Can't Update Brother Printer's Firmware

spapakons · Wednesday at 2:35 PM

retiredat44 said:
maybe the file is corrupt, if you download a file, and unzip it, if the unzipper program is not correct (some 3rd party zip programs screw files up) then they will have issues. Make sure you are not have an issue with corrupted file after unzipping. try a different zip program. can happen with any file. could be the usb device. try a different one. I am not familiar with the HL-3170CDW.

It's not uncommon for a download to be corrupt. Download it again to make sure.

HDL · Wednesday at 2:59 PM

spapakons said:
I understand you only use genuine supplies and you don't mind if a firmware update might make the printers reject non-genuine supplies. In that case I would run the firmware tool as Administrator (right-click, Run as Administrator) to make sure it has the required access rights. I would also temporarily disable the antivirus just in case it interferes with the update. Much safer it is to temporarily connect the printer to the computer directly with USB cable and update the firmware.

That said I would like to point out that non-genuine supplies don't damage the printer. This is a rumor deliberately spread by the manufacturers to prevent us using third-party supplies. Unless it is the cheapest possible, worst manufactured quality unknown brand, there is not such risk. However, unlike genuine supplies that are expected to deliver maximum quality prints, third-party supplies are not all the same. Once you test one and are not satisfied you go to the next brand. Of course professionals cannot experiment with the print quality, but us common users can.

PS: I don't know your region, but the USA link to the firmware is:

Firmware | Downloads | MFC-J5930DW | United States | Brother

support.brother.com

Thank you and that is where I downloaded the firmware update. I always run such files as the administrator. Thanks for the suggestions. The only thing I couldn't specify to run as Administrator is when they had me try to use the IP address because that was going to the IP address in the URL line and then signing into the printer. From there I had to click on the update button and that is where I got the message that a proxy server was being used.

As far as the USB cable is concerned, I hooked the printer up to the computer using one and tried to add a printer. It did not find the printer through that cable even after I disconnected the Ethernet cable it is normally hooked up to. My computer builder was on the line with me and offered to come here and try to straighten it up. I'm still thinking that offer over.

HDL · Wednesday at 3:01 PM

spapakons said:
It's not uncommon for a download to be corrupt. Download it again to make sure.

It was not a zip file, it was/is and *.exe file. It is BrMain4903.exe that is downloaded.

spapakons · Wednesday at 3:07 PM

retiredat44 said:
no issues with 3rd party inks here..

There are many people that avoid buying a new printer with expensive genuine supplies. They prefer buying a refurbished one (used but with some months Warranty from the shop) which also has cheaper third-party supplies. Especially for a small office that only needs a laser B/W printer to print invoices, why invest on a new model? Quality is not important when printing invoices and other business documents (unless is totally crap).

spapakons · Wednesday at 3:12 PM

HDL said:
It was not a zip file, it was/is and *.exe file. It is BrMain4903.exe that is downloaded.

If it is the correct for your model and you are sure it's not corrupt, right-click on it and Run as Administrator. Also, if you cannot update the firmware via network, temporarily put the printer next to the PC and connect it directly via USB cable. Once you update the firmware successfully you can remove the cable and put the printer back to its original location.

HDL · Wednesday at 3:14 PM

spapakons said:
There are many people that avoid buying a new printer with expensive genuine supplies. They prefer buying a refurbished one (used but with some months Warranty from the shop) which also has cheaper third-party supplies. Especially for a small office that only needs a laser B/W printer to print invoices, why invest on a new model? Quality is not important when printing invoices and other business documents (unless is totally crap).

I don't know why I purchased Brother printers after I had to have the MFC-L2750DW replaced twice because it would not feed Avery labels through it correctly. After they replaced the printer twice and I still had the same problem, with a refurbished printer, they said my warranty had expired. The labels would only feed the first sheet through the printer correctly. After that the next 2 or 3 sheet fed crookedly causing the labels to miss the labels drastically. I no longer use that printer for labels.

