you maintain a connection to the best server to use ePrint and other services such as Print Apps, Scan to Email apps, etc.

Step 5: You will notice IP addresses can also differ from 192.168.xx.xx to 10.0.0.x.  Those are valid addresses and are dependent upon the router’s Default Gateway.  In most embedded web servers, you will have a box to “Suggest a Manual IP Address.”  By clicking this, you will leave less room for error and the selection process will cause you to lose your connection to this web page so make note of the new changes or change the last number back to an IP address you are most familiar with.

[VisionAiry]

Most Officejet Printers:

Step 1: Select the "Network" tab and under the word Wireless on the left hand side you will see IPv4 if your printer is setup wirelessly. 

Step 2: Click on IPv4 and then highlight the circle to the right that says Manual IP.

Step 3: Enter in the information available from the Network Configuration Page.

Step 4: At the bottom of this page you have a preferred and alternate DNS server.  The Preferred DNS server should say 8.8.8.8 and the Alternate DNS server should say 8.8.4.4.  Here is a you tube video of an example but in this one he uses a different DNS server.  I strongly recommend using the numbers I have given in step 4. 

Step 5: Power-cycle the printer with the power button after clicking "Apply" to help complete the process.  After doing so you have successfully completed all troubleshooting steps for setting a static IP in the printer (this step is not applied in the wireless router). 

 

[VisionAiry]

Most Photosmart and Envy Printers:

Step 1: For Photosmart printers, select the "Network" tab.

Step 2: Next you will see on the left hand side an option for "Networking" and under that will be "Network Address (IP)."

Step 3: After all the boxes appear on the right, select the circle next to "Manual."

Step 4: To eliminate risk of user error, I select the box that says "Suggest a Manual IP."  This will change the printer's IP address so it's okay to change the top row back to your original numbers.  That way you aren't left wondering if you plugged in the rest of the numbers correctly because this button will do that for you.

Step 5: For the Preferred DNS server I would type out a single 8 in each box (8.8.8.8).

Step 6: For the Alternate DNS server type in 8.8.4.4 and click apply to process your request.

Step 7: I always turn the printer off and back on again after I complete this step to ensure the IP address changes have been set indefinitely. 

[VisionAiry]

Additional LaserJet Example:

[VisionAiry]

Step 1: Check your printer ports.  Go to your Devices and Printers folder (Printers and Faxes folder in XP) and right-click over the icon of your printer.

Step 2:  From the gray drop-down box, select Printer Properties.  If you have multiple options to choose from, select the main default printer.  It may say Network since this applies to wireless or Ethernet-connected printers (not the fax option I mean).

Step 3: Select the “Ports” tab at the top and your current printer should already be high-lighted.  The purpose of this step is to determine exactly which port the printer is on.  It has been reported that the HP Network Re-discovery Port Monitor may have something to do with the loss of communication.

Step 4: If you see this port listed next to your printer or its serial number, select “Add Port…”

Step 5: Choose the Standard TCP/IP and finish by clicking “New Port…”

Step 6: The TCP/IP Printer Port Wizard will ask for the printer’s current IP address so plug those numbers in here and then press “Next>” to complete the process. You may even want to select the prompt to “Always print to this device…” as an extra preliminary measure.  If you are unable to complete this step then the problem you have is different than the ones outlined in this post.

Step 7:  Test print for connection and wait to see if your problem has been resolved.  If you lose your connection again, proceed with the next step.

Fig. 1

Fig. 2

[VisionAiry]

Set Ink Alerts to “Only When I Print”

Step 1: This is a feature found in your HP Printer Assistance.  To access this page, click on your printer icon from your desktop or under your HP folder in "All programs."  In some newer models, you can right-click on the printer icon from your Devices and Printers folder and select Open then select HP Printer Assistant.  If you are unable to access this page, then you have a different issue than the one outlined in this thread.

Step 2: Select “Maintain Your Printer” from the Toolbox.

Step 3: Select the “Advanced Settings” tab at the top.

Step 4: If you have “Show me ink alerts right away” selected, change that to “Only show me ink alerts when I print.”

Step 5: Print and wait.  This feature is constantly running in the background of the computer's processes. By turning this off, you are also saving some PC resources as well.  

Step 6: If the above solution does not fix the problem with the printer going to sleep, you can also disable “Scan to Computer.”  You will no longer be able to initiate a scan from the printer but this is also another resource that is constantly running.  Simply enable it again when needed by selecting “Manage Scan to Computer” from the HP Printer Assistant’s Print, Scan & Fax homepage.

[VisionAiry]

Step 1: Check your power settings on your PC.  It has also been noted that this happens when a computer also goes into sleep mode since other wireless devices like iPads are able to communicate and the printer is still pingable and reachable from the network.

Step 2: Within your Energy Saver settings on your Mac’s System Preferences, set the sleep to Never. Within the System and Security Settings of your Windows PC’s Control Panel, under Power Settings, select “Change when the computer sleeps.”  You can verify if this time correlates to the drop rate of the printer as well and adjust it to Never if you feel there is a distinct correlation between the two times (from the time the printer drops that is).  This is also a known fix.

[VisionAiry]

Step 1: Click this link for more information on Security information and firewall settings to find the support site related to your anti-virus/firewall.  Often AV scans will disable printer functionality as well as block ports.  Configuration of exceptions are best conducted by the software's support professionals.

Incoming ports (UDP) are destination ports on the computer while outgoing ports (TCP) are destination ports on the HP printer.

• Incoming (UDP) ports: 137, 138, 161, 427

• Outgoing (TCP) ports: 137, 139, 427, 9100, 9220, 9500

The ports are used for the following functions:

Printing

• UDP ports: 427, 137, 161
• TCP port: 9100

Photo card upload

• UDP ports: 137, 138, 427
• TCP port: 139

Scanning

• UDP port: 427
• TCP ports: 9220, 9500

HP device status

• UDP port: 161

Faxing

• UDP port: 427
• TCP port: 9220

HP device installation

• UDP port: 427

Web Services Ports

• UDP and TCP: 80, 443, 5222, and 5223

Bonjour Ports

• UDP and TCP: 5353, 5297, and 5298