Connected Envy 4500 printer to Wireless, laptop can't detect it (prev. advice unsuccessful)

[MrConrad]

Dear HP representative, 

I'd like to start by thanking you for your patience on cracking this nut together,
since it might take a bit of brainstorming, I hope it will be a learning experience for us both.

In short, I've run into some challenges connecting an HP Envy 4500 printer to my laptop wirelessly.

I will first list the parameters under which the searches were made, followed by the different attempts I have made.


Parameters to consider:
- Both IP and host name were tried for all searches.
- During all time of testing, I had made sure no firewall was running, to my knowledge (windows or other), in and outside Clean boot -
- If it's of any value, I have Avast  and Malware Bytes anti-malware software installed to complement. Both were turned off fully, to my knowledge -
- I have UAC permanently disabled, and all installations and HP software were Run as Administrator.
- Also tried Win 7 compatibility to no avail -
- Tried another laptop (also running Windows 8.1, same network), to no success -
- All autostart items, windows applications aside, were turned off during Clean Boot, including those listed in the task manager - 
- Still haven't removed the exterior plastic (the sticky bits) (other than the plastic bag, and inside tape), for safety measure and for guarantee reasons. Yet doubt a bit of plastic being enough to hinder detection(?) - 
- The printer was finished with its setup, connected to the same network and plugged into a wall socket. -
- The distance from the printer to the router is ~ 2 metres, same for laptop.
- During the clean boot instance, I intentionally shut off the wireless on all other devices, so that only the printer and my laptop were connected. Still the laptop could not detect the printer, yet the router faultlessly identified both devices as connected with stable connections in the DHCP list, everytime I reconnected to the network -
- On laptop, attempted 'forget this network' + rejoining, setting network to private and activated 'identify/show devices' and then tried printer detection anew -  still no detection of the printer.
- On laptop, disabled and restarted the wireless adapter, still didn't work -
Potential areas of concern:
- Did not clean temporary files/registry  in between uninstalling and reinstalling HP software in Clean boot, (don't know how+intentionally steered clear)
- Laptop info: MSI GE70, with a 'Realtek RTL8723AE Wireless Lan 802.11n PCE-E NIC' adapter. The laptop came with an internet optimiser software 'Qualcomm Atheros Killer Network Manager' installed, yet this was also turned off.
- Have had some earlier unresolved issues pinging other laptops/PCs in lan settings, and resorted to using Hamachi. This problem also occurred when all firewalls were deactivated. Right now, my laptop can ping the router and get responses, yet when I ping other laptops they either time out or I get the 'destination host can't be reached', as a response from my own laptop's IP. (Only had this issue on windows 😎 -
- I have Hamachi installed on laptop, as mentioned above, and even when the Hamachi was turned off and autostart disabled, upon restart and clean boot, the secondary network hamachi creates was still running in the background(shown in Network and sharing center yet with no internet access). I am unsure as to how this may affect detection on other networks this laptop is connected to. -
- Using the following router 'Netgear 300, WNR2200, 2,4ghz'. I am unsure if this router has a firewall of its own, and  if or how this would affect printer detection between the two connected devices.

- Lastly, I have intentionally not yet bought and tried a USB-cable for the printer, as it in my eyes defeats the purpose of having this particular printer. I therefore consider it an absolute last resort.

So as for the attempts I have made this far:

Attempts

First attempt, I tried with both laptop and printer having dynamic IPs. Both had internet connection, however the HP software could not locate/detect the printer. Tried Dynamic in both normal windows mode and clean boot mode, unsuccessfully.

Second attempt, I set up fixed IPs using DHCP on my router (Netgear 300, WNR2200, 2,4ghz), as for internet connection, this worked fine. They both got their fixed IPs, yet the software still could not locate the printer.

Third attempt, I checked your forum and a similar question raised earlier:
http://h30434.www3.hp.com/t5/Printer-Networking-and-Wireless/ENVY-4500-connects-to-wi-fi-but-PC-can-...

I ran the final instruction, reset the printer wireless settings to default, unplugged the router and modem for 60 seconds, waited until the network was stable, then connected the printer anew, which showed a stable connection.

After which I uninstalled the HP software installed previously, disabled the autostarting services in MSConfig (not windows ones) and disable the autostart items in task manager, then rebooted as instructed via Msconfig.

In clean boot mode, I reinstalled the HP software using the included DVD-rom, used HP update to ascertain the newest version, this program still couldn't locate the printer. Still in clean mode, I then tried the 'Hp Print and Scan Doctor' (which I for that matter did not uninstall, saw no reason to) - this program also couldn't locate the printer. Next attempt was to try the 'HP Printer Install Wizard' (downloaded via your website) to no avail.

I then tried the basic windows 'Add a printer' and 'view printers and devices' functions via the Control Panel, yet these functions only found multiple other devices, and no printer.

My last attempt before seeking your wisdom was to try the recommendations of one of your colleagues on a different post, regarding connectivity issues (link below):

>>"In the meantime, I'm going to have you check the connectivity between your HP Photosmart and your Windows 7 computer.

