Printer wakes at 5 am and starts maintenance

[rcan1015]

Typical that your website doesn't work correctly. The drop down box won't allow any entry except 'Business Notebooks'. Always consistent. This is the second time in a few months that the OfficeJet Pro 6968 lights up and starts printer maintenance at 5 in the morning. This sucks. I know I can turn it off every night, but you would complain that it needs to be on due to the Instant Ink program. Why does it have to do this maintenance at some bizarre hour when most people are trying to sleep?

[zoey7886 · Accepted solution]

@rcan1015, Welcome to the HP Support Community!  

Thanks for reaching out about your query regarding your printer that wakes at 5am! 

We're thrilled to have the opportunity to assist you and provide a solution.  

Printers do periodic maintenance to keep the ink flowing smoothly and prevent clogs, but I understand that 5 AM isn’t exactly an ideal time for that.

While there isn’t a built-in way to change the timing, one workaround you could try is adjusting the printer’s sleep settings. If you set it to sleep earlier or turn it off manually before bed (I know, not ideal), it might help reduce the chances of it waking up at that time.

As for the website issue with the dropdown box only allowing 'Business Notebooks,' that’s definitely not how it should work. Have you tried clearing your browser cache or using a different browser? Sometimes a simple refresh can help.

Let me know if you need help with anything else—I’m happy to assist!  

Take care, and have an amazing day!  

Did we resolve the issue? If yes, Please consider marking this post as "Accepted Solution" and click "Yes" to give us a helpful vote - your feedback keeps us going!  

Regards, 

[rcan1015]

Zoey7886, thanks for the reply. I'll work on the sleep settings and see if that resolves it.

[zoey7886]

@rcan1015, let me know how it goes!

[rcan1015]

I thought this would be fairly intuitive, but I am unable to find out how to modify the sleep settings. I tried both on the printer display and using HP Smart app. I can find 'sleep mode', auto-off and various other settings--but nothing that lets me find and modify sleep settings.

[zoey7886]

Hey @rcan1015, 

Thanks for getting back to me! I hear you—finding the exact sleep settings can be a bit tricky, so let’s go step by step.

On your OfficeJet Pro 6968, you can try this:

On the printer display:

Tap Setup (wrench icon).

Go to Preferences or Power Management (depends on the firmware version).

Look for Sleep Mode and set it to an earlier time, like before you head to bed.

Through HP Smart app:

Open the app and select your printer.

Navigate to Advanced Settings (or EWS - Embedded Web Server).

Under Power Management, you might find an option to adjust the sleep time.

If these don’t do the trick, let me know what settings you do see, and we’ll figure it out together! Also, I totally get the frustration with maintenance kicking in at odd hours. The printer does this to keep the ink flowing properly, but I wish there were a way to schedule it too.

Appreciate your patience, and I’m happy to help until we get this sorted! 😊

Looking forward to your update.

Take care, and have an amazing day!  

Did we resolve the issue? If yes, Please consider marking this post as "Accepted Solution" and click "Yes" to give us a helpful vote - your feedback keeps us going!  

Regards, 

[rcan1015]

Zoey7886,

Thanks for a thorough explanation. I went to the printer interface and selected Power Management. However, the Sleep Mode option appears to just tell the printer when to sleep when not in use--the options were for 5, 10 or 15 minutes. I went to the Schedule Printer On/Off which seems appropriate and set the on time for 7 am and the off time for 9 pm. I don't understand if that is going to turn the power off/on for the printer or whether it is a software setting that doesn't allow printer activity? I'll wait and see what happens tonight and tomorrow before possibly proceeding to the HP Smart app.

Thanks,

Richard

[zoey7886]

Hey @rcan1015, 

Hope you're doing well! Just checking in—how did things go with the schedule settings? Did the printer behave as expected, or is it still running maintenance at odd hours? Let me know if you need any more help!

Looking forward to your update. 😊

Regards,

[rcan1015]

This morning the printer turned on at 7 am--which is the time I set. That part is good although it's still annoying. It makes so much racket when it turns on and automatically runs through maintenance and diagnostics. I've used HP Instant Ink for several years and I'm used to the printer being on 24 hours and not making any noise unless I'm using it. The automatic printer maintenance at very early hours in the a.m. was disconcerting because it always woke me and the bright display light would stay on for several minutes. I guess that is resolved now--but I wonder if the daily routine of the printer waking, going through maintenance each and every day will cause more wear and tear than when it was on 24 hours a day?

Thx

[zoey7886]

Hey @rcan1015, 

Glad to hear the timing is sorted! I know the noise can be a bit much, but the daily maintenance actually helps keep the printer running smoothly and prevents issues in the long run—no extra wear and tear to worry about.

If the noise is still bothersome, try enabling "Quiet Mode" in the printer settings to reduce it. Let me know if you need any more help! 😊

Regards,