VueScan can't find my scanner. What should I do?

Here are solutions for a few common problems people have connecting to their scanner.

Make sure your scanner is plugged in and turned on before you start VueScan. If you’re using a USB Scanner, try using a different USB cable or port. Old USB cables can often get crimped or otherwise go bad.

If you’re using a WiFi scanner, check the scanner settings on the front panel of the scanner to see if there’s an option for enabling ‘mDNS’ (it might be called ‘Bonjour’). This is how VueScan detects scanners on the network on Windows, macOS and Linux. You might also need to enable AirPrint on the front panel of the scanner. The computer and scanner also need to be on the same subnet.

Make sure your firewall and router aren’t blocking mDNS responses (UDP port 5353) and make sure you aren’t using a Virtual Private Network (VPN) because this will interfere with finding scanners on the network.

If VueScan still can’t find your scanner, look up the USB Vendor ID and USB Product ID in the supported scanners list, then set “Prefs | Network scanners” to “Manual” and put this info and the IP address into the fields below this. The USB Vendor ID and USB Product ID tell VueScan what kind of scanner is connected at this IP address.

If you’re unable to connect to your scanner, send us a Problem Report and we’ll see if we can help fix the problem.