I have been asked to fix various printer connectivity problems that seem to have the same characteristics:
- WiFi Printer connected to network/router by wireless only
- Windows PC trying to access printer seems to work ok initially then loses connection after some time has passed.
Apple computers do not seem to be affected and switching devices on/off can temporarily resolve the issue. I have seen this affect HP and Epson printers and running an ethernet connection from the router to the printer – if the printer has a network socket – seems to fix the problem.
After following the manufacturers troubleshooting advice many times I now believe this is connected with the intelligent network scanners that the manufacturers install with the device drivers to allow for changes of IP address. If you look at the the Port tab under the printer properties you will see that a special entry (for HP it’s called: <SerialNo> HP network re-discovery port monitor) has been created. If you find the IP address of the printer and add or select an existing port entry using this IP address rather than the ‘special’ entry the problem may be solved.
This would require updating if the IP address of the printer gets updated by network changes – so perhaps a fixed IP address would be more reliable.