HP ENVY 4527 Driver Unavailable?

[Casa_Williams]

Hi everyone,

I've been extremely satisfied with my printer so far, but all of a sudden it refused to print from my ASUS k541U laptop. Every time, I would get some sort of error message and was unable to print (mosly I print either from the hp smart app on win10 or via third party applications like adobe and MS Office), but scanning worked perfectly. After browsing the forums for similar problems and following the steps that were listed and uninstalling and reinstalling the HP official drivers numerous times, the problem still persists. I thought the problem may be due to the installation of ESET Internet security, wich was installed around the time the printer stopped working, but after disabling it and adding firewall exclusions, the problem persisted. In the Printers & Scanners section the device is listed but the message "driver is unavailable" appears underneath. The driver installs perfectly until it tries to connect to the device wirelessly, at wich point although the device is listed with the correct IP adress, it delays for a while and then the "unable to connect" message appears. I know similar problems have been posted but none of the solutions seemed to work for me. One last additional note, in the device manager, one of the drivers listed for the printer at one point was copyrighted to ESET SECURITY, but I can no longer specify the driver or any more information as since then, after many reinstallations, the printer no longer appears in the device manager. All HP Smart functionality seems perfect except for the print function (ink levels appear and the device is listed as connected) and I can still print documents using the HP Smart app on mobile and tablet via the HP Print Plugin on android. When I select the print option on the laptop, the HP app prompts me to install the printer:

HP Smart Prompt

Any help is much appreciated! 

Thank you in advance.

[DavidSMP · Accepted solution]

@Casa_Williams,

Thanks for reaching out to the community.  I see that require information as to why secure boot is disabled. I will be glad to assist you and let’s get right to Splendid diagnosis and excellent description of the issue It is amply appreciated.

Let me gather some information for better clarity to assist you correctly:

• Did you try to perform a root level uninstallation and reinstallation of the printer drivers?
• Did you uninstall the security software and check by installing the printer drivers?

I will be providing a roadmap with some troubleshooting steps to resolve the issue. Let us try these steps:

• Please perform a hard reset on the printer from this link: https://support.hp.com/us-en/product/hp-envy-4520-all-in-one-printer-series/5447920/model/11534751/d...  and follow instructions from the section “Step 1: Reset the printer”
• Then update the printer firmware also by following instructions from this link: https://support.hp.com/us-en/document/ish_1776648-1643972-16
• Then restore network defaults on the printer from this user guide link: http://h10032.www1.hp.com/ctg/Manual/c04778353  refer to page 39 for steps on how to do it.

Then run HP print and scan doctor and check if the issue gets fixed.

If it continues, then perform these steps:

Here's how to turn User Account Control (UAC) on or off in Windows 10:

1. Type UAC in the search field on your taskbar. (If the search field isn't visible, right-click the Start button and choose Search.)
2. Click Change User Account Control settings in the search results.
3. Then do one of the following:
   • To turn UAC off, drag the slider down to Never notify and click OK.
   • To turn UAC on, drag the slider up to the desired level of security and click OK.

• You may be prompted to confirm your selection or enter an administrator password.
• Reboot your computer for the change to take effect.

Now check if you can print. If the issue persists then follow these steps:

Uninstall and reinstall the printer drivers at the root level by performing these step by step instructions:

• Uninstall the printer from "programs and features" which can be accessed by doing a right-click on the Windows button (Please have the printer Off and disconnected during uninstallation.)
• Check in device manager, if the printer is listed there, please delete it. (Right click on the Windows button to access device manager)
• Go to devices and printers, in the control panel and select any printer listed there and you will get some options on the top. 
• Click on print server properties. 
• You will get a popup, click on the drivers tab and delete all the HP printer drivers listed there if any.
• Delete all the instances of your printer listed in devices and printers.
• Restart the PC.
• Once the PC is on the desktop, press Win + R, it would bring a Run dialog box, 
• Type %temp% in the run box and click Ok or hit the Enter button.
• It would bring up the temporary files folder. Delete the files in the folder (You might not be able to delete all the files).
• If possible, delete the printer from the registries using Regedit or using any other 3rd party application.
• Ignore the Regedit option if it cannot be done.
• Restart the PC again. 

