Troubleshoot your printer

Many times you may have observed while printing a document that an error pops out with a message that your printer is offline. Normally, the troubleshooting includes turning your printer off and on again but sometimes the scenario is different.

Fix the printer offline error.

Before troubleshooting the issue let us understand why this happens even though your printer is well connected with the computer. There are many reasons why operating system may not detect that the printer is online. Few of them are mentioned below.

  • The first and the foremost step: Reboot your operating system for both Printer and Computer. 90% of the time this occurs due to the operating systems and can be resolved by just restarting your device.
  • In the event that your printer is still showing offline, it is time to install the software that came along with your printer. Check for the drivers online or read the manual to install the latest driver and software for your printer. This pretty much applies to all printer manufacturers. If you have a Dell printer, go to the Dell drivers and downloads page, search for your printer and then download the printer application.
  • Connecting through Ethernet: An Ethernet connection is like WI-FI where you are essentially bringing the printer online and connecting it. All you need to do is connect a physical cable between your printer and the internet router. Also check if firewall has not disabled the authorization of printer.
  • Check for updates: In case your printer is not a brand new or purchased in recent years, we recommend you to update the software with the latest available on the brands official web page.
  • Check if device is added in the system: Access your settings, and click Devices. Select Printers and Scanners and choose Add Device. You can install the printer to your device if the printer is not present in the provided list.

This last step if everything else fails is to check for hardware related issue. Change the cable you use to associate the printer to your PC. In the event that the cable is torn, broken or has been severely damaged this might be a probable cause of the issue.

 In case your printer has both Wi-Fi and USB options try switching the connections to rule out the possibility of any hardware issue.

In case everything else fails, your printer might be at fault and needs a fix or replacement. You need to consult the customer care centre for such issue.

Source: https://www.free-technical-support.com/printer-is-offline