So many other sites suggest sending off for a formatter card, but your solution worked like a dream (well, OK, like a second dream – the first time, the Mac tried to interrogate the printer for options, and it wasn’t going to answer!).

Your instructions are clear and a real life-saver.

Thank you so much. If you come over to the UK, I’ll buy you a pint!

This was not an option with this particular machine so I set my mind to resolving the issue. My attempts to correct it via Windows failed at all steps and by chance I happen to have a Macbook mainly used by the kids for Skype sessions. I decided to try the Mac process but ultimately even that was unsuccessful but I learnt a few things along the way and am sure this is what finally helped me fix it.

My Mac knowledge is almost nil, and one of the first things I encountered was a ‘permission denied’ error everytime I attempted the step at the Terminal. The cause will probably be obvious to those familiar with the Mac GUI but turned out to be simply that I’d overlooked extracting the downloaded file. Of course in Windows a compressed file is very clear but I didn’t recognise it as such. Duh. Having corrected that I then simply encountered a string of errors after executing the command, which I can’t now describe exactly but either way the file would not send to the printer.

What I did find however was that each time I tried to send the file, it would only attempt it once, further attempts would do nothing. If I cycled the CP3505 printer power, the Mac would change the status from Ready to Offline and this was enough to convince me that the Printer was sound and that there was communication established but as soon as I tried to send the file, communication would then be lost.

I was not able to find where to adjust the port settings as described, no matter where I looked I could not find them (using Max OS X 10.6.8).

I decided to go back to Windows after reading this article….

http://www.vanguardsys.com/whmcs/knowledgebase.php?action=displayarticle&id=216

… mainly because I understand Windows at a hardware level much better than Mac.

Anyway, to cut a loooong story short, I believe the Printer for some reason was disconnecting or hanging after a failed attempt. Everytime I cycled the printer power I could get another attempt.

In the end, I sent the firmware upgrade and then cycled the printer power once again – this time round (and this is after something like 30 or 40 previous attempts) as soon as the printer would normally have brought up the “Send RFU upgrade” error it started receiving the file and sucessfully restarted. Fantastic.

Interesting to note that in the link above, it is recommended to name the newly installed driver EXACTLY as “Hewlett-PackardHP LaserJet USB Upgrade” and the changes to bi-directional printing and printing direct to the port (bypassing the windows spooler).

I wish I had documented all my steps better was frankly I was about at the point of giving up but glad I persisted. Of course if a client had been paying for all the time it probably would not be economic but I wanted to see it through and the experience will come in useful for further similar problems which will take much less time.

Good luck – one way or another, this process works, you might just have to be a bit imaginative.

influate failure, download rfu upgrade now as my printer’s problem. I took the instructions given to someone by your outfit which worked for him and did not work fopr me. It again appeared usb cable not recorgnised. When i tried other two cable the same story. But downloading and sending the file was not a problem since I was able to follow the your instructions. What next? disposing or other option?