Lexmark CX-417de Scanner Not Recognised

[DLF2000]

Hi DLF2000,

I don't know if you've had a chance to try Brian's further suggestion. If you've done that and still had no success, you might want to note that Lexmark apparently released an updated driver on 10th July! The new file is:
lexmark_network-scan-linux-glibc2_04082019_x86_64.deb

Not sure if this link will work for you:
http://support.lexmark.com/index?docLoc ... cale=EN_UK
but you should be able to track it down on the Lexmark website. Obviously no guarantee this one will work either, but I tried 'installing' it on a live USB and it does at least appear to put links in the right place. So if all else has failed, you could undo what you've tried so far and see if you have better luck with the new version.

After installing this file, the system claims it is already installed, and therefore I get the same failed results.

[DLF2000]

I tried those suggestions & used SimpleScan, but it still fails to recognise.

scanimage -L

is a more fundamental command to use for testing whether SANE can find the Lexmark backends. It obviously doesn't look in /usr/local/lexmark/unix_scan_drivers/lib/sane and copying the files to /usr/lib/x86_64-linux-gnu/sane/ hasn't worked. So try linking the files as suggested in a URL you were given. For example:

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ln -s /usr/local/lexmark/unix_scan_drivers/lib/sane/libsane-lexmark_nscan.so /usr/lib/x86_64-linux-gnu/sane/libsane-lexmark_nscan.so

I tried the scanimage -L command, and I got this:

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fwh1977@fwh1977-HP-Pavilion-g6-Notebook-PC:~$ scanimage -L
device `lexmark_nscan:libusb/001/004' is a Lexmark Lexmark CX417de Scanner
device `lexmark_nscan:libnet/SPECIFY_DEVICE' is a Lexmark Network Scanner
fwh1977@fwh1977-HP-Pavilion-g6-Notebook-PC:~$ 

Unfortunately nothing works, or I am missing a simple command somewhere.

[brian_p]

I tried the scanimage -L command, and I got this:

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fwh1977@fwh1977-HP-Pavilion-g6-Notebook-PC:~$ scanimage -L
device `lexmark_nscan:libusb/001/004' is a Lexmark Lexmark CX417de Scanner
device `lexmark_nscan:libnet/SPECIFY_DEVICE' is a Lexmark Network Scanner
fwh1977@fwh1977-HP-Pavilion-g6-Notebook-PC:~$ 

Unfortunately nothing works, or I am missing a simple command somewhere.

Whatever you have done (which you have kept to yourself) has led to progress. SANE now recognises the device. You appear to have it connected by USB and over the network. I have no idea what libnet is or what SPECIFY_DEVICE means.

Anyway, try

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scanimage -d lexmark_nscan:libusb/001/004 > out.dat

[DLF2000]

Whatever you have done (which you have kept to yourself)...

HAHA! I wish I was that good! I assure you that whatever I am hiding is completely unintentional.

That said, the first time I tried this command and it was a different style (v3.50?) of Lexmark driver installation. Then I got a window (sorry, I did not print screen) with words to the effect of "IP address not correct, choose between these 2 choices." I chose the 1st option, and it failed.

I tried the command 4 more times, and each time I got this:

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<pre><font color="#8AE234"><b>fwh1977@fwh1977-HP-Pavilion-g6-Notebook-PC</b></font>:<font color="#729FCF"><b>~</b></font>$ scanimage -d lexmark_nscan:libusb/001/004 &gt; out.dat
scanimage: open of device lexmark_nscan:libusb/001/004 failed: Operation not supported
<font color="#8AE234"><b>fwh1977@fwh1977-HP-Pavilion-g6-Notebook-PC</b></font>:<font color="#729FCF"><b>~</b></font>$ 
</pre>

Another note: ever since I have been trying to troubleshoot my printer keeps asking to reset the time & date. I never had these problems when using Windows.

[brian_p]

You appear to have successfully installed the updated Lexmark package pointed to by michael-hi. The Lexmark backend (driver) reports

device `lexmark_nscan:libusb/001/004' is a Lexmark Lexmark CX417de Scanner

But

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scanimage -d lexmark_nscan:libusb/001/004

fails because

Operation not supported

I have never come across a URI using /. Perhaps the Lexmark backend has it wrong? Try replacing / with :.

You should also check with

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scanimage -L 

that the URI has not changed before executing

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scanimage -d lexmark_nscan.......

.

[DLF2000]

I tried both commands with both "/" and ":" and got this:

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fwh1977@fwh1977-HP-Pavilion-g6-Notebook-PC:~$ scanimage -L
device `lexmark_nscan:libusb/001/004' is a Lexmark Lexmark CX417de Scanner
device `lexmark_nscan:libnet/SPECIFY_DEVICE' is a Lexmark Network Scanner
fwh1977@fwh1977-HP-Pavilion-g6-Notebook-PC:~$ scanimage -d lexmark_nscan:libusb:001:004
scanimage: output is not a file, exiting
fwh1977@fwh1977-HP-Pavilion-g6-Notebook-PC:~$ 

Is there an easy way to completely purge all traces of Lexmark files the way one can uninstall in Windows?

