We have a wireless printer/scanner connected to our computer and can't get the "scan to file" function to work. The IT guy for the company that sold us the scanner said everything is set up correctly and he is sure that the Norton blocks the scanner. He has checked our Norton settings but wasn't able to fix the problem. Has anyone ever had a similar problem? Please help!!
SteffiPaschke wrote:We have a wireless printer/scanner connected to our computer and can't get the "scan to file" function to work. The IT guy for the company that sold us the scanner said everything is set up correctly and he is sure that the Norton blocks the scanner. He has checked our Norton settings but wasn't able to fix the problem. Has anyone ever had a similar problem? Please help!!
Hi, Steffi. Here is some background info as to why your IT guy thinks NIS is "getting in the way" - along with some things to check to see if you can get NIS to allow the Scanner to talk to the target Computers. If this gets too technical for you, print off this message and hand it to your IT guy. He should be able to understand it - even if you think it's gobbledygook. 
Background info on how NIS works:
A1. On your network, there are two types of "user" that NIS checks for proper security clearance.
a) The first type of user is each "Computer" - which means a machine with a User, a machine that's a Server, and so on. Computers have shared folders or fileshares.
b) The second type of user is a "Device" - which means a Network Printer, a Network Faxing Host, a Network Scanner, or a Network Storage Device (such as a particular brand of NAS). This category covers everything that doesn't have a specific User.
A2. By Default, NIS does not permit LAN traffic to occur between either "Computers" or "Devices" on the LAN. This is one of the ways NIS keeps you safe - by preventing default NIS installations from communicating across the LAN. There is a special routine - called Network Initialization - which must be performed either manually or as part of the NIS install process - that allows LAN traffic to occur from "Computer" to "Computer" and from "Computer" to "Device" on the LAN.
A3. When you install NIS on a machine that is already connected to a LAN, the installation of NIS detects that you need LAN support. The NIS installer then tries to set up part of the LAN configuration for you. This allows communication between "Computers" across the LAN - so that each of you can "see" the rest of the "Computers" on the LAN and access their fileshares.
A4. However, NIS has a harder time deciding which "Devices" are safe for the "Computers" to talk to or to listen to. NIS consults a Configuration Database to decide what to do in that situation. If your particular "Device" is in the NIS Configuration Database - NIS can autoconfigure for that device. If that "Device" is not in the NIS Configuration Database - you have to do some of the configuration yourself.
A5. NIS understands "Devices" known as Network Printers quite well. Thus, it is quite common for NIS to be able to autoconfigure for Network Printing "Devices". Therefore, you may not even know that NIS made the required changes in your Firewall Configuration to allow the "Computers" on the Network to talk and/or listen to your Network Printer "Devices". Under normal circumstances - this part of the NIS configuration process is completely automatic.
A6. NIS understands lots of other Devices than just Network Printers. But sometimes, a manufacturer brings out a product that uses the LAN in a way that NIS cannot safely autoconfigure for that feature. Network Scanning is one of those things.
Here's why a Network Scanner is a "different breed" than most other Network Devices:
B1. When you send a Print Job to a Printer, the computer sending the Print Job starts the communication process. Since you are "opening the door" from the Computer to the Printer - NIS understands that you have specifically requested that communication process. You initiated the request to talk. Thus, NIS permits the "talking" and the "listening" to occur because you started the conversation.
B2. However, when you send the output of a Scan from the Network Scanner back to a particular Computer - NIS recognizes that the incoming communication is a "stranger". You did not specifically request that communication in the first place. Thus, NIS has no idea - without specific instructions from you - whether that incoming communication is something that you want - or something nasty.
B3. Since the vast majority of incoming communication without your consent is malware - NIS "slams the door" on incoming communications where it does not have specific instructions from you to allow that particular device to "call you first".
How to tell NIS that you "trust" that Network Device:
C1. Open the NIS Control Panel.
C2. Find and Click on the hotlink labeled "Network Security Map".
C3. A new Window will open, showing the Network Security Map details. This is a display of all the "Computers" and "Devices" on the LAN that NIS can understand. Along with your Computers on the LAN, your Network Printer(s) will probably be listed as well. The Printer(s) should be there, as long as you have printed one or more print jobs to each of the Network Printers you want to use. When NIS has had the opportunity to autoconfigure itself for that particular "Computer" or "Device" - that item should be present on the list.
C4. If your Network Scanner is part of a Network Printer, you might assume that because NIS can see the Network Printer - it should also understand the Network Scanner as well. Not so.
