Brother Printer Help: Troubleshooting Wireless Connection Issues

Experiencing trouble connecting your Brother printer wirelessly after a network hiccup? It’s a common frustration when your wireless router has been restarted or experienced an outage. Many users find themselves unable to print or scan wirelessly after such interruptions. Let’s explore how to get your Brother printer back online and communicating with your devices.

Common Wireless Connectivity Problems with Brother Printers

Wireless printers, while convenient, can sometimes be sensitive to network changes. When your router is reset, especially for a few minutes as in your case, several things can go wrong:

IP Address Conflicts: Printers configured with static IP addresses might conflict with new IP addresses assigned by the router’s DHCP after a reset.
DHCP Lease Renewal Issues: Printers set to DHCP might not successfully renew their IP address lease from the router, leading to connection loss.
Router Configuration Changes: Although less common with a simple restart, router settings might occasionally revert or change, impacting device connectivity.
Printer Network Settings Glitches: Sometimes, the printer itself might experience a temporary glitch in its network settings after a sudden disconnection.

Troubleshooting Steps for Brother Wireless Printers

Let’s walk through some troubleshooting steps to restore your Brother printer’s wireless functionality.

Initial Checks: Router and Printer Restart

The simplest solutions are often the most effective.

Restart Your Router and Printer Again: While you mentioned the router was briefly off, perform a full restart of both your router and Brother printer. Power cycle both devices – turn them off, wait for about 30 seconds, and then turn them back on. This can often resolve temporary network glitches and force devices to re-establish connections.
Check Wireless Connection on Printer: Ensure the printer is actually connected to your Wi-Fi network. Most Brother printers have a Wi-Fi indicator light or a network status screen in their menu. Verify that it shows a connection to your correct network name (SSID). If it’s not connected, you may need to re-enter your Wi-Fi password on the printer’s control panel.

Network Configuration on Brother Printer

If a simple restart doesn’t work, you’ll need to delve into your printer’s network settings. You mentioned you can access the TCP/IP configuration interface on your Brother MFC-6490CW. This is where we need to focus.

Access TCP/IP Settings: Navigate to the network settings on your Brother printer’s control panel. The exact menu names vary by model, but look for options like “Network,” “WLAN,” “TCP/IP,” or similar terms.
Boot Method (DHCP vs. Static):
- DHCP (Auto): For most home networks, “Auto” or “DHCP” is the recommended setting. This allows your router to automatically assign an IP address to the printer. Ensure this is selected first. If it was already on DHCP and not working, try switching to “Static” for testing purposes (see below).
- Static: If you choose “Static,” you need to manually enter IP Address, Subnet Mask, and Gateway. This requires more network knowledge but can be useful for consistent printer access. If you decide to use Static, ensure you are using an IP address outside of your router’s DHCP range to avoid conflicts. You’ll need to know your router’s IP address range for this.
IP Address, Subnet Mask, Gateway: If using “Static,” you’ll need to configure these.
- IP Address: Choose a unique IP address within your network but outside the DHCP range. For example, if your router is 192.168.1.1 and its DHCP range is 192.168.1.100 – 192.168.1.254, you could use 192.168.1.50 for the printer.
- Subnet Mask: Usually 255.255.255.0 for home networks.
- Gateway: This is typically your router’s IP address (e.g., 192.168.1.1).
DNS Server: You can usually leave this on “Auto” or obtain DNS server addresses automatically. If setting manually, you can use Google’s public DNS servers: 8.8.8.8 and 8.8.4.4.
WINS Server and Node Name: These are less critical for typical home networks and can usually be left at default or “Auto.”
APIPA (Auto IP Addressing): It’s generally recommended to leave “APIPA” “Off.” APIPA is a fallback mechanism when DHCP fails, but it can sometimes cause issues in stable networks.
IPv6: Unless you specifically use IPv6 on your network, leave “IPv6” “Off.”

Checking Router Settings (D-Link DIR-655)

Since you’re using a D-Link DIR-655 router, access its configuration page (usually by typing 192.168.0.1 or 192.168.1.1 in a web browser).

DHCP Server Enabled: Ensure the DHCP server is enabled in your router’s settings. This is usually under “LAN Settings” or “DHCP Server.”
Check DHCP Range: Note the DHCP IP address range your router is using. This is important if you intend to set a static IP for your printer to avoid conflicts.
Wireless Settings: Verify your Wi-Fi network name (SSID) and password are correct and that the router is broadcasting the Wi-Fi signal.

Using Command Prompt for Ping Test

You mentioned pinging in cmd without success. Here’s how to use ping effectively for printer troubleshooting:

Find Printer’s IP Address: If your printer is successfully connected to the network (even if you can’t print), try to find its assigned IP address from the printer’s network settings menu.
Open Command Prompt (Windows) or Terminal (Mac/Linux):
Ping the Printer: Type ping [printer's IP address] (e.g., ping 192.168.1.50) and press Enter.
- Successful Ping: If you get replies, it means your computer can communicate with the printer on the network. The issue might be with printer drivers or software on your computer, not necessarily network connectivity.
- Unsuccessful Ping (Request Timed Out): If you get “Request timed out” or “Destination host unreachable,” it indicates a network connectivity problem. Double-check your printer’s IP address, network settings, and router configuration.

If you’ve tried these steps and are still facing issues, consider consulting your Brother MFC-6490CW’s manual or Brother’s official support website for model-specific troubleshooting. You may also need to reinstall the printer drivers on your computers to ensure they are correctly configured for the current network setup.