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Dell AIO A920 Printer Cannot Communicate with Computer
I’ve just about had it. I upgraded my operating system from XP to Vista Ultimate around the first of February. Of course neither of my printers would work. I have two printers, one is the All in One Dell A920, and the other is Hewlett Packard’s Photosmart 7150.
Neither Dell nor Hewlett Packard had Vista ready printer drivers on line. So, I’ve waited until Dell’s “Vista ready” printer driver came out a week or so ago. Hewlett Packard hasn’t posted a “Vista ready” printer driver for the Photosmart 7150 yet.
When I installed Dell’s new Vista driver and found it wouldn’t work. When I tried to print it came up with a message saying the computer was not communicating with the printer. Funny, though, the AIO 920 would scan without a problem. No lack of computer-printer communication in scanning.
So I have checked out this Dell Forum repeatedly seeking a solution. (I was unable to find anything helpful on the Technical Support areas of the Dell website.) Lots and lots of people were in the same boat as I.
I finally found Gina’s (Dell person) posts on this forum trying to find a solution to the problem. She finally made reference to a Dell customer named Eric Rendel who seemed to have solved the problem. I went to the Rendel post and followed his steps faithfully, which included deleting all the contents of the System32 folder named W32x86.
I disabled my firewall to see if that would allow printing. It didn’t.
After that the computer still would not communicate with the printer. I have replicated Rendel steps several times.
I gave up on the Dell Forum for a time and went searching on the Microsoft site. Nothing there could I find in the way of a solution.
I then tried a Google search on the problem and found scores of sites where the computer-printer communication problem was address. One site recommended uninstalling the USB ports in Device Manager, then re-installing them. That failed too.
So, here I am with two printers I can’t use. No help from Dell. None from Microsoft. None on the internet at large.
Like others, I too, am about to terminate being a customer of Dell. I’m about to go buy another (non Dell) printer which will actually print using Vista. The danger is that one doesn’t know whether a new printer will print either until you pay for it, bring it home and try it.
I ran into that type of problem when I bought a LifeCam vx-6000 web video made by Microsoft at Best Buy. Of course it wouldn’t work either. It installed but needed an upgrade of its driver, which fortunately was immediately available on the Microsoft site. I installed the upgraded driver but it doesn’t work either. It keeps telling me it has an “initialization error.” Doesn’t give me a solitary clue of what kind of initialization error it is.
So the question I suppose is what is Dell’s problem? Why no A920 driver that will work on Vista? Has customer service at Dell degenerated this far?
So, getting no resolution from Dell, anyone out there have any kind of idea, witchcraft, or magic that will simply permit me to print on Dell’s A920? It is now moving into the month of May. I’m 73 years old with one foot in the grave and the other on a banana peel. Will Dell have a solution within my lifetime or not?
MRF4700
1.8K Posts
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April 27th, 2007 01:00
Gina Q
1.7K Posts
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April 27th, 2007 18:00
chadtata
2 Posts
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April 27th, 2007 21:00
NyeNevada
4 Posts
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April 29th, 2007 02:00
Gina wrote:
The reason you are having this error is because the XP drivers are still on the system. I found out the other day that the CD and the driver from the web each have an uninstall option. Use this option to remove the driver instead of the Add/Remove Programs. Once this is done reboot the system without the printer attached. Then disconnect from the Internet. Once done then install the Vista driver and plug in the printer when asked. Let us know if this works. I'm keeping track trying so that if it does not work I can let people know.
Hello Gina:
Thanks for your suggestion. It did move me further along in getting a driver installed that would work but in the end didn’t allow me to print. Here, step by step, is the exact procedure I followed. Perhaps it will help you and other’s to help get us all a half-step or even a full step further ahead.
1. In order to remove anything relating to the XP drivers for the A920 (which, by the way worked just fine under the XP operating system.) I used the Dell CD, Drivers and Utilities, Dell Personal All-In-One Printer A920 disk. It did provide with an uninstall program which I ran. I noted it indicated it was removing something(s) from the registry and then finished.
