Compuers won't recognize printer

C

CaptainTrips

New Member
Hello,

I'm trying to fix an issue for a friend. She just bought a Dell Inspiron 660 for her business. I don't have any more specs on the desktop, but it is most likely a vanilla Inspiron 660 (Link) She also has a Brother all-in-one printer (MFC8480DN).

For some reason, the PC won't recognize the printer. It doesn't even make the "device inserted" sound when you plug in a USB device. I've tried the printer in both USB 2.0 and 3.0 ports with no luck, in fact I've tried it on all the usb ports on the PC, front included. I know all these ports are working because I tested each one with the mouse and a thumb drive. Her husband tried it and claims it worked the first time he tried it on his laptop, but now it does the same thing. No recognition at all. I've even tried swapping out the printer cable with no luck.

I went into the printer settings and fiddled with them, and even reset it to factory default. Nothing helped.

So I decided to try hooking it up via ethernet to their network, but it doesn't acknowledge the router, the router doesn't detect a device, it doesn't ask for an IP, nothing.

I'm stumped. Does anyone else have an idea?
 
Does the printer work with any other computers? If not, then the printer is bad.
 
Also, the printer must be on in order for the computer to recognize that its plugged in.
 
The printer did work with another computer at one point while it did not work with the Dell. Now it doesn't work with either. I plan on bringing my laptop over to it to try a 3rd computer.

The printer was on in all cases while it was tested.
 
Disconnect the power to the printer entirely and hold down the power button for 10 secs.

Reconnect the power and start the printer.

On the computer, go to the Restore Computer option and restore the computer to a time before you connected the printer. Follow the prompts and restart etc...

With the internet connected, connect the computer to the printer once the restore has finished. Install.
 
Last edited:
Okedokey said:
Disconnect the power to the printer entirely and hold down the power button for 10 secs.

Reconnect the power and start the printer.

On the computer, go to the Restore Computer option and restore the computer to a time before you connected the printer. Follow the prompts and restart etc...

With the internet connected, connect the computer to the printer once the restore has finished. Install.
Click to expand...

I did try power cycling it. The printer's power switch is a toggle switch on the side. One of the first things I did was turn it off, wait a bit, and turn it on. Later on I turned it off, unplugged it, waited a bit, and replugged it in. No luck.

I'm not sure using a restore point will work since the printer doesn't work with any PC at this point, but I can give it a try anyway. It's a brand new PC, so there isn't much to revert to.

Thanks for the ideas.
 
You said it worked at one point. Either that or uninstall the complete USB hub tree in Device manager and let it reinstall. It should then detect the printer.
 
Okedokey said:
You said it worked at one point. Either that or uninstall the complete USB hub tree in Device manager and let it reinstall. It should then detect the printer.
Click to expand...

This sounds like a good idea, but also scares me. Will the USB hub tree automatically reinstall itself on reboot? I think it'd be hard to navigate there without a keyboard and mouse.
 
CaptainTrips said:
This sounds like a good idea, but also scares me. Will the USB hub tree automatically reinstall itself on reboot? I think it'd be hard to navigate there without a keyboard and mouse.
Click to expand...

It will resinstall everything almost instantly, so you shouldn't have a problem.
 
You must log in or register to reply here.
Back
Top