HL-L2300D goes 'offline' and won't wake up

Joined
Sep 21, 2016
Messages
3
Hi,

Just bought HL-L2300D. It is connected to a Windows 10 Professional (Anniversary Update) x64 machine.

The driver installation went fine (I uninstalled and retried before posting this). It prints fine. However, it goes to sleep (reported as 'Offline' in Brother Status Monitor) and won't wake up when I print to it. Instead, a 'USB Connection Repair Tool' window pops up saying it couldn't connect to the printer and with the following advice:

"1. Check that the machine is On and there are no error indications.
2. Disconnect the USB cable from the computer and the machine, then connect again"

Then it goes into the (Brother) troubleshooter, which claims to have cured the problem but the printer remains offline.

The only way I can make the printer come online is to press the on/off button on the printer. Then I can print. Eventually it goes Offline again and the same cycle recurs.

None of the advice on Brother Support at http://tinyurl.com/j3p2t3q makes any difference and my email to Brother Support seems to have evoked no response.

Any advice on how to overcome this problem would be greatly appreciated. Thanks!
 
Joined
Oct 4, 2016
Messages
45
While DHCP is convenient, devices such as printers (wired and wireless) should always be assigned a static (fixed) IP address manually to avoid conflicts on your wireless network and must be outside the DHCP range of the router. After setting the static IP, the computer must be updated under Printer Properties/Ports to show a Standard TCP/IP port with the printers IP address.


1. Set a static IP in the printer (click here) outside the DHCP range of the router (check your manual). This is for Linksys routers but can be used for all routers. Verify your DHCP range and change this first if needed. More Wireless Printing help is here and here and even more here. Video here explains the problem and how to fix the problem. <-- So watch this!


2. If the printer supports and has IPv6 enabled, turn off IPv6 in the printer.

3. Make sure printer is plugged directly into a wall outlet and not into a UPS, power strip or surge protector. This will cause the printer to drop offline and disconnect (yes verified!)
 
Joined
Sep 21, 2016
Messages
3
While DHCP is convenient, devices such as printers (wired and wireless) should always be assigned a static (fixed) IP address manually to avoid conflicts on your wireless network and must be outside the DHCP range of the router. After setting the static IP, the computer must be updated under Printer Properties/Ports to show a Standard TCP/IP port with the printers IP address.


1. Set a static IP in the printer (click here) outside the DHCP range of the router (check your manual). This is for Linksys routers but can be used for all routers. Verify your DHCP range and change this first if needed. More Wireless Printing help is here and here and even more here. Video here explains the problem and how to fix the problem. <-- So watch this!


2. If the printer supports and has IPv6 enabled, turn off IPv6 in the printer.

3. Make sure printer is plugged directly into a wall outlet and not into a UPS, power strip or surge protector. This will cause the printer to drop offline and disconnect (yes verified!)


Many thanks for taking the trouble to reply - appreciated!

However, this model is USB only so I'm not sure your solution actually applies to me.

After asking the question on Brother's Twitter stream a Brother tech support person actually rang me (kudos Brother) and it seems I have misunderstood the printer's functionality!

There seem to be 2 modes:
  1. Printer goes into low power Sleep mode after a period of inactivity but wakes up when a job is sent to it.
  2. Printer switches itself off after a period of inactivity and shows as 'offline' in the Brother Status Monitor utility. You need to press the 'On' button to reawaken it when you next need to print.
You can alternate modes using the instructions here: http://tinyurl.com/jfwvusg. I actually prefer mode 2 as it's a personal printer but it's good to know both modes are available.

Problem solved, albeit at the cost of a red face!
 
Joined
Oct 4, 2016
Messages
45
I'm sorry I don't see where you posted that information in your original post?

Did you check your USB ports in the computer to make sure they are not set to power down if inactive?
 
Joined
Sep 21, 2016
Messages
3
I'm sorry I don't see where you posted that information in your original post?

Did you check your USB ports in the computer to make sure they are not set to power down if inactive?

I quoted the model number, which to the best of my knowledge is only available as a USB connected device. See http://tinyurl.com/h7l446x. I assumed this would be known but sorry for not making it clear.

My USB ports are set to selectively suspend. However, I don't think that's the issue for me as the printer is now working as documented - i.e. auto power-off mode set to enabled. It switches off completely after a period of inactivity. I press the 'On' button on the printer and send a print job successfully. I guess, therefore, that Windows 10 'notices' and unsuspends the USB port if it's suspended. I have no issues with the current setting on any of my other usb devices.

Thanks for the suggestion.
 
Joined
Jan 22, 2022
Messages
1
Your HL-L2300D printer is operating exactly as designed. It goes to sleep if it doesn't receive any data for a while. That time period can be changed by having your computer send a special "set sleep time" command to the printer. The printer will store the chosen sleep time in its internal memory, so you only need to do this once.

The exact technique for sending the "set sleep time" command depends upon your operating system and version. You can use your favorite search engine to locate the instructions. But beware that the maximum time period is documented to be only 99 minutes. Maybe setting it to 0 will disable sleep entirely; I haven't tried that.

To wake your printer from sleep, press the power button. It will wake up and start printing within a second or so.

Waking up the printer used to bug me, but now I realize that it isn't much of a problem in practice.
 

Ask a Question

Want to reply to this thread or ask your own question?

You'll need to choose a username for the site, which only take a couple of moments. After that, you can post your question and our members will help you out.

Ask a Question

Top