2. I then rebooted in order to update the registry.
3. I then opened the Control Panel’s Device Manager in order to verify that nothing relating to the A920 remained. One must open the Device Manager and the check the View menu and check the “Show Hidden Devices” submenu item which then allows all devices to be displayed in the list of devices. First I checked “Imaging Devices” to insure nothing relating to the A920 was there (particularly the scanning capability). Then I checked under “Printers” to verify no A920 reference was there.
4. I then opened the Control Panel’s “Printers” section to make sure nothing concerning the A920 was there.
5. Just to be very sure I then went to “Start” and checked “All Programs” to verify nothing concerning the A920 was there.
6. If I found anything in either the Control Panel or Start I would have uninstalled them.
7. I rebooted again just to be sure.
8. I then went to the Dell site and at the printer driver download page I changed the operating system for my XPS from XP to Vista 32-bit. Then I downloaded and saved the R153047.exe driver to a Download folder on my computer.
9. Once it was downloaded I went to Start, then Run, then entered msconfig in order to use the System Configuration Utility to turn off all start up programs, seeking to avoid any software conflicts with any start up programs. I then rebooted.
10. I then, using Windows Explorer, went to the Download folder where I had saved R153047.
11. I verified that my A920’s power cord and USB cable were unplugged from the computer.
12. I unplugged my modern to insure I had no connection to the internet.
13. I then double clicked R153047 which caused it to unzip and begin the installation.
14. The program ran through installing the Printer Support, the printer, and finally the All In One Center setup. The first effort resulted in the computer bring up an error in trying to install the AIOC exe stating the AIOC exe had stopped working because a problem caused the program to stop working correctly. Then the inevitable notice that Windows would close the program and notify me when it had a solution. (Not too comforting at my age.)
15. So I rebooted to see if what portion of the A920 driver did get installed was added to the registry.
16. After rebooting I double clicked R153047 again to try a reinstall over whatever was already installed. The installation program came up again asking if I wanted to “update” the driver (which was the recommended option) or install a second driver for the A920. I elected to use the recommended “update.”
17. It did the install then without a hitch, seemingly.
18. A page came up for me to align the printing on the A920 (the arrows). I clicked “continue” and sure enough the printer actually printed the sheet of paper with the arrows to pick from.
19. Then I reached another page which asked me to print a test page. I clicked the button for the printer to do so. Nothing happened. I checked the Document Que and saw the test page there, but it also said my printer was offline. So did the Control Panel’s “Printers” section say the printer was offline. (There is no option for one to command it to go back online. The only way I’ve figured out how to get is back online is to cancel the printing of the document, then turn off the A920, wait about 5 seconds and turn the power back on. That results in the document leaving the print que and the printer to return to “ready.”) Kind of a roundabout way to get anywhere.
20. So, being unable to print, I thought I’d see if I could start the All In One Center so I could see if the A920 would at least scan something.
21. I went to Start>All Programs>Dell Printers>Dell AIO Printer A920>Dell All-In-One Center and clicked it. A page came up that it was “Preparing AIO Center for first use.” It seems to run through that procedure indicating it was searching for some software. Whatever is doing it finally comes up with the admonition that “AIOC exe stopped working” and Windows would be looking for a solution and, if that ever happened, would share the solution with me.
So that was the result. Still no printer, nor even scanning. But, as wrote earlier, there was some movement forward in the question for a solution. I didn’t encounter the admonition that the computer could not communicate with the printer. So that was some progress.
I went to the local computer store yesterday to see if I could find a printer (not Dell) I could obtain and use with Vista. I specifically looked on the shelf for any printer that had the Microsoft sticker that the printer was “designed for Vista.” I found none. I didn’t buy one.
I have another printer, a Hewlett-Packard. Of course Hewlett-Packard hasn’t even issued an updated driver for the HP Photosmart 7150 yet. Their support page just indicates, as it has for weeks, that it is “coming soon.” So that printer remains unusable until “soon comes.”
So, at least Dell is ahead of HP. Dell got its printer driver out, but it doesn’t work. I don’t care that Dell tested the driver before issuing it. If so, they need some better quality control on the printer driver updates. Like others on this forum, I don’t understand why Dell or any other software company wasn’t immediately prepared to provide printer driver updates on the day that Visa was issued. After this very very long wait we customer’s have endured for the updated printer drivers, to then be subjected to the frustrating hassle of trying to get the updated drivers to function properly, leaves a very bitter taste in my mouth.