Remember that when you communicate with a Network Printer you start the communications process. Thus, NIS understands that you trust the target device. Therefore, NIS permits the communication to occur.
However, when you want the Network Scanner part of the Network Printer to talk to your Computer - the Network Scanner starts the communications process. NIS has no idea whether it should trust an incoming communication from a Network Scanner - until you tell it specifically that it is supposed to trust that Device.
C5. The way you tell NIS that you trust a particular Device on the LAN - so it can initiate communications with your Computer - is to add that Device to the "Trust Control" in the Network Security Map.
C6. To add a "Trusted Device", click the downward-pointing-triangle in the "Network Details" list. Normally, the first item in that list is either "Local Area Network" (for Computers with wired connections) or "Wireless Network" (for Laptops). The last item on the list is usually labeled as "Trust Control". Click that item.
C7. The "Trust Control" page of the Network Security Map will open. Normally, there is nothing listed on this page. That is how NIS keeps you safe. Hackers cannot get into your machine by imitating (spoofing) a Trusted Device if there are no Trusted Devices by default.
C8. Since you have decided that you want the Network Scanner to be able to initiate communications with your Computer - you are now going to make the Network Scanner a "Trusted Device". The way you do that is to click the "Plus Sign" in the "Total on Network" category on the "Trust Control" page.
C9. When you click the "Plus Sign" the "Add a Device" window will open. To tell NIS that you want to Trust that Device, you need to tell NIS the Network Address, the Network Name, or the Media Access Control (MAC) Address of the Network Scanner part of the Network Printer.
As far as I am aware, the highest security you can maintain for a Trusted Device is to use its Network Name for Trust Control. The reference to the IP Address of your Network Scanner is then under the control of your DNS or your Router - which are items which are far harder for a hacker to penetrate than other items on your Network. However, for this to work you have to know the Network Name of the Network Scanner to add it to the Trust Control list.
Giving the Network Printer a proper Network Name:
D1. The Network Name of the Network Scanner is normally part of the configuration for the Network Printer - when the Scanner is part of the Printer. There will be a default value for this name. How to Access and/or Modify that name will be found in the instructions for how to configure the Network Printer.
The default Network Name for a Network Printer is commonly a long series of numbers related to the MAC Address of the Device. This allows the Network Printer or Network Scanner manufacturer to be able to guarantee that the Network Name for every Network Printer or Network Scanner they make is unique (that's what MAC addresses are for).
Using this scheme works very well in Corporate Environments - where 50 Printers of the same type are carted in the door of an Office Tower and set up simultaneously. It allows all the printers to be hooked up to the LAN without having two devices with the same name "bang into each other" - which confuses DNS or Routers mightily.
Note: It is possible that some Network Printer/Scanner combo units may allow you to have a separate Network Name for the Printer, and a different Network Name for the Scanner part of the Network Printer. Some only allow the one name which is applicable to both situations. If your printer allows for a separate Network Name for the Scanner - you need to set this to a logical name for that situation as well - and that is the name you need to add into the Trust Control's "Add a Device" Window. In machines that allow separate Network Names for the two different functions - having the wrong name in the Trusted Device list will prevent this entire process from working properly. Make sure all the housekeeping is correct here and you have written down the name (or names) correctly before you go on to the next step.
D2. No matter what default Network Name is assigned to the Network Printer or Network Scanner by its manufacturer, you will probably want to reconfigure so the Network Name means something to mere mortals. A name like "X544dn - Fourth Floor Accounting" makes a lot more sense to users than LM03064A3CDA6B. Hopefully, your IT guy has already given the Network Printer/Scanner a useful name. If not, now is the time to do so.
Note: X544dn is the Model Number of a combo Network Printer/Scanner/Fax device made by Lexmark. I'm just using that as an example of what is typically done in a Corporate Environment to change the Network Name of a Device to something useful in a real-world environment. Pick a Network Name for your Network Printer that is useful for you and the rest of the people using that Network Printer.
If you change the name of the Network Printer or Network Printer/Network Scanner (on machines that allow separate names), you are instructed to shut down and restart the printer to have that new information applied. This may mean that you will have to shut down and restart the Computer you are working with, in order to ensure the Network Map in that Computer is updated with the new information. The proper info for the Network Printer (including its new name) must be shown in the Network Security Map for the next steps to be effective.
To confirm that you are working with the printer as it has been reconfigured, send a printjob to the "new" Printer. This will allow NIS to autoconfigure itself to the reconfigured Printer. Now, shut down and restart the Computer, and then reopen the Network Security Map. You should now see the "new" Printer with its proper Network Name.
