The ****ing printer is NOT ****ing offline!!!!!
Discussion
Windows seems to have a real problem thinking network printers are offline when they are not. This is an issue I have had to a VERY long time and I cannot seem to find any satisfactory solution online.
We have a network printer at home shared by all the family PCs. Very regularly the PCs seem to think the printer is offline and you cannot print to it.
However it clearly ISN'T offline as you can ping the printer's IP address successfully. You can access the web server on the printer. But you can't seem to convince the PC that the printer is NOT f
kING OFFLINE YOU b
h!!!
Occasionally restarting the print spooler causes the queued print job to complete, but rarely.
Does anyone share this problem and know of a solution because IT PISSES ME OFF!!
Restarting the PC fixes the issue briefly, but that's not really an acceptable answer.
Please excuse the rant.......
We have a network printer at home shared by all the family PCs. Very regularly the PCs seem to think the printer is offline and you cannot print to it.
However it clearly ISN'T offline as you can ping the printer's IP address successfully. You can access the web server on the printer. But you can't seem to convince the PC that the printer is NOT f
kING OFFLINE YOU b
h!!!Occasionally restarting the print spooler causes the queued print job to complete, but rarely.
Does anyone share this problem and know of a solution because IT PISSES ME OFF!!
Restarting the PC fixes the issue briefly, but that's not really an acceptable answer.
Please excuse the rant.......
We went through similar rage inducing b
ks with a WiFi only HP printer.
Eventually pinned it down to the printer being on the 5ghz WiFi and the laptop being on 2.5ghz....so both connected & responded to connection tests but stupid ass printer couldn't receive the data properly, for reasons I never did understand.
Disabling 5ghz & reconnecting printer made it much more reliable.
Printers are hateful things to work reliably.
ks with a WiFi only HP printer.Eventually pinned it down to the printer being on the 5ghz WiFi and the laptop being on 2.5ghz....so both connected & responded to connection tests but stupid ass printer couldn't receive the data properly, for reasons I never did understand.
Disabling 5ghz & reconnecting printer made it much more reliable.
Printers are hateful things to work reliably.
All the Epson printers I have ever had periodically throw such hissy fits even with a static IP assigned.
However one day I moved the printer to a new location where I was using a Devolo WiFi extender and the printer ceased working. I could ping it and it would connect to the network but the printer just would not print. I assume there must be some port or protocol that Epson use that the Devolo WiFi extender blocks. Connecting the printer to the Devolo using an Ethernet cable sorted the issue.
So try ethernet in short?
However one day I moved the printer to a new location where I was using a Devolo WiFi extender and the printer ceased working. I could ping it and it would connect to the network but the printer just would not print. I assume there must be some port or protocol that Epson use that the Devolo WiFi extender blocks. Connecting the printer to the Devolo using an Ethernet cable sorted the issue.
So try ethernet in short?
Hmm. I've tried everything. My printer (Epson) has a static IP, and is connected via cable to the same switch in my study as my laptops.
Printing from my personal machines - a MacBook Pro and MacBook Air - works fine every time. Printing from my Mrs Magnums iMac that's in her study in a different part of the house works fine.
Then I connect my work-issued Windows 10 Laptop, which immediately reports that the printer is off line. No, the printer is not bl**dy off line, as proved when I e-mail the document I want to print to myself, and print it from one of the Macs. I can sometimes persuade the work PC to find the printer if I play with the settings for long enough, but it's quicker and easier to just send the doc to my Mac and print from there.
Printing from my personal machines - a MacBook Pro and MacBook Air - works fine every time. Printing from my Mrs Magnums iMac that's in her study in a different part of the house works fine.
Then I connect my work-issued Windows 10 Laptop, which immediately reports that the printer is off line. No, the printer is not bl**dy off line, as proved when I e-mail the document I want to print to myself, and print it from one of the Macs. I can sometimes persuade the work PC to find the printer if I play with the settings for long enough, but it's quicker and easier to just send the doc to my Mac and print from there.
I've been having similar problems with an officejet pro wired to my network.
It used to be connected wirelessly and I didn't have problems at all, it was rock solid.
It seems that in a firmware update in the last year or so, HP have implemented a heavy "sleep mode" which cant be disabled. All you can do is maximise the sleep timer to 2 hours.
It's supposed to "wake up" on receipt of any network connection but mine hasn't been doing so reliably. Looking at the network the switch port flips to 10Mbps when the printer is sleeping. I've therefore had to force the printer NIC and switch port to 100/full which grates as fast Ethernet auto-negotiation compatibility issues are very 1990's. However this does seem to have stabilised things. I have always used a DHCP reservation so it's IP address is assigned but static.
I don't want to save a few watt hours of electricity - I want the damn thing to just work.
It used to be connected wirelessly and I didn't have problems at all, it was rock solid.
It seems that in a firmware update in the last year or so, HP have implemented a heavy "sleep mode" which cant be disabled. All you can do is maximise the sleep timer to 2 hours.
It's supposed to "wake up" on receipt of any network connection but mine hasn't been doing so reliably. Looking at the network the switch port flips to 10Mbps when the printer is sleeping. I've therefore had to force the printer NIC and switch port to 100/full which grates as fast Ethernet auto-negotiation compatibility issues are very 1990's. However this does seem to have stabilised things. I have always used a DHCP reservation so it's IP address is assigned but static.
I don't want to save a few watt hours of electricity - I want the damn thing to just work.
Magnum 475 said:
Hmm. I've tried everything. My printer (Epson) has a static IP, and is connected via cable to the same switch in my study as my laptops.
Printing from my personal machines - a MacBook Pro and MacBook Air - works fine every time. Printing from my Mrs Magnums iMac that's in her study in a different part of the house works fine.
Then I connect my work-issued Windows 10 Laptop, which immediately reports that the printer is off line. No, the printer is not bl**dy off line, as proved when I e-mail the document I want to print to myself, and print it from one of the Macs. I can sometimes persuade the work PC to find the printer if I play with the settings for long enough, but it's quicker and easier to just send the doc to my Mac and print from there.
You're not on a VPN with work are you? If so your printer is essentially on a different network, so your only option will be a USB cable to the printer.Printing from my personal machines - a MacBook Pro and MacBook Air - works fine every time. Printing from my Mrs Magnums iMac that's in her study in a different part of the house works fine.
Then I connect my work-issued Windows 10 Laptop, which immediately reports that the printer is off line. No, the printer is not bl**dy off line, as proved when I e-mail the document I want to print to myself, and print it from one of the Macs. I can sometimes persuade the work PC to find the printer if I play with the settings for long enough, but it's quicker and easier to just send the doc to my Mac and print from there.
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