Tip & How-To about Office Equipment & Supplies

General Printer Troubleshooting

Printer does not have power indicator
First, make sure that the printer is on. When a printer is on it should have some light (usually green) indicating it's receiving power and is on.
If you do not have any indicator light make sure the printer is connected to a working power outlet by verifying each end of the power cable. Next, press the printer power button.
If after following the above steps your printer still cannot get a power status indicator it's likely you're encountering a serious printer issue and we suggest contacting the printer manufacturer for additional steps and instructions on repair or replacement.

Cables not connected properly
Your printer should have two cables connected to it. The power cable and the data cable, the power cable should have already been verified as being connected if your printer has a power indicator light as mentioned above. Make sure the data cable (parallel cable or USB cable) is also connected from the printer to the computer.

Printer error (orange or blinking light)
After your printer has completed its initial startup you should have a solid green light. If the light indicator is blinking or orange often this is an indication of a printer error. For example, this could indicate a paper jam, issue with the ink or toner cartridge, or other serious error.
Because there is no standard to what a blinking light or orange light means if you're getting either of these we suggest referring to the printer documentation for troubleshooting steps or methods of determining what the status indicator is reporting.

No paper or paper jam
Without paper your printer will not be able to print. Make sure you have paper in the paper loaded into the printer paper cartridge or tray. Next, verify that no printer paper is jammed or partially fed into the printer. If you have one or more pieces of paper stuck in the printer these will need to be manually removed before the printer will print again.

Inkjet printer ink related issues
Often when you're encountering an ink related issue you're printer status indicator light (mentioned above) should be flashing. If this is not occurring you may want to skip to the next section. However, if you've recently inserted a new ink cartridge you may want to try the below suggestions.

* Replacing ink cartridges and printer not working.

Printer self tests
Most printers have a way of printing a test page. This page allows you to determine if the printer is physically working or not. This test is usually accomplished by holding down a series of keys. If you are not sure if your printer has this feature or how to perform it refer to your manual or visit your printer manufacturers web site.
In addition to testing the printer using the printer self-test Microsoft Windows users can also perform a software self-test to determine if their computer is able to see the printer and it's able to print. Follow the below steps to perform this test.
Microsoft Windows 98, 2000, ME, XP, 2003, and Vista users

1. Click Start, Settings, and open Control Panel.
2. Double-click the Printers or Printers and Fax icon.
3. Right-click on the Printer you wish to test and click Properties. If you do not see your printer listed your printer is not installed.
4. In the Printers Properties window click the Print Test Page button.
5. If the printer is able to print a test page, you're printer is installed and setup properly. However, if you're unable to print in other programs it's possible that the program you're attempting to print from has issues.

Older versions of Windows with older printers
If you are running an older printer and MS-DOS, Windows 3.x, Windows 95, Windows 98, or Windows NT, you can also attempt the below software test.

Get to a MS-DOS prompt or Windows command line
Get to the root directory - Type: cd\
Reroute dir to printer - Type: dir > lpt1

The above should take the directory listing and print to the printer. If this does not print, refer to your operating system troubleshooting section. Extra Note: This will not paper feed, therefore press your FF or PP, or manually eject the paper.

Printer drivers
If your printer does not have any flashing lights and is connected properly it's possible you may be encountering a driver related issue. We suggest visiting our printer driver listing, which links to all major printer manufacturer driver pages and downloading the latest printer drivers for your printer.

Parallel (LPT) printers
If the printer you're connecting to the computer is an LPT (parallel port) printer we also suggest verifying the below suggestions if your printer is not working.
Parallel port in CMOS
1. Enter the computers CMOS setup.
2. Once in CMOS verify that your parallel port is enabled or installed.
3. Next, verify the printer or parallel port mode. This option will often have several different modes. If your parallel port is set to ECP mode, we suggest trying a different mode.

Other parallel device
If you have a parallel printer with other parallel devices such as a parallel scanner or zip drive, temporarily disconnect these devices to verify they are not causing your issue.

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0helpful
1answer

epson cx3600 says not to press ink button unless green on button is on and not flashing but as soon as i turn on it starts to flash
The flashing green light on your Epson Stylus CX3600 printer is indicating an error with the ink system. The error message you mentioned, "not to press the ink button unless the green light is on and not flashing", is likely referring to the ink button that is located on the side of the printer and is used to reset the ink levels.
To resolve the issue with the flashing green light, try the following steps:
  1. Turn off the printer: Turn off the printer and disconnect it from the power source.
  2. Clean the ink cartridges: Remove the ink cartridges from the printer and clean the contacts with a soft, damp cloth. Make sure not to touch the ink nozzles or the copper contacts.
  3. Check for clogs: If the problem persists, check the ink cartridges for clogs and clean the print head.
  4. Reinstall the ink cartridges: Reinstall the ink cartridges into the printer, making sure that they are properly seated.
  5. Turn on the printer: Connect the printer to the power source and turn it on.
  6. Check the green light: Observe the green light and make sure it is no longer flashing
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Feb 07, 2023 • Epson Office Equipment & Supplies
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1answer

error occurred 6000
It's an ink level indication.
If you are using re-filled ink cartridges, try this.
To solve the ink level error in canon Pixma iP1800/Canon Pixma iP1880. This problem usually appear after refilled the cartridge on the canon printer and ink level indicator showing the ink cartridge is empty although you have filled a cc Ink into the cartridge. And if the problem occur you cannot using your printer to print. The solution you must reset ink level on the printer if you want your computer work again.

