I can’t connect Epson ET-2850 to Smart Hub Plus

[HenryTudor8]

I’m going in ever decreasing circles. I set up an Epson ET-2850 a week or two ago and everything was fine. Then a couple of days ago the wheels came off. I have a Mac Mini running OS Sequoia and I run NordVPN. 

I saw a message flash up on the screen that appeared to say that an IP address (local network) had been blocked. No time to read it fully before it went. Since then I can’t connect my printer. I’ve spent the best part of two days and can’t fix it. I wonder if the hub has blocked the MAC address. 
I’ve done everything other than reset the hub.

Any ideas please and the wisdom of resetting the hub.

many thanks. 

[Mustrum]

@HenryTudor8  it is probably just the printer not able to come up with the correct diagnosis - AI was not so I back in the days when it was introduced!!

[Troolie47]

Have you managed to sort this out? I'm having the same issue with both my HP and Epson printers. It's driving me insane. I can't connect via ethernet because neither printer has an ethernet socket !!

[XRaySpeX]

@Troolie47 : What about USB?

[JimM11]

@Troolie47 See the end section on this linked post.

HP Printer wont connect to new EE smart hub pro mac address filter error report - The EE Community

[Troolie47]

OMG! 

I'd already set up compatible mode but have just pressed the wps button via the app and bingo! 

It works!

I did a happy dance. Thank you so much, I never thought I would get it working. It's ridiculous how happy I am  😂

[HenryTudor8]

I’m still without a wireless connection but have managed to connect by usb cable. The WPS button has never connected the printer but I might try it in compatibility mode. What about the warning that this can slow your connection down. Can you switch off compatibility mode when you’re connected?

[JimM11 · Accepted solution]

@HenryTudor8 It is worth a try to see if the printer will connect in the lower mode, and yes you can switch on/off the mode as you require, just takes a little time for the wi-fi to disconnect then re-connect all your devices.

There will be a little speed hit when using both modes but it may not be even noticeable in operation, hope it works out for you.👍

[HenryTudor8]

Great, thanks for the reply. 

[HenryTudor8]

Thank you all for your input. I set up the 2.4GHz compatibility network and "that's magic". I was reluctant to even try it because of the warning before turning it on in the hub manager that it may slow your WiFi down. I assumed that applied to the WiFi generally from the router, but in fact it's just pointing to the fact that the separate, old standard, network might be slow.

It works a treat after many hours of frustration.