Scanner & driver setup
To scan documents directly from your scanner, you need to connect the scanner and install the vendor driver (Brother, HP, Canon, Epson, Fujitsu…). VHDoc uses the standard Windows driver (TWAIN/WIA), so it cannot install the driver for you.
You can import existing image/PDF files or use Demo scan to explore and process documents without a scanner.
1. Prepare
- Turn on the scanner and make sure it is ready (no blinking light).
- Connect the scanner to your PC in one of two ways:
- USB: plug directly into a USB port on the motherboard (avoid hubs). Make sure the scanner is in USB mode.
- Wi-Fi/LAN: the scanner and the PC must be on the same network. Make sure the scanner is in network mode.
- Close other scanning apps (Brother ControlCenter, HP Scan, Windows Fax and Scan…) — they may be using the scanner.
2. Install the scanner driver
- Go to your scanner vendor's download page and download the correct TWAIN (or WIA) driver for your model.
- Install the driver (usually requires administrator rights).
- Restart the PC if prompted, then turn the scanner back on.
Open Windows Fax and Scan or Paint → From scanner — if your scanner appears in the list, the driver is installed correctly.
3. Check inside VHDoc
- Open the app, go to Settings → Scanner device.
- Click Rescan for connected devices (the ↻ button).
- If your scanner appears in the list → select it.
- Open the Scan & OCR screen and start scanning.
If no scanner is found, the app shows a "No scanner detected" panel with guidance and Check again / Open setup guide buttons.
By default VHDoc lists only scanners that are actually connected — it hides sources whose driver is installed but the scanner is no longer connected ("orphan" drivers), so you don't pick the wrong one and hit errors or freezes. To also see those sources, turn on "Show devices not connected" in Settings → Scanner device.
4. Common troubleshooting
| Symptom | Likely cause | What to do |
|---|---|---|
| No scanner in the list | Driver not installed, or scanner not connected | Install the vendor driver, power on and connect the scanner, then Rescan |
| "Failed to connect to the device" when scanning | Scanner off/asleep, wrong connection mode (USB/Wi-Fi), or used by another app | Power-cycle the scanner; check cable/network; close other scanning apps; retry |
| Wi-Fi scanner not detected | Scanner on a different network, or driver has a stale IP | Put scanner and PC on the same network, or switch to USB |
| Works in another app but not in VHDoc | Another app is holding the scanner | Close that app, then scan again |
| "No TWAIN sources found" | A previous scan session is stuck | Restart VHDoc, click Rescan |
5. Tips
- For everyday office documents, the desktop app (VHDoc Desktop) scanning over TWAIN/WIA is the most reliable.
- If your scanner supports both USB and Wi-Fi and connections are flaky, use USB to rule out network issues.
- After installing the driver, remember to click ↻ (Rescan) so the app detects it again.