If you have a problem like that you ca follow this tutorial to solve your printer problem, here how:
Turn of the printer and Disconnect the power cable to the printer.
Press power button on the printer. While pressing the button connect the power cable to the power source (the power indicator will light in green)
While still holding power button press resume button twice - orange blink and return to green.
Release the power button, then the PC will recognize new cartridge installed (If the power indicator on the printer steady in green you continue to Steps 5)
Run the IPtools software, please await after this software detect your printer correctly or you can set the printer model on "Change Model" section.

Click "reset black and reset color" button to reset the ink level and Click "reset main and reset platen" to reset waste ink counter. After clicked the button you will see ink level of the cartridge on in the IPTol info has 100% and WP and WM has set to 0. Click Exit on IPTool
Turn off the printer and turn on again.

On the reset procedure above usually the problem found on steps 1-4 to make the printer steady light in green. On my experiment if steps 1-4 does not work on your printer, you can use manual reset method for canon iP1700 before continue to steps 5.
Good luck


If this helps you resolve your problem, please
consider giving a good rating and a quick thanks
or good job.It will help me as well Thank you.
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Oct 26, 2010 • Canon PIXMA iP1800 InkJet Photo Printer
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1answer

Canon i470D Printer will not work. Yellow light
1. Turn off the printer ( "Power" button).

2. Hold the button "Resume", include printer (click "Power").

3. Hold the "Power" button, release the button "Resume" (power indicator / preparedness must turns green)

4. Not releasing the "Power" button, double click "Resume" and release both buttons
-- each time you click "Resume" power indicator / willingness to change color (one-click - yellow, the second hitting - green). U printers with more than one indicator - indication switches (power indicator / preparedness - green indicator error - yellow)
-- after the buttons are released, power indicator / preparedness will be for some time to blink green (Stamford time depends on the printer model), and then the green light permanently
-- If after these actions instead of constantly burning green printer continues to display error, or you are mistaken in paragraphs 1-4 (turn off the printer and repeat with paragraph 1), or if additional printer error that must be corrected, or it will not go down to a service mode.

5. Four times click "Resume" (each time you click "Resume" power indicator / willingness to change color, and the printers with more than one indicator - indication switches: the willingness / error).

6. Once you click "Power" to confirm the selected action (reset counter absorber). To disable the printer "Power" button to click again.
For some printers (for example, iP2000) to switch off clicking "Power" again, that is three in a row.
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May 08, 2010 • Canon i 470D InkJet Printer
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1answer

I put a new black printer cartridge in and now it doesn't power up at all. I replaced the printer cartridge with the old printer cartridge and it still isn't powering up. I replaced the power cord, nothing. The green light on the power box is lit. Suggestions?
With the green light lit on the power box or power supply of the printer, that indicates that there is power flowing. But just to make sure it's getting enough to power the printer on, bypass any power strips or extensions, if you're using one, and plug the power cord straight to a known working power outlet. Make sure the power box or the power supply is inserted all the way in the slot and in the correct position behind the printer. Press the power button if needed. Hope this helps. If it's still not powering on, I suggest you contact Lexmark Technical Support for further assistance.
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May 04, 2010 • Lexmark X4690 Wireless InkJet Printer
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1answer

printer is not responding
This is the error light page from the S520. Not sure about this, but probably the same on the S530. 8 Blinks means replace the ink absorber and reset the counter. I think the ink absorber can be gotten at from the bottom, BUT NOT SURE. Try this at your own risk!

7.1 Service Mode Operation
 1) With the printer turned off, hold down the RESUME button and press the POWER
 button (the green indicator lights and the desired service function can be selected).
2) While holding down the POWER button, let go of the RESUME button before pressing
the RESUME button again twice in succession. Then let go of both RESUME and
POWER buttons.
(At each press of the RESUME button, the indicator toggles between orange and
green.)
3) During printer initialization, the green indicator blinks. When the green indicator
stops blinking and remains on, press the RESUME button the specified number of
times to execute the desired service function, as listed below.
(At each press of the RESUME button, the indicator toggles between orange and
green.)
Press Indicator Function
0 times Green Power off (Even if there is no print head mounted, the
carriage will return to the home position and lock.)
1 time Orange Service/factory test printout (Including ink sensor check)
2 times Green EEPROM information printout
3 times Orange EEPROM initialization
4 times Green Clears the waste-ink counter (S750/S520)
Waste-ink counter settings (S900/820) (See page 2-34)
5 times Orange Destination (model) setting
After reaching this service function, press the RESUME
 button the number of times specified below to set the
destination.
Setting
0 times BJ F900 BJ F890
1 times S900 S820 BJ F700 BJ F500
2 times BJ F890PD S750 S520
3 times S820D
Note: pressing more than 3 times has no effect.
6 times Returns to the function select stage (S750/520)
6~9 times Not used for servicing (S900/820)
More than Green Returns to the function select stage (S900/820)
10 times
4) After selecting a service function, press the POWER button. The green indicator
lights and the service function will be executed. (After each function is executed, the
printer returns to the service function select stage.)

READ THIS CAREFULLY !
Larry
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Nov 30, 2008 • Canon S 530D InkJet Printer
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