It seems, since Michael Dell left Dell things have progressively slid downhill. I don’t know who is running Dell these days but whoever it is needs to wake up and smell the coffee. He’s losing, unnecessarily, a lot of customers, and I’m one of them.
I do commend you, Gina, for trying to help. But Dell has to give you the support you need to help all us out here. So, thank you for trying. I don’t envy you your job.
bluesparx
7 Posts
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April 29th, 2007 03:00
huntersplace
2 Posts
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April 29th, 2007 05:00
gevans
5 Posts
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May 25th, 2007 03:00
Gina Q
1.7K Posts
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June 7th, 2007 20:00
mclose
4 Posts
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October 1st, 2007 15:00
KatBaintreach
1 Message
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June 24th, 2011 23:00
I still have a working A920. Do you make a negative scanner accessory for this printer and is it compatible with Windows 7?
Also, all my equipment is several years old, my desktop, laptop, printer etc., all DELL, all bought online from you in the USA! But when I enter any of the service numbers in to just live chat to ask this very simple question, it says I have purchased my system from outside the USA. PLEASE!! I am very disappointed in this part of DELLs customer service. I am getting a new system in July and just needed to check to make sure I could still use this printer.
May need to go the MAC route. Please tell your bosses this is very disappointing since I have been a DELL fan for years! All my kids have Dells and now this. Just isn't right!
PudgyOne
9 Legend
9 Legend
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30.3K Posts
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June 26th, 2011 05:00
KatBaintreach,
Before you try to conect the printer, try installing the Vista 32-bit drivers for Windows 7 32-bit or the Vista 64-bit drivers for Windows 7 64-bit in the Vista Compatibility mode
You mentioned that you're outside the United States, if the operating system is not English(US) let me know and we'll try to help you install the printer.
Dell A920 All-In-One Inkjet Printer owners thread (W7)
Did you tranfer the Waranty? International Ownership Transfer Form
Contact Dell
Rick
PudgyOne
9 Legend
9 Legend
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30.3K Posts
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December 18th, 2011 16:00
daisyjane,
Try running Finding System Information REMOVE YOUR PRODUCT ID and post the rest of the information back here.
Also provide the virus program and firewall you're using.
Rick
daisyjane111
1 Message
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December 18th, 2011 16:00
HI,
I too am having trouble. I have Windows 7 and this is the first time this has happened. My Dell crashed the second time which I've had for 7 years. At this time, I had no choice financially but to purchase a used computer that my tech guy had built. It has worked great so far, except that I can't print to my Dell A920. I have downloaded the software compatable to the printer. It says it can't read it or communicate with the printer. So I found your website and understand that you are saying that the drivers for XP are still on the computer and that is why it won't communicate. Well, this computer didn't have XP on it ...it has windows 7 so how could that be the problem?
Thank you.
daisyjane
JoshKemm
1 Message
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January 23rd, 2012 10:00
I had pretty much the same problem as the rest of you. It would scan, but not print. Tried practically everything. First, I tried it on my mom's XP system, but I think the file was corrupted. Second, I tried it on my computer, doing a bunch of things; it only scanned, no printing. Then, I went back to my mom's computer, did some things, and now it works.
I would really only do this on an XP system. (Dell Printer AIO A920)
1. Download support.dell.com/.../download.aspx. Make sure the printer is unplugged. Extract, run, and reboot.
2. Plug the printer in. Do not allow Windows to update. I used the CD that came with the computer to install the driver. Follow the setup.
3. Should work fine!
a. If the steps above don't work, try using the Windows updater. I seriously doubt this will work though. Sometimes going back to a previous version of a driver is the best solution.
PudgyOne
9 Legend
9 Legend
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30.3K Posts
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January 23rd, 2012 12:00
JoshKemm,
First run Delete Print Jobs to remove any stukc porint jobs from the queue.
Disconnect the printer.
Download and run the patch(printer cleanup utility) until it prompts you to restart yuor computer.
Restart your computer.
Insert the printer disk and follow the instructions. You should get a message, the printer is not connected. Connect the printer at this time(powered on)
Links to the patch can be found at...
Dell A920 All-In-One Inkjet Printer owners thread (W7)
Remember virus programs and firewalls will block communications.
Rick