• Then create a new user account as an administrator  from this link: https://support.microsoft.com/en-in/instantanswers/5de907f1-f8ba-4fd9-a89d-efd23fee918c/create-a-loc...

Log into the new user account after restarting your computer.

• Then download the latest full feature driver from https://support.hp.com/us-en/drivers/selfservice/swdetails/hp-envy-4520-all-in-one-printer-series/54...  and install it on the computer after selecting the correct operating system.
• Connect the printer to your computer only when the setup prompts for the printer.
• This should fix the issue.

If this does not do the trick, please download the Windows Built-in drivers by following instructions from this link: http://support.hp.com/in-en/document/c01796879

• This should resolve the issue for you. There is an associated YouTube video on how to install it. Please check the steps:
  • Step 2: Connect your printer to the computer
  • Step 3: Install the print driver with the Add a Printer wizard
• This should fix the issue.

If the issue persists then follow these steps:

• Please ensure to run all Windows updates completely and the latest updates are installed correctly.

• Also, use the HP support assistant to update all HP apps.

Now check if you can print. If the issue persists then follow these steps:

Also, assign a manual IP address and Google DNS to the printer by following these steps:

• Obtain the IP address of the printer – You can touch the “wireless” icon on the printer control panel to get the IP address.
• Type the IP address on your web browser to obtain the printer EWS page on your computer.
• Go to the "Network" tab - General - Select "Network protocols" - Select "Enable IPv4 only" (or similar) - Apply the settings.
• Go to the “Network” tab – Click on “Wireless (802.11) – Then click on “Network address (IPv4)
• Click on the radio button which says, “Manual IP” and then click “Suggest a manual IP address” to give a manual IP address to your printer.
• Click on radio button which says, “Manual DNS Server” and under manual preferred type 8.8.8.8 and under manual alternate type 8.8.4.4 (This is Google DNS server address)
• Restart the printer and then router once done.

Here is a YouTube video https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=SCnYyq80V9g

on how to assign a manual IP address to the printer. This should nail it.

• If it continues, then backup all your important data and perform a Microsoft push-button reset of windows from this link: https://support.hp.com/in-en/document/c04742289
• Then install the printer drivers from the HP support site and this should do the trick for you.

Good luck and keep me posted about the developments. If this helps, please mark this as “Accepted Solution” as it will help several others with the same issue and give the post a Kudos for my efforts to help.

Thank you and have a great week ahead. 🙂

[Casa_Williams]

Hi and thanks for the reply!

• I did carry out a root uninstallation and even deleted the temp folder and all registry files (that I knew of) associated to the printer.
• I did not uninstall the antivirus but I did make sure to disable every feature, and the printer has worked for over a year with the same antivirus. If your tips fo not work I will completely uninstall the antivirus and try again.

I will carry out the steps listed and let you know if there are any developments. Thank you!

[KrazyToad]

@Casa_Williams

Please perform the steps suggested by @DavidSMP and keep us posted if you need further assistance

Thank you 😀

[Casa_Williams]

Update: After failing to install the printer via the windows built in drivers, the other day, I was formating a different laptop and decided to give it another go while I was waiting and, somehow, even though I followed exactly the same steps, it works perfectly now. I have no idea why, but I hope it stays that way! The only thing that I did differently was that before you get into the prompt for hp instant ink I logged in to my hp account in the setup wizard. So if anyone reading is having the same problem, make sure you log in to your HP account! It could make all the difference!

[crailman]

I have had the same problem. Regulary cannot find the printer. Phoned HP on 8th March 2019. Brilliant help. Took control of my laptop, removed all drivers, re installed, tweaked firewall, registered again. All working fine. Suggested it might be Windows 10 update to blame. This morning 12th March 2019 printer shown as offline yet again. 

Had to turn off printer, router, delete printer in settings. Install drivers again and go through long register process again, use IP address given. Now working.

I don't care for the long wided reply from HP to resolve this issue. Problem is with HP.

My lost work time to sort this out costs more than I paid for the printer. It should not be happening.

Expect it to go again by trhe weekend at this rate. Would change the printer under warranty but if it is software issue then no point.

Why should I do the work for HP problem?