# Let the app find printers on your iPad or iPhone

**Symptom:** on an iPad or iPhone the scan finds nothing, or a printer at an address you know is correct simply times out. The same printer works from a computer on the same Wi-Fi.

## Why it happens[​](#why-it-happens "Direct link to Why it happens")

iOS asks once, on first use, whether an app may talk to devices on your local network. If that prompt was declined — or was answered by someone else, or never appeared — every scan and every print is blocked from then on. iOS gives the app no error saying so, which is why it looks identical to a printer that's off.

## Turn the permission on[​](#turn-the-permission-on "Direct link to Turn the permission on")

1. Open the iPad or iPhone's **Settings** app.
2. Go to **Privacy & Security → Local Network**.
3. Turn on the switch for **WCPOS**.
4. Close the app completely (swipe it away from the app switcher) and open it again.

Then go to **Settings → Printing → Add printer** and scan again.

## Also check[​](#also-check "Direct link to Also check")

* The iPad is on the **shop's Wi-Fi**, not a guest network and not mobile data. See [Give the printer a fixed address](/hardware/printers/network-address.md).
* Wi-Fi is on. With Wi-Fi off, a printer at a local address is unreachable however the permission is set.

## If the scan finds nothing but the printer works[​](#if-the-scan-finds-nothing "Direct link to If the scan finds nothing but the printer works")

Scanning relies on the printer announcing itself, which some networks block. Use **Enter an IP address** instead — it stops the scan and checks the one address directly. Print the printer's status sheet to read the address off it.

## Still stuck?[​](#still-stuck "Direct link to Still stuck?")

Use **Copy setup report** on the trouble screen and paste it into your message — it records what the iPad tried and what came back.

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