Re: HP OfficeJet Pro 9015 Not Updating and Stuck in Alignmen... - HP Support Community

ITXpressNC · ‎08-17-2023

We had a client with an HP OfficeJet Pro 9015 that is stuck in a firmware upgrade loop. It keeps trying to update, but stays at 0% like the printer is offline, and then it eventually fails. Best we can tell - something is disconnected on the HP side and the printer can't download it's firmware. Found a number of people recently seeing this:

It seems to be more than the firmware. In trying to reinstall the printer, HP Smart would lock up when it tried to download the driver package in the background. Even when we used the Offline EasyStart, it locked up. Really odd. Also - no standalone firmware package on the download page. But we did find a helpful solution to temporarily turn off firmware updates even though the printer was enrolled in Instant Ink. You can use the HP Smart Advanced Settings (or the web admin interface) and disable firmware updates in the Security section (See https://h30434.www3.hp.com/t5/Printer-Setup-Software-Drivers/Workaround-for-failing-firmware-updates...) Only one problem...

We had removed everything from the computer - drivers, HP software, etc. A few forum posts with answers from HP Reps indicated this might help (but deep down we knew it would have no effect on the printer itself downloading firmware). So when we tried to get the printer reinstalled and HP Smart/Easy Start kept hanging up (a few power cycles were involved), it somehow hard reset and prompted the user like the printer was new. OK cool. Except...

This user was enrolled in Instant Ink. So we got caught in this catch 22 scenario. They got a message saying the cartridges weren't enrolled - then it said it was printing the alignment page. But it just sat there spinning the circle? Why? Because the cartridges were not enrolled, so it would not print. Seriously???? No way to connect it to WiFi from the touch panel because it insisted on doing an alignment. Sure enough, this has happened to a LOT of people:

None of the suggested answers above were very helpful. But we finally found a way around this catch 22.

This will probably only work on a laptop or desktop connected to network via WiFi.
Printer should be on, stuck trying to print the alignment page
Remove every instance of the HP printer from HP Smart (click into the printer and under Settings I believe you click 'Hide This Printer')
If you haven't already - make sure all the HP drivers/Software are uninstalled. Leave HP Smart though.
Make sure the USB cable is disconnected (doesn't matter if you normally use network printing. You're going to need a USB cable)
Restart
Download the Offline installer package (EasyStart....)
Plug in the printer's USB cable and run the EasyStart process. (I *think* we used EasyStart. It may have just been HP Smart. This was a 4 hour marathon support call so it's a bit hazy! If one fails try the other. The key is to trigger the Wireless setup over USB process)
At this point, it should act like it want's to configure the printer with your WiFi settings. Follow the instructions to enter your WiFi key, etc. The printer should connect to WiFi. This should get it to show up in HP Smart.
Now open HP Smart. You should see an error that the cartridges are not enrolled and the printer must do an alignment before it can be used.
Now go to instantink.com (the link should be displayed in HP Smart on the right) and login to the user's Instant Ink account. You should see the printer already there. In the upper right corner of the 'card' with the printer info, you should see a status icon and it'll say 'Already enrolled' Then 'Contacting Printer' and eventually it should say 'Synced'
Go back to HP Smart and wait. Eventually you should see the cartridges indicate they are enrolled. Wait some more and the alignment page should print. If it doesn't DON'T POWER CYCLE YET if the printer was having trouble downloading firmware...
Go into the Settings -> Security -> Administrator Settings (in web interface or Advanced Settings in HP Smart) and scroll all the way down. Turn off the firmware updates if it's not downloading them (yes this may mess up Instant Ink down the road but until HP fixes the firmware download issue... you need this)
Now power cycle the printer and then it should print out the alignment page so you can align and get the printer into a normal state..
You should be back to printing. We didn't bother trying to get the software suite to install given all the trouble we had before - so scanning direct to PC wasn't setup. Just walked user through scanning with HP Smart, which worked fine.

HP - PLEASE fix your firmware so the alignment page will print no matter what the status of the Instant Ink is.

Alden4 · ‎08-20-2023

Hi @ITXpressNC,

Welcome to HP Support Community.

Thank you for posting your query, I will be glad to help you.

It's frustrating when your HP OfficeJet Pro 9015 printer is stuck in an alignment loop and not updating, especially when using Instant Ink. Here are some steps you can take to troubleshoot and resolve this issue.

Check Your Internet Connection: Ensure that your printer is connected to the internet. A stable internet connection is essential for updating the printer's firmware and communicating with Instant Ink services.

Update Printer Firmware: Outdated firmware can cause various issues. To update the firmware, follow these steps:

a. On the printer's control panel, navigate to "Setup" or "Tools."

b. Look for an option like "Printer Maintenance" or "Printer Update."

c. Choose "Check for Updates" or a similar option.

d. If an update is available, follow the on-screen instructions to install it.

