EPSON Scan Cannot communicate with the scanner (5 Easy Fix) -

n you place a paper on the feeder or flatbed of the EPSON scanner printer, and when you open the scan utility from the desktop and click on the SCAN button. You encounter with an error on the screen “EPSON Scan Cannot communicate with the scanner”.

Many Epson users find it difficult to fix the issue on their own, as the issue itself is confusing, though the Epson scanner does not show any error blinking LED lights on the panel and USB cable is properly plugged in, and also scanning software is updated.

Still, how can this issue occur on your computer laptop?

The quick answer to your query is ‘ update the scan drivers, check the USB cables, if your scanner is in network check the LAN cable, or restart your Epson scanner as well as restart your computer.

To perform the quick fix check the below steps to solve the error of Epson scan not scanning.

Methods

Why EPSON Cannot communicate with the scanner error?

Epson scanners are the most popular scanners for scanning documents, being used in our day-to-day life in the industry as well as at home for scanning Images or Text Documents.

Epson scanners generally come in two variations which are Standalone Scanners and Printers.

There are several reasons for the issue, but the most common reason could be Loose USB or network cable connections, no access to privilege level for scanning, scanning services stopped or outdated Epson scanner driver.

How to Fix EPSON Scan Cannot communicate with the scanner error?

We have figured out the best 5 issue tackling solutions that may help you in resolving the error of the Epson scan.

You may have to try all the methods until you get rid of this issue. These are proven tested methods, many of the Epson users have followed the methods and found satisfaction with the issue.

So let’s get started with the solution for the scanning issue.

Solution 1: Assign Administrative Privileges to Run the Epson Scan Software

The first step you need to perform on your computer is to run the Epson scan application with administrative privileges.

If you run the application with User’s rights, then it won’t run, as a certain application requires you to grant administrative privileges to clear out the securities and other obstructions.

So by assigning the privileges, the Epson scanner can perform the scanning activity without any trouble.

How to assign the rights? Let’s check it below step by step.

Right-click on the scan icon that is visible on the desktop and selects the Properties option.
An Epson Scan Properties small window will pop up and select the compatibility mode tab.
In the privilege level option check ‘Run this program as an administrator.
Press Apply and Ok to save changes and exit.

Now power off your scanner and start the Epson scanner after a few minutes and check the scanning.

Solution 2: Restarting the Shell Hardware Detection Service

The shell hardware detection is a service in the Windows operating system that detects the externally attached devices like Epson printer, scanners, removable USB drives etc. this service provides notifications for AutoPlay hardware events. If the service stops, the externally attached Hardware AutoPlay functionality does not work and also shell performance is affected.

If there is a service issue, then it might not detect the Epson scanner. We might require restarting the service from the windows services app.

Let’s check below how to restart the service step by step.

Open the run dialogue box, press Windows + R key and typing ‘Services.msc’.

EPSON Scan Cannot communicate with the scanner

A services window will pop up, then search for services ‘Shell Hardware Detection service.
Then right-click on it and select the properties option.

In general, the tab makes the startup type ‘Automatic’, then click on apply and ok.

Then again right click on the shell hardware detection and select the ‘Restart’ option.
Now unplug and plugin the Epson scanner cable and restart the scanner and check for the issue.

Solution 3: Resetting Windows Image Acquisition (WIA) Services

Another service which may be required is to restart, as this service is related to capturing images when you scan any documents on your computer.

If your Epson scanner is at fault then resetting the windows Image Acquisition service may fix the issue of scanning on your PC.

Open the run dialogue box, press Windows + R key and typing ‘Services.msc’.

A services window will pop up, then search for the ‘windows Image Acquisition’ service.
Then right-click on it and select the properties option.
In general, the tab makes the startup type ‘Automatic’, then click on apply and ok.

Then again right click on the windows Image Acquisition and select the ‘Restart’ option.
Now unplug and plug in the scanner cable and restart the scanner and check for the issue.

Solution 4: Download and Update Scanner Drivers

If all the above solutions doesn’t contribute to your issue then try to update the Epson scanner driver with the latest version.

Visit the official EPSON driver website and download the exact Epson scanner driver that match your Epson scanner model number.

Note: we have observed that sometimes the latest version drivers doesn’t support the scanner then try and see to downgrade the drivers.

Now let’s see how to upgrade the Epson scanner driver step by step.

Open the run dialog box by pressing Windows + R key to open the device manager by typing ‘devmgmt.msc’ in command prompt.
Navigate through all the hardware and expand the sub-menu “Imaging devices”, right-click on your scanner hardware and select “Update driver Software
And select (Browse my computer for driver software) and proceed.
Select the path where you have kept the downloaded Epson scan drivers.
Now restart the computer and check for the EPSON Scan Cannot communicate with the scanner issue has been resolved or not.

Solution 5: Check the Wireless Epson Scan Settings

Mostly an Epson scanner designed with both USB as well as wireless network connectivity.

So sometimes there may be issues in wireless connection and as the scanners fail to add the IP address automatically within the application.

So you can add the correct IP address manually in the Epson scan application and fix the issue permanently.

To add the IP address we need to fetch it with the help of CMD and manually add in the Epson scan software.

Open the Epson scan setting window from the start menu by typing the Epson scan settings in the windows logo start search bar.
Once the Epson Scan settings window gets open then click the Add tab under the Network Scanner Address.
Now an Add window will pop up to insert the correct IP address, before that you need to open the CMD prompt tool to fetch the correct address.
Now open the command prompt from the start menu, you need to type “CMD” and hit enter.
In the command prompt type IPCONFIG and hit enter.
It will show the IP address of the Epson scanner attached to your computer.
Now manually add the IP address in the scanner application which was previously opened in the ‘Add’ window.
Enter the address of the scanner and press ok.
Now the same IP will be shown in the Network Scanner Address and press ok.
Later you can run a test by clicking on the Test button and see if the connection is successful.