Scanning software does not install properly

[Bob154]

Repeated attempts to get my Officejet Pro 6960 to scan AGAIN fail.

By "again", I mean that it scanned fine when I first installed it.  Next day, after a power cycle, scanning failed, giving me the error message "The HP Officejet Pro 6960 was not found".

I have tried multiple connection options; USB, wireless and wired.  All work as far as printing goes, but attempts to scan fail, always generating the "not found" message described above.

The Device Manager shows an

  HP OfficeJet Pro 6960 (USB)

in the Unknown category when configured with a USB connection.  Reconfiguring (or removing and reinstalling) with a network connection shows 

  HP OfficeJet Pro 6960 (NET)

still in the Unknown category.

So Windows recognizes the change, it just doesn't know that this thing is a scanner.

 (By "category",  I mean Keyboards, Ports, Processors, System Devices, etc.  Installing the HP software results in a new category appearing at the bottom, "Unknown", with a device in it that it clearly knows about!)

I have removed the HP software and rebooted and reinstalled multiple times (10+).  

I have removed the devices in Device Manager and rebooted multiple times.

I have attempted to update the driver multiple times.

I have used the HP "fix" tool multiple times, but it invariably tells me I need to reboot, which I do.  I rerun the tool and it tells me to reboot, which I do.  I rerun the tool and it tells me ... you get the idea.

This is the other side of annoying, as I bought this device PURELY to scan.  I have no need of ink printing, as I have a nice colour laser printer.

Can I just install a scanner driver?  No IRIS, no Dropbox, no printer driver, nothing except what I need to scan?

Or do I simply buy something else (from some other manufacturer)?

Any suggestions welcome.

[Rainbow23]

Hi @Bob154,

Welcome to HP Forums, this is a great place to get support, find answers and tips.

Thank you for posting your query, I'll be more than glad to help you.

I understand that you are unable to scan from your HP OfficeJet Pro 6960 All-in-One Printer to your computer.

This issue could occur if the drivers are not installed properly.

Let's go through a few steps to uninstall and reinstall the drivers:

Step 1: Uninstall the Drivers:

Please follow the steps provided to uninstall the printer software in the link: Uninstalling the Printer Software (Windows)

Also, please follow the steps provided below to completely remove the printer software from printer properties.

Steps to remove printer driver files from Print Server Properties:

1. Open the Print Server Properties dialog window by doing any one of the following:

(a). Press WINDOWS-R on the keyboard to bring up the Run window, type in 'printui /s /t2' (without the quotes), and then press Enter or click OK.

(b) From the Start menu or the Start screen and open Devices and Printers. Select any printer and then click "Print server properties" at the top of the window. Click on the Drivers tab.

2. Select the printer driver you wish to uninstall.

3. Click the Remove button.

4. Select "Remove driver and driver package" and click OK.

Step 2: Download and install the Drivers from the link: Full Feature Software and Drivers

Let me know how this works.

You have a good day ahead.

[Bob154]

Thank you for your reply!  

Sadly, your suggestions are somewhat generic.  I have in fact done all of the above multiple times, as my previous post indicates.

Note that I CAN print, the issue is not with printing, it is with scanning.  It seems to be related to something unusual in Device Manager.  See pic attached.

[Bob154]

One more pic; this comes up EVERY time I attempt to access the scanner using any of the various HP options.  First pic below is what happens when trying the HP Scan utility.

Second pic is from the HP OfficeJet Pro 6960 application and selecting "Scan".

Last thing to add.

I configured the scanner's wired  network interface, created a WindowsXP virtual machine, downloaded the XP software and installed it.  The scanner worked perfectly.  Tried the same thing under Windows7 and it failed.  So while I do have a fix, firing up a VM to boot another version of Windows is not that convenient ...

[Rainbow23]

Hi @Bob154,

Thank you for your reply, I'll be more than glad to help you.

I understand that the scanner is not listed in the device manager.

I suggest that you delete the printer from the device manager and then restart the computer.

Now delete the temporary files. Type %temp% in the run box and click Ok or hit the Enter button.

It would bring up the temporary files folder. Delete the files in the folder (You might not be able to delete all the files).

Now I suggest that you instal the drivers from the link given in the previous post.

Let me know if this works.

You have a good day ahead.

[Bob154]

I did precisely what you described.

There was no change; please see the images in a previous post.

I can print, but can't scan, and the OfficeJet6960 shows up in the UNKNOWN category under Device Manager.

Rather than blindly doing the generic things (that I have done over and over again already) and crossing our fingers that something will change, is it possible to attempt some sort of actual troubleshooting?

For example, does your installer create a log file somewhere?  And is anything logged in a Windows Event log?

[Bob154]

For example, I see in the Application Event Viewer the following INFORMATION events

1170   Product: HP OfficeJet Pro 6960 Basic Device Software -- Installation completed successfully.

1033  Windows Installer installed the product. Product Name: HP OfficeJet Pro 6960 Basic Device Software. Product Version: 40.11.1150.17184. Product Language: 1033. Manufacturer: HP Inc.. Installation success or error status: 0.

1042 Ending a Windows Installer transaction: C:\Users\alan\Downloads\OJ6960_Basicx64_40.11.1150\OJ696x64.msi. Client Process Id: 4292.

and then a WARNING event

1015 Failed to connect to server. Error: 0x800401F0

and then more INFORMATION events, as above

1033 Windows Installer installed the product. Product Name: HP OfficeJet Pro 6960 Basic Device Software. Product Version: 40.11.1150.17184. Product Language: 1033. Manufacturer: HP Inc.. Installation success or error status: 0.

and another WARNING event, as above.

ALL these events are recorded within 1 second of each other.

[Rainbow23]

Hi @Bob154,

Thank you for your reply, I'll be more than glad to help you.

I understand that the issue has not resolved after following the steps mentioned in the previous interaction.

This issue may require a one to one interaction over the phone.

Hence, please contact HP Phone Support for further assistance at the link: www.hp.com/contacthp

You may select the country and type the product# of the unit and then follow the on-screen instructions to contact HP phone support.

You have a good day ahead.