Mac OS Mojave 10.14 will not detect HP ScanJen G4050

[MKG13]

Mac OS Mojave 10.14 will not detect my HP ScanJet G4050. I have installed, and reinstalled HP EasyScan and tried image capture. Neither of which will detect my scanner. Ironically - VueScan WILL detect and scan… however they require a purchase of their Fix. Does HP have a solution for this issue?Ma

[MKG13]

More to this scenario.  I was able to get the scanner to run with HP Easy Scan on same OS on a MacMini.  Would like it to run off ofmy MP Pro.  Advice requested!

[NoBodyYouKnow]

Did you find a solution for this in the end? I've got the same problem. I've had this scanner for several years and it worked fine with a previous MacbookPro. But this is the first time I've tried scanning film since I got a new MBP with Mojave and I'm getting nowhere.

I have a paid version of VueScan (I recommend it to anyone scanning film; your scans will be waaaay better!). As you say, VueScan can see the G4050, and can even make flatbed scans without any problem. Unfortunately it can't use the Transparent Media Adapter (the light in the lid for backlighting film) for some reason, so I just get gloomy flatbed scans of my negatives sitting in the film holder. No good to me at all.

And I'm sure it's not a physical problem with the scanner, as I've run the TMA test, and it appears to work fine. Instead I'm in the same situation as you: neither Image Capture nor HP Easy Scan can see the G4050. And VueScan only partially does. Frustrating.

[NoBodyYouKnow]

Installed Catalina, naively hoping it might fix the problem. Instead it's made things worse: VueScan can't even preview a flatbed scan now, never mind actually scan one: much less deal with transparent media. Clicking either the preview or scan button results in zero action.

Meanwhile HP Easy Start seems to see my scanner, but asks me to install drivers and then freezes permanently.

Would really appreciate some help with this. Very frustrating to have invested in a good scanner (one of very few on the market capable of scanning 4x5 film negatives) only to find out that I can't actually use it (I made very little use of it immediately on purchase, and now that I need it HP has effectively disowned it).

[TEJ1602]

@NoBodyYouKnow, Welcome to HP Support Community!

I understand that you are having issues with scanning after the OS update. Recommend you to try the steps suggested in this HP Forums post.

Hope this helps! Keep me posted. 

Please click “Accept as 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!

[NoBodyYouKnow]

"I understand that you are having issues with scanning after the OS update. "

Thanks for the help, but just as with the OP, I was having problems using the scanner even before the OS update. And one of those problems was that Image Capture couldn't detect my scanner. So the workaround you posted of using Image Capture is of no use to me whatsoever unfortunately.

What's more, even if I didn't have this problem with Image Capture, using it still wouldn't be a satisfactory solution. This is because Image Capture is not a valid replacement for professional film scanning software such as VueScan. The only reason I even opened Image Capture in the first place was merely to check if this program was also unable to detect my scanner, or if instead the problem was isolated to VueScan.

But as Image Capture can't see my scanner, evidently the problem is not isolated to VueScan. Indeed, prior to the OS update, VueScan could at least detect my G4050, and even make flatbed scans with it, just not scan film using the TMA. Whereas Image Capture couldn't detect the scanner even before the update.

Since the OS update the problem is worse, in that VueScan can't even make flatbed scans now: the Preview and Scan buttons no longer react when pressed.

In short, it appears that I have both the problem caused by the update, and an unresolved problem which predates the update.

[TEJ1602 · Accepted solution]

@NoBodyYouKnow

Let us try uninstalling the HP Software and reinstalling the updated version of the driver that was released for Mac OS 15. Refer to the document HP Printers - Uninstalling HP Software (Mac) for help.

Now, download and install the new software using HP Easy Start from here.

Hope this helps! Keep me posted. 

Please click “Accept as 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!

[NoBodyYouKnow]

Excellent, the above solution worked! I was close to giving up, but The G4050 is now running again with VueScan!

Thanks a lot for your help. Much appreciated!

EDIT: I can't see where I'm meant to click "accept as solution."

[TEJ1602]

@NoBodyYouKnow

That's great! Happy to hear that.

Let me know if you need any further assistance.

[NoBodyYouKnow]

Well, it was good while it lasted. I managed to make 4 high resolution film scans before needing to switch over to doing some flatbed document scanning briefly. All went well until I switched back to scanning film again: I can still preview, but now VueScan crashes each time I hit the Scan button.

Admittedly this could just as easily be a problem with VueScan rather than with the scanner. But I've tried reinstalling VueScan and it's made no difference. I haven't gone through the process of reinstalling the G4050 drivers again though. Should I?

Incidentally, Image Capture can now at least detect the scanner (for the first time ever), but I get a message saying "failed to open connection to the device (-21400)" and can go no further. This makes it hard to tell if the problem is with VueScan or the G4050 now.