HP Scan unable to detect printer/ scanner through Wi-Fi

[raulmaravalhas]

I have recently installed HP ENVY 6400e using the HP Smart app and was able to scan some documents successfully. Unfourtunately (or perhaps, unbelievably), the HP Smart app doesn't support OCR, which is what I need. Going through the support pages, I discovered I had to install another app for OCR scanning, HP Scan. It just happens that HP Scan just won't recognize my scanner (HP ENVY série 6400e) through Wi-Fi. I have tried reinstalling, uninstalling the HP Smar and reinstalling HP Scan again and nothing works. I don't have the USB cable with me, so I'd really need to solve that with the Wi-Fi connection. Thank you in advance.

[Max3Aj]

@raulmaravalhas, Welcome to HP Support Community. 

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

It’s frustrating that HP Scan isn’t recognizing your HP ENVY 6400e over Wi-Fi, especially since HP Smart lacks OCR. Let’s focus on fixing the wireless connection with the following troubleshooting steps:

Verify Network Connection

• Wi-Fi Connection: Ensure your printer and computer are on the same Wi-Fi network and connected to a 2.4GHz band (or 5GHz).
  • Check the printer’s Wi-Fi signal strength from its control panel or print a network configuration report. To do this, press and hold the Information button until all control panel buttons light up, then press the Information and Wireless buttons together.
• Ensure your firewall or antivirus software isn’t blocking communication between HP Scan and the printer.

Restart Everything

• Power cycle the printer:
  1. Turn off the printer.
  2. Unplug it for 1-2 minutes.
  3. Plug it back in and turn it on.
• Restart your PC to refresh network connections.

Reinstall HP Scan the Right Way

1. Uninstall both HP Smart and HP Scan completely from your computer.
2. Restart your PC.
3. Download and reinstall HP Scan Extended from the HP website.
4. Reinstall HP Smart and check if HP Scan can now detect the printer.

Try Windows Built-in Scan Utility (If on Windows)

If HP Scan still doesn’t detect the printer, use Windows Fax and Scan or Windows Scan (available in the Microsoft Store) to scan. While these won’t have OCR, they may at least detect your scanner.

Alternative OCR Solutions

Since HP Smart doesn’t support OCR, consider using third-party OCR software such as:

• Microsoft OneNote: Insert a picture, right-click, and select Copy Text from Picture.
• Adobe Acrobat: If you have it, you can use its OCR capabilities.
• Tesseract OCR: A free and open-source option for OCR tasks.

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! 

Max3Aj

HP Support