HDL · Wednesday at 3:16 PM

spapakons said:
If it is the correct for your model and you are sure it's not corrupt, right-click on it and Run as Administrator. Also, if you cannot update the firmware via network, temporarily put the printer next to the PC and connect it directly via USB cable. Once you update the firmware successfully you can remove the cable and put the printer back to its original location.

As far as the USB cable is concerned, I hooked the printer up to the computer using one and tried to add a printer. It did not find the printer through that cable even after I disconnected the Ethernet cable it is normally hooked up to. My computer builder was on the line with me and offered to come here and try to straighten it up. I'm still thinking that offer over.

So not sure I mentioned this but Eero had me try this. I used the Ethernet cable and connected the printer directly to the only output connection on the back of the gateway Eero. I then used a WiFi connected laptop and tried to update the firmware and got the same error message mentioned above the one ending in (M06.)

spapakons · Wednesday at 3:24 PM

HDL said:
I don't know why I purchased Brother printers after I had to have the MFC-L2750DW replaced twice because it would not feed Avery labels through it correctly. After they replaced the printer twice and I still had the same problem, with a refurbished printer, they said my warranty had expired. The labels would only feed the first sheet through the printer correctly. After that the next 2 or 3 sheet fed crookedly causing the labels to miss the labels drastically. I no longer use that printer for labels.

Looks like the rollers that transport the paper through the printer were worn and needed replacement. However, I don't know if fixing the old printer would be cheaper than buying another refurbished one.

gunrunnerjohn · Wednesday at 3:31 PM

spapakons said:
I understand you only use genuine supplies and you don't mind if a firmware update might make the printers reject non-genuine supplies. In that case I would run the firmware tool as Administrator (right-click, Run as Administrator) to make sure it has the required access rights. I would also temporarily disable the antivirus just in case it interferes with the update. Much safer it is to temporarily connect the printer to the computer directly with USB cable and update the firmware.

FWIW, I've owned at least 4 Brother printers over the years, including the two that I currently have. Firmware updates haven't caused any issue with 3rd party toner. I do see a notice when I am in the setup panel on the new printer, but you just say OK. I've always used 3rd party supplies and have never had any problem getting excellent prints for one quarter the price of the OEM toner. I refuse to pay the price of the printer for a single set of toner cartridges that will last me less than six months! My older printer has has at least four sets of toner cartridges, still printing fine. I got the last set of TN229 toner cartridges for $88, and they were extended capacity. The OEM set for standard capacity is $260! I can't tell the difference in printing from the OEM or the 3rd party toner. BTW, these are both color laser models, I don't do inkjet printers anymore.

HDL · Wednesday at 3:31 PM

spapakons said:
Looks like the rollers that transport the paper through the printer were worn and needed replacement. However, I don't know if fixing the old printer would be cheaper than buying another refurbished one.

It was brand new when all this started happening. I usually only print labels around Christmas time. So when it first happened, they replaced it with anther brand new one and didn't even want to other one returned. Once I asked for another replacement that is when they sent me a refurbished one. When I complained, they said they had honored my warranty and this time they did send me a return label. They probably passed it on to someone else who complained. Not sure if you know this but to run labels I have to use the manual tray and feed them one at a time with the back door on the printer open and the rollers adjusted so they are further apart. In doing so, I had to tell the software program that I was using THICK paper so, hopefully the toner would stick to the labels. That's still the case when I print labels today on another Brother laser printer.

spapakons · Wednesday at 5:58 PM

HDL said:
It was brand new when all this started happening. I usually only print labels around Christmas time. So when it first happened, they replaced it with anther brand new one and didn't even want to other one returned. Once I asked for another replacement that is when they sent me a refurbished one. When I complained, they said they had honored my warranty and this time they did send me a return label. They probably passed it on to someone else who complained. Not sure if you know this but to run labels I have to use the manual tray and feed them one at a time with the back door on the printer open and the rollers adjusted so they are further apart. In doing so, I had to tell the software program that I was using THICK paper so, hopefully the toner would stick to the labels. That's still the case when I print labels today on another Brother laser printer.