If you don't see the "new" Network Printer, purge the old Network Security Map and then confirm that the Network Printer is now showing the Device Info that you want it to show. To "purge" the old Map, open the NIS Control Panel, navigate to "Settings" and go down the list until you find the item labeled "Network Security Map". In that section, you will find an item called "purge". Click on that item, and the old Network Security Map will be discarded and a new one will be built using the updated info from the changes made above. Close the Settings window and reopen the Network Security Map. You are looking for the Network Printer to show up in the map using its proper (new) name.
D3. Once you have assigned the Network Printer (and Network Scanner if appropriate) a useful Network Name - and it is showing up with that name in the Network Security Map - reopen the Trust Control Window, click the "plus" sign and add that corrected info into the appropriate field in the Trust Control/Add a Device Window. Remember to add the correct Network Name for the Scanner part of the Device if your device supports separate names for the Printer and Scanner. Once the desired info is in place, click the "Add a Device" button at the bottom of the Window to confirm your choice. This informs NIS that you trust the Device. Reopen the "Trust Control" section of the Network Security Map. Your Network Printer or Network Scanner should now be listed as a Trusted Device. If the device is not present in the "Trust Control" section of the Map, click the "Refresh" item at the bottom of the Window. The Trusted Device should then show up.
D4. Once the Trusted Device is present in the Trusted Device window, click the Close button at the bottom of the window. The Trusted Device window will close. Reopen the NIS Control Panel, click the Network Security Map, select the Trusted Device option in the Network Details list and confirm the Network Printer is present with the proper Network Name. If the Printer is there, you've done the work properly and NIS now knows it is supposed to "trust" the Scanner part of the Network Printer.
D5 Shut down your Computer and restart it - just to ensure that the new NIS Configuration is properly applied.
D6. The above configuration modifications to NIS should permit you to initiate communication from the Scanner to the reconfigured Computer. This should allow the Scanner to send the tif or pdf (or whatever) file from the Scanner to your Computer - without NIS objecting to the process. Test to ensure things work as they are supposed to.
Note: If things don't work properly, one of the things you can try in order to come up with a workable configuration is to change the Network Name in the Trusted Device list from the Scanner Name to the Printer Name - in devices that support separate names for the two items. Unfortunately, Printer manufacturers are not consistent when it comes to how they apply Networking Conventions. If things still don't work - contact the Printer Manufacturer's Technical Support and see what they have to say on the subject. Explaining that you have to add the Printer to the "Trusted Devices" list in your Firewall Software will usually elicit the information you require.
Once you've got one machine going where the Scanner can talk to that Computer:
E1. Repeat the above process (Steps C1 through D6) at each Computer where that computer is a Target for the Network Scanner.
E2. Because all the housekeeping work that had to be done with the Network Scanner (outside of NIS) has already been done as part of the work for the first computer you reconfigured - all the rest of the Computers should go quite quickly.
Please let us know how you make out.
Hope this helps.
Thank you so much. I printed it and will try to understand it I'll let you know how it goes! Thanks again!!
Atomic_Blast
We're running Windows 7 and the scanner is a Savin 816MF. NIS is the 2012. Wireless printing works just fine. I guess the "incoming" traffic is the issue. I will try the suggestions that "twixt" gave me and see how far I get. Thank you for responding to my post.
Hi SteffiPaschke:
So printing is fine, good.
What about Scanning? Do you have that capability at all?
Atomic_Blast :)
Hi I have just joined this community as I have a new laptop, installed new licence for NIS 2011, and I have the scanner problem (print is ok). I have followed all the instructions and also enabled the Lexmark S508 exe lxebcoms to "allow" rather than "auto" and I still get no scan function. Any further advice would be appreciated. Thanks
Hi LindaRead:
Welcome to the Norton Community!
I would like to first rule out or rule in NIS. Let's try the following approach...
1) Temporarily uninstall NIS using the Norton Removal Tool (NRT) found here. Please read all the instructions before proceeding and be sure to backup your Identity Safe Data (if any) and NIS Product Key. Reboot twice upon completion.
2) Uninstall, reboot and then reinstall and configure all your Lexmark S508 software.
3) Upon completion, physically disconnect the cable attached to the internet, from your Cable modem, DSL, etc.
4) Try printing first, then scanning. Kindly record your results.
5) Reconnect to the internet. Download NIS 2012 for free (onto your desktop) from this link.
Run Live Update until all updates are applied - you might have a reboot in between. This is normal.