1. On the front panel of your HP Photosmart please touch the Setup (wrench) button
2. Select the Wireless Menu
3. Select Display Network Configuration
4. Lastly, select Display Network Summary
5. Take note of the Network Name (SSID) and the IP Address
6. On your Windows computer please confirm that the Network Name (SSID) that your Windows computer is connected to is the exact same Network Name (SSID) that your printer is connected to
7. Once your have confirmed that they are both still connected to the exact same network please open the internet browser on your Windows computer
8. In the address bar please type in the IP Address that you gathered off the printer. Do not include www.
9. Search to this website. A website for your printer should now open."<<

Link: http://h30434.www3.hp.com/t5/Printer-Networking-and-Wireless/wireless-connectivity/td-p/5033835


Result: No website opened. Did not follow the next steps posted in that link after this, as it stated the connectivity issues had to be solved first.

_______________________

Ps. I have tried to give as much info as possible, yet if there's something missing just let me know. My knowledge of command prompt is basic, yet if there are any commands I should check for info, just let me know which ones and I'll get right on it. We're in this together. ds.


Hoping for an easy solution, as is often the case, and welcome any trial-and-error oriented advice warmly 🙂



- Thanks in advance for your help -

[MrConrad · Accepted solution]

Found the solution to what seemed a never ending connectivity issue! 😃

This one may prove helpful for those of you who have a connectivity problem lingering after trying out all the basic "pull the plug"/"turn off firewall" type of advice and the troubleshoots, and who do not not mind it if devices within your network can identify each other and communicate. Admittedly, this solution may result in a somewhat lower overall internet security. Yet provided one has an updated and well-functioning firewall, and no imminent threats of being targeted by hackers, then this should solution should be alright for normal users in home/local networks. After hours and hours of problem solving, trial-and-error testing and brainstorming, this was the only solution I could find. Though I'm sure there are many others, yet they are hard to come by.

Checklist of failed attempts:
Before finding the solution for my connectivity issue, I had followed the advice given to other users with similar connectivity issues:
- I tried the various tools provided by HP (UAC disabled, ran as administrator + tried compatibility):
    * Standard DVD-rom installation  - detection failed
    * Downloaded the 'HP Install Wizard - detection failed
    * Downloaded the 'HP Print and Scan Doctor' - detection failed
- Tried turning off firewalls - at time of reinstallation and detection - detection failed
- Tried uninstalling the software, then restarting in clean boot mode via Msconfig & disabling all non-windows auto-start services in MSconfig and the task manager, then reinstalling and searching anew  - detection failed
- Tried disabling and re-activating laptop wireless adapter - detection failed
- Tried 'forget network' function, reconnecting and enabling device identification and sharing - detection failed
- Tried resetting router, pulling plugs 60 seconds, then resetting devices to default settings and reconnecting when the network was stable - detection failed
- Set up Fixed IP-adresses for all devices in advanced router configuration, router found the devices which both had stable internet connection yet for cross-communication between laptop and printer - detection failed
- Tried the full installation and detection on another laptop yet whilst in the same network - detection failed
- Tried the standard windows control panel function 'add printer' & 'show printers and devices' - detection failed
- Tried pinging the printer (once it had a fixed IP) using command prompt, no reply, 100% loss - detection failed (Yet laptop could ping router without problem.)
- Tried disconnecting all other devices from the network (mobiles, other laptops, TV, Consoles etc) leaving only the printer and the laptop connected - detection failed
- Tried moving the printer across the room and removing the majority of other electrical devices - detection failed
- Tried plugging the printer to a wall socket, as recommended by forum operators  - detection failed

Solution
For me the solution lay hidden in the router configuration. More specifically, in the Advanced settings for wireless connections on the router configuration page. I had a small box there: 'Isolate wireless network', which was ticked by default in factory settings.

As I have learnt afterwards, there are many similar names for this router setting, and it comes with many different brands of routers, yet what varies is whether or not this function is activated in default fatory settings, see below.

At first glance I thought this function only would affect devices, external to the network, trying to identify the network itself, but apparently it also affects device identification and communication between devices in the same network. See remarks below. My router was a Netgear 300, WNR2200.

Remarks
As an unprofessional user, I had no idea what this concept meant and since it was standard configuration it seemed fine, but further inspection on the web regarding Network Isolation revealed (from the How-to-geek website):

'Some routers have a Wireless isolation, AP Isolation, Station Isolation, or Client Isolation feature that allows you to lock down your Wi-Fi network. This feature is ideal for businesses with public Wi-Fi networks or anyone who’s just a bit paranoid. This feature confines and restricts clients connected to the Wi-Fi network. They can’t interact with devices connected to the more secure wired network, nor can they communicate with each other.(!)  They can only access the Internet.'

Bingo! Just unticked the box and the laptop and printer could communicate straight away.


At least to me, as an unprofessional user, the router's internal configuration was absolutely not the first thing that came to mind nor would I normally want to delve into it as it feels a bit over my head, but a bit of trial-and-error saved the day. 


To those HP professionals running this forum, there were two ideas that set me on the right path:
1) The laptop could communicate with the router, pinging its IP-adress via command prompt (windows), yet it couldn't ping the printer.
2) Just before giving up, a small hint in the troubleshoot caught my eye: it could be a router-related problem.

Thanks for setting me on the right path via previous posts! It has been a great learning experience, and hopefully this will help a lot of other people! 🙂