Re: SOLVED : THANK YOU ! - HP Printer/Scanner, delayed logon, failed WIA service and alternate driver install method

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From: francis gérard (spam_at_spamcop.net)
Date: 08/24/04

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    Date: Tue, 24 Aug 2004 16:16:52 -0400

    "Malescot" <malescot@yahoo.fr> wrote in message
    news:412b2de1$0$23962$626a14ce@news.free.fr...
    > Thanks a lot, I solved the problem.
    >
    > Thanks to the event log, I could see that at each startup, XP was waiting
    > for the Windows Image Acquiring (WIA) service to launch. This service was
    > in MANUAL. I put it in AUTO : same problem. I disabled it : it works !
    >
    > I cannot see any difference in the use of my computer now that this
    > service is disabled (my webcam is OK, my scanner as well, I can still plug
    > my camera via USB and look at my pictures in the explorer, and so on....).

    the Windows Image Acquisition service provides a software layer for
    applications to import digital data from scanners and cameras, if disabled,
    those devices may cease to work in certain applications, although you may
    still be able to copy files from a camera, but i doubt if your scanner will
    continue to function properly.

    let me guess... you have an HP scanner/printer, right?

    assuming an HP product, continue reading... else stop now.

    HP drivers are infamous for screwing-up the system. it amazes me how people
    tolerate this crap from HP.

    anyway, this is a known issue with HP drivers and the WIA service. if you
    happen to have an HP printer/scanner that has messed up the WIA service, the
    recommended solution is to turn OFF the printer/scanner, *completely
    uninstall* the HP driver software using the 'uninstall software' utility on
    the Hewlett-Packard program menu, then download their 'scrubber/cleanup'
    software (available at http://hp.com/) to remove the junk that the HP
    uninstaller leaves behind.

    next, set the WIA service to *Automatic* (this is important, do not set to
    disable or manual), restart the system

    then download the latest drivers for your HP product (do not use the ones on
    the cdrom, burn that disc), run the *new* driver installer (that you
    downloaded), but do NOT allow it to install anything, simply allow it to
    extract the driver package to the hard drive (it will prompt you where to
    unpack the files, remember that directory, *write it down*). so, what
    you're gonna do is launch the downloaded installer package (which may be
    huge, btw) then press [Cancel] when the HP driver setup screen appears. the
    idea here is to bypass the HP installer, since it screws-up the WIA service
    among other things, and we get Windows to install the drivers instead. so
    next thing you do, after extracting the drivers and aborting the
    installation, is turn ON the printer (remember, for this to work, you must
    have turned OFF the printer beforehand, and completely wiped-out the old HP
    drivers from your system), Windows will immediately detect the presence the
    HP printer/scanner and within seconds prompt you for drivers (since the old
    ones are now gone), at that point you will want to select the second radio
    button (on the found new hardware wizard dialogue) that says 'Install from a
    specific location...' (not the first option, install automatically). press
    the [Next] button and then uncheck the box 'search removeable media', then
    check the box 'Include this location...', press the [Browse] button and
    locate the extracted HP driver files in the directory where they were
    extracted (you wrote it down, remember). simply select that directory and
    the [OK] button will become available, press [OK] on the browse for folder
    sub-dialogue, then press [Next] on the found new hardware dialogue. Windows
    will read the .inf installer files in that directory and automatically
    install the drivers, then press [Finish] when the hardware wizard completes.
    if you have an all-in-one HP printer/scanner, you may be prompted a few
    times for the location of the drivers (for each device), simply repeat the
    process above, ie, when the hardware wizard pops-up, select install from
    specific location, browse for the new drivers on the hard drive (the ones
    you extracted), and press OK, then Next, then Finish. be patient, wait for
    the wizard to complete the driver installation for each device, press
    Finish, then continue with the next dialogue that pops-up, always specifying
    the same directory where you extracted the new HP driver files. at the end,
    it may prompt you to restart the system. the HP drivers should be properly
    installed now, there should be no more conflicts with the WIA service (check
    the system log for new events). keep in mind, there is an HP service that
    upon startup communicates with the printer/scanner (checks ink levels, and
    god knows what else), but that service spikes the cpu at 100% for about 30
    seconds, which causes a slight delay during logon, as the shell is loading.
    unfortunately, only HP can fix that by coding better drivers, which they
    consistently refuse to do. one workaround is to launch the windows task
    manager at startup, locate the offending HP process that's hogging the CPU,
    right-click on it, Set Priority to Low, the shell immediately comes back to
    life and loads normally. there is a way to get the HP driver to load with
    low priority at all times, but that may be beyond the scope of your
    abilities and this discussion... which has now grown to lengthy proportions.

    enough said
    need more help... just ask 

    --
francis
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