Color LaserJet Pro MFP-M281fdw shows 49 Service Error after firmware update from 20th October

[HITC22]

Wow, it seems I'm very late to the party - and, boy, am I furious..!!

Our MFP-M281fdw suddenly packed up one day when I was working from home, showing a yellow warning triangle with a "Resend Upgrade" instruction. We'd had a breakdown in our wifi (only about 3 minutes) and we presumed that had caused a firmware update to stall. Nothing we could do would rectify the fault.

Over the next 10 days my husband spent hours on the phone to HP support. Initially they tried to re-download the update but failed. They 'escalated' the case and, several days later - after being chased up, they called back, took control of our computer and tried to download the update again. They failed and told us there was nothing they could do because it was out of warranty. They said we could replace the format board but they would NOT recommend it, so emailed us a link to their online shop so we could purchase a new printer..!!

Not once did anyone intimate that this was a widespread problem (hence we still believed our wifi failure was the cause). Until I found this thread.

Although the printer was purchased back in 2018, it hasn't been used to any extent and always has genuine HP toners installed.

This is akin to a cyber attack or someone entering my home and smashing up my printer. How can HP get away with this..??

[katherine73]

@Ar2022: Try the links in this post: https://h30434.www3.hp.com/t5/Printing-Errors-or-Lights-Stuck-Print-Jobs/Color-LaserJet-Pro-MFP-M281...

Otherwise, there was nothing special in the link that JoopR posted from the AliExpress seller.

[JoopR]

@Ar2022: This is the link: Zip file  but you have to be quick because a moderator has removed the link from a previous post from me.

@MayS: Please don't remove this link!

[JoopR]

@HITC22: It seems this moderator MayS has edited your message. They removed the last couple of sentences. Are we being censored by HP now?

[HITC22]

@JoopR: Oh, so they have. The part about them having a class action lawsuit against them and I'd be more than happy to be part of another... Interesting this should be censored, speaks volumes.

Perhaps they could counter-sue the absolute idiot who let this corrupt firmware update lose on their unsuspecting customers...!!! 

Thank you for picking up on that - clearly censorship in action.

[LM-IT-OPS]

@HITC22 -- but according to twitter support, general support, escalated support and case management, HP thoroughly tests all their firmware before its released and we all have isolated incidents.  I did have one person in support a "smartfriend" who said "Yeah, we need to replace this printer" and he has been the ONLY one whose acknowledged there is an issue with this firmware and agreed it was not an isolated case.

the rest of HP just has blinders on.

[HITC22]

@LM-IT-OPS: Funny how they're blind to 28 pages of complaints about an identical issue that occurred at the same time, for the same reason.

We should track down your "smartfriend" and get him to replace all our printers.

Did you get your printer replaced..??

[IceBoneBadger]

@Katherine73 Thank you very much for your posts in this thread. I followed your steps and was able to bring my printer back from the dead. I got the new formatter board from the same eBay seller in Florida and it worked very well.

A few oddities I came across during my repair;

1. After installing the new formatter board the printer claimed that my Yellow toner cartridge was either counterfeit or used. Neither of those are true. It's the genuine HP toner cartridge that originally came with the printer. It was very low on ink anyway, so I put in a new cartridge and it worked as intended.

2. For updating the serial number the blog you referenced has step by step instructions that seem geared towards Linux users. For us mere mortals using Windows you can download the pre-made PJL file linked at the beginning of the instructions, update the serial number in Notepad, then use Command Prompt to send the file to your printer using the FTP instructions given in the blog post. Note that there is a typo in the file extension. It says filename.jpl and should be filename.pjl.

3. When I tried to ftp to my printer it refused the connection because FTP printing was disabled. I had to enable it in order to send the updated PJL file. If any of you run into this same problem open up your printer's advanced settings through HP Smart or in a web browser, click on the Network tab, Advanced, check the box for FTP Printing

I find the following things incredibly suspicious;

• People start reporting problems on October 25th (same time my printer started acting up) after an automatic firmware update was pushed (my printer had automatic updates turned on)
• Suddenly a new firmware package is deployed on October 27th, and the last firmware package is no longer linked on the product support page
• HP claims no responsibility and urges people to "Upgrade" instead of offering repairs

My problem started as a 79 Service Error. I was following HPs troubleshooting guides, but nothing they suggested worked. This went on for multiple days with no luck. Since my printer was out of warranty there was no way to get a phone number to call. Everything I tried kept redirecting me to the virtual agent, or the website troubleshooting guide.  Even when I tried clicking on the paid phone support with HP it was a dead link. Out of frustration I then tried a soft reset to see if that would work since everything I was being told was that I had to buy a new printer. The printer is only 2.5 years old and should definitely last longer than that (my previous Canon printer lasted 12 years). That's when the problem turned into a 49 Service Error with this endless reboot cycle. I seriously let it sit there and restart for 24 hours just to see how long it would go on. It never stopped.

Thanks again @Katherine73. The links for the repair manual and this blog post for updating the serial number after the board replacement made the whole repair process go much smoother. You saved me $510, and HP can go suck it. Doubt I'll ever buy another printer from them again. Had I not just bought replacement toner right before this problem happened I would have gone with another brand.

[PrinterAssassin]

There is only one fix to the Grenade Firmware update that HP sent out in October 2022. Either set the printer on fire OR order a new formatter board , install, insure that a 2020 firmware version is loaded/flashed onto it, Turn off all Update auto features (forever). 

if you were lucky enough to catch it as a 79 error code - you might have been able to upload the 20200612 firmware file and missed the bullet 

Good luck. HP sucks and knows what they did and told us too bad. 

[PrinterAssassin]

can you tell/show how to replace the board? 
we bought one- thanks!