I have worked for RMA department and this is standard policy. If it was DOA (faulty at purchase), we immediately replaced it with a new sealed model. If it was faulty after the first month we returned to our Supplier or directly to Manufacturer and they can either repair it or replace it. When they replace it they had the right to send a refurbished model, it was at their discretion. Our customers could complain all they wanted but they weren't bound by Law to send a new sealed model. The less months of Warranty left the most likely they would send a refurbished model. Of course even when they send a new sealed model they mark its serial number in their system to have Warranty equal to the remaining duration of the original product. This means if you had a couple of months left, you are stuck with it, no unpaid extension. They only way to get new Warranty duration is for the store to refund the original product and issue a new receipt or invoice for the replacement. No shop does that unless it has a Stock House and can sell the returned product at a reduced price with limited Warranty and gain more money.

gunrunnerjohn · Wednesday at 6:39 PM

HDL said:
I had to tell the software program that I was using THICK paper so, hopefully the toner would stick to the labels. That's still the case when I print labels today on another Brother laser printer.

FWIW, on my Brother NFC-L3780CDW was having all sorts of problems printing on shipping labels until I stopped telling it they were labels. Now I just stick the label in the tray and print it the same as normal 20# paper. No problems at all since I started doing that.

HDL · 2025-06-19T06:17:53-0400

gunrunnerjohn said:
FWIW, on my Brother NFC-L3780CDW was having all sorts of problems printing on shipping labels until I stopped telling it they were labels. Now I just stick the label in the tray and print it the same as normal 20# paper. No problems at all since I started doing that.

On all the Brother printers I have had over the years I have had to open the back door or tray to allow the labels to eject through it instead of circling around and coming out the front tray. In addition, I had to move a lever down on each side of the ejection rolls in the back of the computer. Are you saying you do not do either of these things? Also, do you not feed your labels manually one at a time and not use the paper tray? All my label templates are designed to use the manual tray but that doesn't mean I couldn't leave the thickness setting alone.

The machine I use now for the labels is the MFC-L3750CDW,which looks like it may not be as new as your printer. I couldn't find your model #Brother NFC-L3780CDW. I did find a Brother MFC-L3780CDW, if that is what you meant. Again, I am assuming yours is newer than mine based on the numbers in the model name.

gunrunnerjohn · 2025-06-19T08:46:00-0400

HDL said:
On all the Brother printers I have had over the years I have had to open the back door or tray to allow the labels to eject through it instead of circling around and coming out the front tray. In addition, I had to move a lever down on each side of the ejection rolls in the back of the computer. Are you saying you do not do either of these things? Also, do you not feed your labels manually one at a time and not use the paper tray? All my label templates are designed to use the manual tray but that doesn't mean I couldn't leave the thickness setting alone.

The machine I use now for the labels is the MFC-L3750CDW,which looks like it may not be as new as your printer. I couldn't find your model #Brother NFC-L3780CDW. I did find a Brother MFC-L3780CDW, if that is what you meant. Again, I am assuming yours is newer than mine based on the numbers in the model name.

Sorry, it's an MFC-L3780CDW. The N was a slip of the finger. Your printer appears to be just a slightly older version of mine, looks pretty much the same. Mine has added a couple of capabilities, multi-page multi-purpose tray and automatic 2-sided scanning. It also has stuff like NFC & USB printing, but I've never used either.

You are correct. I put the half-page shipping labels in the single sheet feed and just hit print. I don't set anything different than when I do normal paper through the normal sheet paper magazine, and the wrap around and come out the normal paper exit. I also print smaller labels, including some 3/4" x 1" labels. Those I have had to allow to exit the rear, but I still print them with the normal paper settings. The small labels will sometimes come loose if I try to direct them around the curved paper path.

Oddly, when I first got this printer, I tried to do the half page labels "right" and use the label setting. That smeared many times and the printing was never as good as just treating them as plain paper. So now, anything I print I typically just hit print with the normal paper settings.

Can't Update Brother Printer's Firmware

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