Common Scanner Problems

Many of the offices in business establishments today have scanners. Some are using flatbed scanners, and some use those that are bundled with a printer (2 in 1) or both printer and photocopier (3 in 1). Scanners are essential in every office because it helps a lot in documentation. We can create digital copies of our contracts, memorandum of agreements, and other critical documents needed in a business’ day-to-day operations. For home users, scanners are used to convert our old photos into digital ones so that we can upload them to our favorite social networking websites. Problems are not uncommon to using scanners whether we are business users, or just home users. These problems hinder business operations especially when there is a deadline to beat. For home users, it is very frustrating when we encounter scanner problems at the time we needed to upload old photos for someone we love who resides from another country. The good thing is, scanner problems have solutions. Let’s try to enumerate the common scanner problems first before we introduce troubleshooting tips for them.

1. Always Busy Status. When you try to scan something, your computer tells you that your scanner is busy. This goes on forever and you end up not having to scan anything at all.

2. Your computer freezes when you use your scanner. Sometimes, your computer just stops working each time you try to access the program for your scanner.

3. Your computer restarts when you use your scanner. Other times, your computer suddenly restarts without any indication, each and every time you use your scanner.

4. Your computer shows a blue screen when you use your scanner. Your screen goes blank with a blue background with some codes and text that you cannot even understand.

5. Your scanner is not detected at all. You don’t see any scanner at all. You try to inspect your control panel to your device manager to see if a device is present, but it doesn’t show. Sometimes, a device is shown but you cannot use it.

One of the basic troubleshooting techniques is to check for the cable connections. Some scanners use the old serial port. You need to check if there were no missing pins, or the wire is not cut. The same can be done with scanners that use the USB port.

Another troubleshooting technique which is very helpful and can solve all the problems mentioned above is using the driver update software. It automatically scans for all the defective device drivers on your computer, and finds the appropriate updates so that they can be installed on your computer.

If both techniques fail, then there must be a problem with the hardware itself. Consult your manufacturer if all else fails.