Check Instant Ink Subscription: Ensure that your Instant Ink subscription is active and that you have not exhausted your monthly page allotment. If your subscription is not active or if there are issues with it, this could cause problems with your printer.

Restart Your Printer: Sometimes, a simple restart can resolve issues. Turn off your printer, unplug it from the power source, wait for a minute, and then plug it back in and turn it on.

Reconfigure Instant Ink: If your printer is stuck in an alignment loop due to Instant Ink, you may need to reconfigure the Instant Ink settings. Follow these steps:

a. Access the printer's web interface using its IP address (you can find this in the printer settings).

b. Navigate to the Instant Ink section and remove your printer from the Instant Ink account.

c. Re-add the printer to your Instant Ink account following the provided instructions.

Perform a Manual Alignment: If your printer is stuck in an alignment loop, it may help to perform a manual alignment:

a. On the printer's control panel, navigate to "Setup" or "Tools."

b. Look for an option like "Align Printer" or "Manual Alignment."

c. Follow the on-screen instructions to align the printer manually.

I hope this helps.

Take care and have a good day.

Please click “Accepted Solution” if you feel my post solved your issue, it will help others find the solution. Click the “Kudos/Thumbs Up" on the bottom right to say “Thanks” for helping!

Alden4
HP Support

I am an HP Employee.

ITXpressNC · ‎08-21-2023

Appreciate the canned response to the post, but it's not applicable at all. Let me explain below...

Check Your Internet Connection: Ensure that your printer is connected to the internet. A stable internet connection is essential for updating the printer's firmware and communicating with Instant Ink services.

I was helping a client remotely, so, their Internet was working (otherwise we wouldn't have been able to download the latest drivers, etc)

Update Printer Firmware: Outdated firmware can cause various issues. To update the firmware, follow these steps:

a. On the printer's control panel, navigate to "Setup" or "Tools."
b. Look for an option like "Printer Maintenance" or "Printer Update."
c. Choose "Check for Updates" or a similar option.
d. If an update is available, follow the on-screen instructions to install it.

This was the root of the problem =- the printer was trying to download it's firmware and it was failing because of something on the HP side. It was connected to WiFI just fine.
Check Instant Ink Subscription: Ensure that your Instant Ink subscription is active and that you have not exhausted your monthly page allotment. If your subscription is not active or if there are issues with it, this could cause problems with your printer.

Restart Your Printer: Sometimes, a simple restart can resolve issues. Turn off your printer, unplug it from the power source, wait for a minute, and then plug it back in and turn it on.

Did this many times - which we think eventually led to the printer resetting to factory defaults, which locked us in an alignment loop

Reconfigure Instant Ink: If your printer is stuck in an alignment loop due to Instant Ink, you may need to reconfigure the Instant Ink settings. Follow these steps:

a. Access the printer's web interface using its IP address (you can find this in the printer settings).

You cannot do this - fix your canned reply. When the printer is in an alignment loop, the web interface is not running. All you get it 'Welcome to Nginx', which we mentioned in our original post.

b. Navigate to the Instant Ink section and remove your printer from the Instant Ink account.
c. Re-add the printer to your Instant Ink account following the provided instructions.

Perform a Manual Alignment: If your printer is stuck in an alignment loop, it may help to perform a manual alignment:

a. On the printer's control panel, navigate to "Setup" or "Tools."

You cannot do this as the control panel is locked out in the alignment loop. You can't cancel it.

b. Look for an option like "Align Printer" or "Manual Alignment."
c. Follow the on-screen instructions to align the printer manually.

I hope this helps.

No, but appreciate the effort - what would help is to get a bug report opened with the firmware team to ensure that alignment pages ALWAYS print regardless of cartridge status. Also see if it's possible to finish initializing the web admin interface BEFORE the initial alignment is printed - thus allowing a user to login to instant ink directly.

Take care and have a good day.

Please click “Accepted Solution” if you feel my post solved your issue, it will help others find the solution. Click the “Kudos/Thumbs Up" on the bottom right to say “Thanks” for helping!

Alden4
HP Support

Alden4 · ‎08-21-2023

Hi @ITXpressNC,

Thank you for your response,

Due to limited support, I would request you contact our HP Support and our Support Engineers should be able to sort this out. HP Support can be reached by clicking on the following link.

https://www.hp.com/contacthp/

Please feel free to contact us here anytime you need any further assistance.

Have a great day!

Alden4
HP Support

I am an HP Employee.

ITXpressNC · ‎08-22-2023

Thanks - if you had read the original post you would have seen we had already solved the issue. We posted or process here to help others because many were seeing the same issue.

Have a great day!

HP OfficeJet Pro 9015 Not Updating and Stuck in Alignment Loop with Instant Ink

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