Mode: Classic Scanning

With classic scanning you can connect standard USB and network scanners to WDIScan.

Requirements

• USB scanners: Chrome/Edge browser (WebUSB) (+info);
• Network scanners: Chrome browser with WDIScan Connector extension (+info);
• Protocol: Mopria eSCL (Apple AirPrint);

Many recent scanners and all-in-one printers already support eSCL/AirPrint, check your manual.

Depending on your OS and scanner type you may need to do some extra setup:

OS	USB Scanners (Chrome/Edge)	Network Scanners (Chrome)
Windows	Use Zadig (+info)	Extension (+info)
macOS	No extra setup	Extension (+info)
Linux	Disable ipp-usb (+info)	Extension (+info)

Test your scanner!

Use this Scanner Test to check if your scanner is compatible before installing WDIScan.

Not supported?

If your setup doesn’t meet these requirements you can always use P2P Scanning and Files.

USB scanners

Using USB scanners requires a Chrome/Edge browser with some extra steps depending on your operating system.

Windows

When connecting to a USB scanner on Windows you may see a “scanner in use” or generic error message. Most likely your system does not have the correct drivers installed.

Follow these steps to install the correct drivers (WinUSB) using the free tool Zadig.

macOS

No extra setup, just connect the scanner and start scanning.

Linux

When connecting to a USB scanner on Linux you may see a “scanner in use” message, even when the scanner is not actually in use. This can happen when ipp-usb is installed on the system.

The ipp-usb service is used by other programs to access USB printers/scanners. But because WDIScan is also trying to access the scanner directly through USB, it causes a conflict.

One solution is to disable ipp-usb, e.g. using systemd:

sudo systemctl disable --now ipp-usb

Alternatively, you can also use the scanner through ipp-usb as a network scanner. This involves installing the extension (as explained in the next section) and connecting to the scanner at the default ipp-usb address localhost:60000, or any subsequent ports i.e. 60001, 60002 etc. Find the exact address using DNS-SD:

avahi-browse -rt _uscan._tcp

Network scanners

Using network scanners requires installing the WDIScan Connector extension:

Install the WDIScan Connector extension from the Chrome Web Store.

Why?

Because of a security mechanism present on all web browsers (same-origin policy) and the lack of countermeasures by the scanner manufacturers (missing CORS configuration), WDIScan cannot access local network scanners directly.

The WDIScan Connector extension acts as a bridge between WDIScan and your local network.

You will be asked to authorize access to each new scanner.

Connecting

On the WDIScan dialog select the scanner type:

For USB scanners click “Authorize a USB scanner” and select the scanner:

For network scanners you need to provide the IP address or hostname:

Scanning

After connecting the scanner you have two scanning options:

The “Scan images” mode only works on flatbed scanners. On the left side it’s possible to control the scanning area, “Preview” is also available. The result is always an image file, but you can combine one or more images into a PDF:

The “Scan documents” mode works with all types of scanners, including scanners with an ADF (automatic document feeder). Just select ADF as the source and the correct paper size to automatically scan multiple pages as a single PDF:

At any point you can attach the scanned files to the current Jira issue, any files not saved will disappear once the dialog is closed:

That’s it for now, feel free to explore all the other options.

Contact us with any issues or questions.