Brother printers offer high-quality printing and are also quite economical. These printers have a huge customer base similar to big printer brands like HP and Canon. However, like all other brands, Brother printing models also encounter various glitches and errors. Brother printer offline is one of the frequently occurring errors that makes users unable to carry out printing. There are various causes for this problem. From something as simple as the printer not being set as default to driver problems, the error can be a result of innumerable factors. In this article, you’ll understand what it means when the Brother printer shows an offline status and how to fix it.

What Does Brother Printer Offline Means?

The offline status in the Brother printer implies that it is not electronically connected to your desktop or laptop. In contrast, it can connect properly to different devices when it is online. An offline Brother printer cannot get information from your computer and print materials.

Usually, the printer turns offline when it is not turned on, or its network experiences a connection issue. 

What Causes the Offline Status in Brother Printer?

There are many reasons why your system does not recognize any connection to your Brother printer. Apart from the printer being switched off, other causes are as follows:

• There’s a paper jam error.
• Your printing model is not the default one. 
• The USB cable that is connecting your printer has an issue with its hardware.
• Your network is protected by a firewall.
• The printer drivers are corrupt.
• Your Brother printer is in offline mode because you have enabled that mode.
• Incorrect printer settings.

Fixes to Tackle the Brother Printer Offline Error

Now you can start fixing the factors mentioned above. These resolutions will prove effective for every Brother printer owner. 

Fix the paper jam problem

Fixing the paper jam problem needs you to adhere to a series of steps. All of them are listed below. 

• Open the printer’s front cover and give the device 10 minutes for cooling down. 
• Take out the toner cartridge assembly and the drum unit. 
• Now, close the device’s front cover. 
• Take out the paper tray from the printer.
• Gently pull out the paper with your hands.
• Now open the printer’s back cover. 
• To open the fuser cover, pull down the tabs on right and left sides. 
• Close the first fuser cover and the back cover. 
• Take out the duplex tray from the printer. 
• Pull out the paper from the printer or the tray. 
• After that, you can put the tray back into the printer. 
• Now, push the lock lever and remove the toner cartridge from the drum unit. 
• Clear any jammed paper inside the unit. 
• Place the cartridge into the unit properly. 
• Now open the printer’s front cover and put the toner cartridge assembly and drum unit into the printer. 
• Close the device’s front cover. 
• Ensure that the ‘Error‘ LED is turned off and also the ‘Ready‘ LED lights. 

Find if your Brother printer is the default one

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Another efficient Brother printer offline fix is to set your printer as default. Here are the pointers to remember. 

• Start by heading to the ‘Control Panel.’
• Here tap ‘Devices and Printers.’
• In the printer list, right-tap on your printer and choose the ‘Set as default printer’ option. 
• Start your printer again and check if the problem has been fixed. 

Fix the USB cable problem

Your printer can also go offline if the connection is glitchy. Many users connect their printing devices through a USB cable. But if it has an issue with its hardware, you will see your printer showing an offline status. As per the Brother brand, your USB cables must have twisted pair wiring. They should also shield and not beyond 6 feet in length. Check all these things and if you find any problem, replace the USB cable.

Deactivate antivirus software

Security software is known to create issues the moment they issue false positives against activities that do not pose any threat. Your Brother’s printer might be showing an offline status because of the antivirus software. So, disabling it temporarily will fix the issue.

There are an array of antivirus programs for Windows computers. So, there is no single correct method to turn it off. However, a very common application is Windows Defender. You can turn it off via these steps.

• Head to ‘Start‘ and then to ‘Settings.’
• Tap ‘Update & Security.’
• Hit ‘Windows Defender.’
• Now, look at the right pane below the ‘Real-time Protection’ area.
• Set the toggle to off for Windows Defender.

Update your Brother printer drivers

Corrupt printer drivers also make the printer go offline. You need to check if your printer driver may update so that it does not pose any issue in the functioning of the printer. 

• Tap the ‘Device Manager‘ option on the Windows start menu.
• Double-tap on the option of ‘Print queue.’
• Now, right-tap on your Brother printer for updating its driver. 
• Choose ‘Browse my computer for driver software.’ The option will appear in the next window. 
• After that, tap ‘Browse.’ 
• Select the folder where you want to download the driver and tap ‘OK.’
• Hit’ Next.’ 

Turn off the printer offline option

Windows 10 users have the ability to print their documents offline. They can put their documents in the Brother print queue. These documents can printer later when the Brother printer gets connect. However, sometimes this feature can become problematic and cause an offline error. 

• Head to ‘Printer Properties.’
• Right-tap on your printer and choose the ‘See what’s printing option.
• Tap ‘Printer‘ and remove the tick from the ‘Use printer offline option. 
• Save the changes you’ve just made and close the window. The offline printer problem will not bother you. 

Final Thoughts

These resolutions will fix the lost connection between your printer and desktop or laptop. You can now easily fix the Brother printer offline fix error whenever it arises and not waste any time in printing whatever you need to print. If the problem doesn’t go away, take the advice of an expert printer technical support service.