Canon Printer Won’t Scan: Quick And Smart Fixes

Issues with printers are not uncommon. At times, users of Canon printers find that their Canon printer won’t scan and the situation is frustrating, to say the least. 

Generally, this error occurs if you fail to establish a connection between your computer and the printer, due to which, the Canon printer might have a problem in scanning. 

An outdated version of the scanner driver can also cause this error. Apart from that, an older version of the Operating system and any third-party security software can also cause this issue. 

So, if you are also struggling with this error, then read this article carefully. After the thorough study of this article, you will get to learn some useful methods which can help you eliminate this particular issue on your printer.

Useful Methods to Fix Canon Printer Scanning Issue 

If you are currently encountering this issue on your Canon printer, then follow the quick methods mentioned below to solve it. 

Try these methods one-by-one and get back the scanner in its normal condition. 

Method 1 – Check the Connection 

When you use the scanner, make sure it is connected properly. If not, then you might fail to scan anything. So, first, you need to check whether it is connected perfectly or not. 

If you are using a USB scanner, then check whether the USB cable and ports are working correctly or not. You’ll do good, if you disconnect all the devices and their peripherals and reconnect them.

If you are using the Network scanner, then make sure your PC has a good internet connection and it attaches properly to the scanner. 

If you are using the WiFi connection and get this problem, then disconnect it and again connect it. Alternatively, you can also use the Ethernet cable to make the connections. 

Method 2 – Turn On Windows Image Acquisition Service and Associated Services

WIA (Windows Image Acquisition) service is a Microsoft driver model. It allows graphics software to interact with imaging applications like cameras and scanners. 

If this service is turned off, then the Canon printer scanner might not work properly. So, you should turn on this service. Follow the steps given below:

1. From the keyboard, hold the Windows button and press the R key to launch the Run box. Type services.msc and then click on the OK button or hit the Enter key.
2. From the Services window, scroll down the page and locate Windows Image Acquisition (WIA), double click on it.
3. In the Properties window, go to the Startup type and set it to Automatic from the drop-down menu list.

If the service status is not running, then click on the Start button to start the service. After that, click on the Apply button followed by OK to save the changes.

Method 3 – Update the Scanner Driver

If the scanner driver is missing or outdated, then the scanner might not work properly. So, you should update the scanner driver. 

To update the driver, to eliminate this issue from the system, the following steps will help you:

1. Press Win + X keys together to launch the WinX Menu list and then select Device Manager from that list.
2. From the Device Manager window, right click on the Canon Scanner driver on the left panel. Then click on the Update Software Driver button and follow the instructions appearing on screen to complete the update process. 
3. Once the update process is complete, reboot your computer and then try a scan to check if the issue still arises or not. 

Method 4 – Run the Hardware and Devices Troubleshooter

Running the Hardware and Devices troubleshooter should solve the scanning issue on your Canon printer. Follow the directions instructed below:

1. Press the Windows key and at the same time press the I button to launch the Settings window.
2. From the Settings window, go to the Update and Security section and then select the Troubleshoot tab on the left.
3. Scroll down the page and find the Hardware and Devices section, select it. Now you will find the Run the Troubleshooter button, click on it to begin the troubleshooting process.

Now, Windows will scan for any problem and once you press the Apply Fix button, the issue will get fixed automatically. Once the troubleshooter completes its work, restart your PC and then try to scan. 

Method 5 – Disable Windows Firewall

Sometimes, Windows Firewall can also prevent the Canon printer from the scanning. So, you should turn it off on the system. To disable it, follow these steps:

1. Open the Control Panel application.
2. When the Control Panel window opens, select the Windows Firewall section. 
3. From the Windows Firewall window, navigate to the left side and select the Turn Windows Firewall On and Off button.
4. On the right, click on the Turn Off Windows Firewall option from the Public Network Settings and Private Network Settings box.

Once it is done, click on the OK button to save the changes. After that, reboot the system and then check if the scanner works properly without any hassle. 

Method 6 – Uninstall Third-Party Software

If any security software is installed on your computer then you might fail to scan on the Canon printer. So, you should remove the security software from the system. Go through these steps:

1. Launch the Settings application by pressing the Win + I keys together.
2. Select the Apps section from the Settings window. After that, go to the Apps and Features tab on the left.
3. From the Apps and Features window, find the Security software, select it and then click on the Uninstall button to remove it.

Now you will see the removal process has begun. After removing this software, check if the problem is still there or not. 

Method 7 – Disable Automatic Management 

If the automatic management feature is enabled, then you can face the Canon scanner problem on your computer. In such cases, disabling the automatic management feature can solve the Canon printer scanning problem. To turn it off this feature, follow these instructions:

1. Go to the Settings window.
2. When you are in the Settings window, double-click on the Devices section.
3. In the Devices window, navigate to the Printers & scanners tab. Then scroll down the page until you get “Let Windows manage my default printer” button. 
4. Select the Off button to disable this feature.

Method 8 – Run the System File Checker Tool or DISM Tool

Sometimes, this problem arises if bad configurations are present on the system. So, you need to run a full scan of the system. For that, you can use the System File Checker(SFC) tool or DISM tool. 

To run the SFC tool, follow the under mentioned steps:

1. Right click on the Windows key to launch the WinX menu list and choose the Command Prompt(Admin).
2. When the Command Prompt window opens, type SFC/scannow command and then hit the Enter key to run this.
3. Once it is executed, restart the system. 

After using the SFC tool, if the error still persists, then you can use the DISM tool. To run the DISM tool, follow these steps:

1. Open the Command Prompt window.
2. Enter “DISM /Online /Cleanup-Image /RestoreHealth” command and then press the Enter key.
3. After executing this command, reboot your PC and check whether the scanner is working normally. 

Method 9 – Update the Operating System

If the previous methods did not work in resolving the issue, then you can use this method in order to fix it.

If you are using an older version of the OS, then you may face this problem on the system. So, you need to update the OS to fix the scanner glitch. Follow these directions:

1. Open the Settings window.
2. Go to the Update and Security section on the Settings window.
3. Select the Update tab and then click on the Check for updates button to find whether any updates are available or not.
4. If yes, then hit the Update option to start the update process.

After completing the update process, check if the glitch is resolved or not. 

Concluding it

These are the useful methods to fix the situation when a Canon printer won’t scan. To fix this issue on your printer, you need to follow each and every method carefully. Do not skip any steps while performing them.  

You can also get in touch a tech expert to get rid of this problem on the system.