[brian_p]

I tried both commands with both "/" and ":" and got this:

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fwh1977@fwh1977-HP-Pavilion-g6-Notebook-PC:~$ scanimage -L
device `lexmark_nscan:libusb/001/004' is a Lexmark Lexmark CX417de Scanner
device `lexmark_nscan:libnet/SPECIFY_DEVICE' is a Lexmark Network Scanner
fwh1977@fwh1977-HP-Pavilion-g6-Notebook-PC:~$ scanimage -d lexmark_nscan:libusb:001:004
scanimage: output is not a file, exiting
fwh1977@fwh1977-HP-Pavilion-g6-Notebook-PC:~$ 

I didn't expect my suggestion to work. After all, the Lexmark backend should know what it is doing. I also asked about your issue on sane-devel:

https://alioth-lists.debian.net/piperma ... 36949.html

Thank you for your patience and tenacity.

Is there an easy way to completely purge all traces of Lexmark files the way one can uninstall in Windows?

I think

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apt purge lexmark_network-scan-linux-glibc2

should do it.

[DLF2000]

I think

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apt purge lexmark_network-scan-linux-glibc2

should do it.

I used that command. The system seemed to only do half the job because it suggested the Lexmark files were only in some directories, but not in glob (I forgot precise directory/jargon.)

Then I re-installed the Lexmark drivers at this link: http://support.lexmark.com/index?docLoc ... cale=EN_UK

Despite the purge, the programme suggested the Lexmark drivers were already installed, so I clicked on re-install option.

Then I used Simple Scan, & it successfully put all pages...into black & white. It also did not scan both pages, despite the option having been chosen. Either way, partial success!

Does anybody know how to get Simple Scan to (i) scan in colour, and (ii) scan both sides of page?

[HAWR]

Hello DLF2000,

if you want colour scanning with Simple Scan you have to take the photo mode instead of text mode, which can be set in the dropdown-menu right next to the word "Scan". If you want to scan both sides, you can set this in the settings. The settings can be found on the left side of the word "Scan" by clicking on the square respectively rectangle.

[DLF2000]

Hello DLF2000,

if you want colour scanning with Simple Scan you have to take the photo mode instead of text mode, which can be set in the dropdown-menu right next to the word "Scan". If you want to scan both sides, you can set this in the settings. The settings can be found on the left side of the word "Scan" by clicking on the square respectively rectangle.

Thanks for the suggestion, but I had those settings by default. Unfortunately the scanner only scanned in black & white.

[DLF2000]

While I now have 50% (at best) functionality of the Lexmark CX417de, the printing function has only deteriorated.

If the printer accepts the command to print, which is only 50% of the time, the unit takes over 3 minutes to print ONE PAGE! Furthermore, I have to shut off/turn on the printer to do another print job.

I have already tried updating the firmware from Lexmark website, but it failed claiming incompatibility issues.

Other than re-installing Windows, does anybody have any suggestions? Is a fresh install of Linux necessary?

[DLF2000]

Recent upgrade to 19.2: Tina has not helped. In other words, same problems.

Does anybody have any ideas on how to unf**k what Linux has f**ked up?

[HAWR]

Hello DLF2000,

I would suggest you to have a try with vuescan, because I know many cases, where scanners couldn't get running with "normal" methods but with vuescan it does. You can test it for free first before buying.

We reverse engineered the Lexmark CX517de driver and included it in VueScan so you can keep using your old scanner.

https://www.hamrick.com/vuescan/lexmark_cx517de.html

It is not your model, but maybe it works with your model, too.

For scanning with Lexmark printers under Linux I found the following page at Lexmark:

http://support.lexmark.com/index?page=c ... RPRET_S405

[michael-hi]

Hi DLF2000,

I understand your latest question is mostly posed out of frustration but I cannot see that Linux has done any damage here. At worst, the driver doesn't operate your printer properly but presumably it would still work in Windows. Indeed, if it turned out to be equally useless in Windows, that might suggest a hardware problem eg with the connecting cable, the port it's plugged into or the printer itself. I say connecting cable because I believe this printer doesn't have wi-fi by default.

As for scanning only in black-and-white, maybe there is some option for this set at the printer's control panel. Alternatively, you might have better luck with Xsane than with Simple Scan. It has a more complicated interface but it might get more out of the scanner's capabilities. Check if it is in your graphics menu or type xsane in a terminal; if it is not installed, you can install it with

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sudo apt install xsane

Also, have you checked the user guide for the Lexmark scanner driver? This consists of HTML pages which are rather hidden away at the following place in your file system:

/usr/local/lexmark/unix_scan_drivers/docs/ug/en/index.html

It might be significant that they refer to Xsane and not Simple Scan, same as the link in HAWR's post above.

As for the printer, something is obviously wrong considering Lexmark claim up to 32 pages a minute! Presumably you have tried using a USB cable in a different USB socket or using another cable. It's your decision whether you want to persevere with this or revert to Windows but you could try a fresh install of Mint 19.2 and the latest drivers (maybe on a different computer), then test out both USB and network options and compare them. Or try first of all whether Mint can install the printer side of it without using the Lexmark driver. I think one problem is that Lexmark now only make printers aimed at the business market so their models are unlikely to have much of a fan base among Mint users. So, unfortunately, no-one is likely to pop up and say "Hey, it works fine for me in Linux. You just need to do X..Y..Z..."

On a side issue, in a couple of posts in this thread, you mention that after installing the drivers you were told they were already installed. This seems to be a bug in the Gdebi package manager. After successfully installing a deb file, you get a message saying "Same version is already installed" when what it really means is "This software is now installed". What is bizarre is that a quick Google search throws up nothing on this. I suppose most Linux geeks are installing from the command line instead.