6) Try printing first, then scanning with the default NIS settings. Kindly record your results.
Post back here with your findings. You are not the only wireless printer/scanner user out there with this type of problem.
We need to find out if NIS is at fault. Kindly also specify your Operating System and Service Pack revision level.
We can go from there. 
Thank you,
Atomic_Blast :)
The link to the free 2012 NIS does not work. Please advise asap as i have no security. Thanks
Hi LindaRead:
Sorry about that! I had inadvertently used some upper case in the above link (Oops!) 
Please download NIS 2012 from this corrected and tested link.
Again, let us know how you do!
Thanks,
Atomic_Blast :)
Hi sorry for delay. Slow download. All seemed OK with installation NIS 2012 but when new laptop restarted (this is old one!) the keyboard has locked completely, and I cannot move the mouse and I cannot get into it at all. I have started it in safe mode, but same problem, it is all locked and I cannot type my password. I have had to turn off power manually and tried twice, same result, so I am completely locked out now. I am no expert so don't know how to proceed. I have looked for a manual keyboard lock in case I have done it by accident, but cannot see how & I have never had this happen before. Please advise. Thanks
Hi LindaRead:
Hmm...
Try this. Disconnect your laptop from the AC and remove the battery. Wait 20 Seconds.
Then replace the battery and reconnect to the AC. Start up the laptop.
If you use a Docking Station, first reset the power on it and continue with the above.
BTW - This is your new laptop that had NIS 2011 on it, correct?
Let us know.
Thanks,
Atomic_Blast :)
Tried that. Still the same.
Sorry, yes the new laptop had 2011. This old one has 2010 and worked fine with scanning & printing on the Lexmark printer.
Hi LindaRead:
If you try to boot into Safe Mode with or without Networking are you able to type anything?
Does your new laptop have Windows 7? Who is the vendor?
Kindly advise.
Thanks.
Atomic_Blast :)
Edit - additional information.
Laptop is made by Novatech Runs Windows 7 Home Premium. No, cannot do anything.
Hi LindaRead:
I hate to say this but you might have a hardware problem with the new laptop. 
Please contact Novatech and work with them to remediate the boot and login issue.
This has nothing to do with NIS, just an unfortunate coincidence, since you cannot even boot to Safe Mode.
Kindly report back when the laptop is corrected and we could work from there.
Respectfully,
Atomic_Blast :|
Problems are like buses in UK - they never come for ages, then they come in 3's. I will have to contact them tomorrow morning now as the help desk shut 2 hours ago. I will possibly have to restore the laptop & start again. Good job I still have the old one...,
Thanks for prompt help. Me-on-my!
We have a wireless printer/scanner connected to our computer and can't get the "scan to file" function to work. The IT guy for the company that sold us the scanner said everything is set up correctly and he is sure that the Norton blocks the scanner. He has checked our Norton settings but wasn't able to fix the problem. Has anyone ever had a similar problem? Please help!!
Hi.....OK This is the new laptop again. It appears that because I had no NIS at all at one stage of the process, my computer was attacked by a virus. Novatech helped me sort that out.
Anyway, I have now manged to do the following:
- Uninstall NIS 2011 completely, connect Lexmark printer/scanner using cable, both print and scan work ( I did not try wireless connection to printer at this stage)
- Then the key board locked after downloading that 2012 exe, so I had to call Novatech and I had help to restore computer to position prior to the uninstall of NIS 2011 That worked OK and I then immediately downloaed NIS 2012
- Restart computer as per instruction All OK this time, no keyboard locking.
- Try printing, did not work. Likewise scanning.
- Change NIS 2012 setting to always "allow" lxebcoms.exe (it was set at default value "share")
- Printing now works again but scanning is back to where I started with "scan was not succesful" message
- I have not tried printing using the wireless connection as I do want to keep that ability to print right now!
- I do suspect the problem is caused by NIS 2011 and not fixed by 2012, as all was well with the older laptop and NIS 2010. It was not that complicated to set up either!
- Please advise what further action you think might cure the problem. Thanks very much.
Hi
I had some advice from Lexmark as well, namely to upgrade the printer driver to the W7 64bit version, which I did.
I also set the NIS 2012 to always "allow" lexebcoms.exe - it would not work set to "share", and I set up the printer network as trusted, as you advised.
I can now both print and scan using the cable connection, but I can only print using the wireless connection, scanning still does not function in the wireless mode.
I still suspect NIS 2012 is stopping the wireless scan function but at least I can operate.