How to Fix a Canon Printer Not Responding Error

Canon has been a leading manufacturer of printing and other office equipment for decades. For over half a century, the company has focused on image quality, including film and digital cameras, lenses, and printing technology. Their family of printers includes a broad array of models, capacity, and innovative features that provide consumers, small businesses, and global enterprises with quality and reliable printing results.

Canon’s printer offerings include something for every home and business need:

• Laser and inkjet single function printers
• Inkjet and laser multifunction printers
• Black and white and color laser printers
• Home and small office printers of nearly every speed and service level
• Compact and mobile printer
• Large format scanners

With literally dozens or even hundreds of models to select from, there is a Canon printer to match any printing requirements – home, small businesses, print shops, or large enterprises. Compatibility is also a focus for Canon, providing devices that are suitable for Windows and Mac operating systems or corporate networks.

Canon’s printers are designed not only to be highly functional and to produce high-quality images, but also to be easy to install and operate. But there can be times when your computer or the printer just may not be getting along and working seamlessly. In fact, you may be greeted with the message that your Canon printer is not responding. What actions can you take to get your printer on speaking terms with your computer again?

When Your Canon Printer is Not Responding

Always check the obvious first:

• Is the printer turned on and in a ready status?
• If using a cable connection, is it securely connected?
• When using a USB connection, make sure your USB port is operable – try another USB port if available
• If wireless, is the router or access point working properly?

There are two common times when you may experience the printer not responding scenario:

When You First Install a New Canon Printer

There could be multiple reasons for this:

Connectivity – with many printers utilizing wireless technology today, this could be a setup issue with the network router, access points, or the printer configuration itself.

To attempt resolutions for wireless connections, you can take the following steps on the printer (first obtain the router or access point password, if applicable):

• Push the Setup button, choose Wireless LAN Setup, and select OK
• Select Easy Setup, and confirm with OK
• Choose Access Point and enter the password when prompted, then OK
• Load the Canon setup media in your PC and run the program to install the Canon software on your system, using the Easy Install The install process should now locate your printer on the network. Then complete the installation by clicking Next.

We also have guides on fixing wireless networking issues.

This is a fairly simple one-time process. If your printer is working properly, and the wireless router or access point are communicating, you should be able to successfully run a test print job when complete.

If your printer installation includes wired connections, ensure the cable is compatible with both the computer port and printer, and is securely connected. Networked printers typically include Ethernet cabling, which should be of high quality. Don’t shortcut installations with sub-standard cables that might cause problems or impact performance.

Software – your operating system or drivers may be outdated or missing. Even if you used the included setup media that came with your printer, there may be important updates that have been made since that media was created. Refer to the following steps for getting your system updated and installing the latest drivers.

Intermittent Issues with Canon Printer Not Responding

Setting up printers to print with wireless connectivity is the norm today. This simplifies setup and eliminates troublesome cabling and interface issues, but also introduces possible occurrences of the “Canon Printer Not Responding” error.

You can take several steps to resolve this problem:

• Restart your computer – this often will recover any lost connections with wireless devices
• Power off and on the printer, and even the access point or wireless router your printer connects to
• Check your printer configuration – you may not be assigned to the correct port for the printer

Key “dev” in the Windows search box, and select Devices and Printers to utilize the device manager:

Double-click your Canon printer device, then click on Printer, and select Properties

From this view, you can access multiple tabs to verify your Canon printer configuration:

General – will show the location of the printer, such as your IP address.

Port – Details of your IP address, including type of port, with the chance to update that information as needed. Some printers require specific port assignments to function properly.

Once you’ve verified that all settings and configurations for your printer are correct, if you’re still getting the Canon Printer Not Responding error, it’s time to check your system for current software status.

Updating Your System and Drivers

Windows Update is Microsoft’s “official” utility for keeping your Windows computer up-to-date with their latest enhancements, new features, and bug fixes. As a Windows user, you should run this software periodically to ensure the integrity and security of your system. Accessing Windows Update is a straightforward process, and could help resolve problems such as when your Canon printer doesn’t respond.

Click the Start button and select Settings, then choose Update and Security:

When Windows Update starts, simply click the Check for Updates button

Windows Update will check for any updates that apply to your system, and allow you to download and install them. Just follow the prompts, and let Windows Update do the rest. It’s a good practice to restart your system after any updates to make sure the changes take effect.

Fortunately, Microsoft has made this a relatively simple process. Still, there are many computer users who are not that comfortable performing such updates to their operating system. In addition, Windows Update may not have every update from each vendor whose devices you have on your computer, including your Canon printer.

If you run through that process and still experience connection problems with your Canon printer, your next course of action is to connect to Canon’s website, go to their support page, and search for the latest driver for your exact printer model and version of Windows. You can then download the driver from Canon’s site and save the driver for installation. Be sure to note the file name and the folder where you save it.

Updating Your Canon Printer Driver

After finding the driver on Canon’s website and downloading it, start the Device Manager by typing “device” in the Windows search box and picking the Device Manager again. Right-click on your Canon printer, then select the Advanced tab and click the New Driver button.

Windows will prompt you for the location of the Canon driver file you downloaded from the website. Just select the folder and file where you saved it.

Windows will install the downloaded driver for your printer, and your printer will be ready to use with the updated software.

Make it Easy On Yourself

If all those processes sound too complicated, or if you’re just not comfortable dealing with system updates and driver installations, there is a much simpler, faster, and secure way to get the job done.

Driver Support maintains a database containing millions of drivers for nearly every imaginable device on your system. With a simple download and installation of our sophisticated software, your system can be updated quickly and easily with any outdated or missing drivers. This not only gets your system current for your Canon printer, but also will keep all your system drivers up-to-date for continuous peak performance.

Drivers are essentially small programs that interact with your operating system to control all your devices. As with any computer file, there are instances when a driver file can be damaged or corrupted. This can cause devices to produce unpredictable results, or they may stop working entirely. Analyzing your system’s drivers for problems periodically with Driver Support can resolve driver issues – sometimes even before they become problems.

Give DriverSupport | ONE a try today! to save time and frustration in managing all your computer’s drivers to take advantage of new features and solve any compatibility issues. Contact the driver professionals at Drive Support today.