HP Printers and Fax Machines - How to Fax

note:

If the fax is already set up but you cannot send or receive faxes, go to the Frequently Asked Questions (FAQs) in this document for assistance.

1. Obtain a telephone cord. If you received a cord with the printer, use it. If you did not receive a cord, make sure that you use a cord with connectors that have two wire leads, not four.
   
2. Connect the phone cord to the phone wall jack and to the 1-LINE jack on the back of the printer.
   
3. If you have an answering machine, connect a phone cord to the machine and to the 2-EXT jack on the rear of the printer. Doing so allows your telephone answering machine to record voice calls normally without recording the noises from faxes.
   
   1. Wall jack
   2. Two-wire phone cord
   3. Answering machine
   4. Single-line telephone
4. Set up fax settings and preferences. The HP software includes guided fax setup tools (the Fax Setup Wizard in Windows or the Basic Fax Settings tool for Mac), or navigate to the Fax or Setup menus on the printer control panel.
   • Fax header: Enter text you want recipients to see at the top of your faxes. A typical fax header contains your name, the name of your business, and the complete 10-digit fax telephone number.
   • Answer mode/Auto answer: Picks up your phone calls after a specified number of rings and accepts incoming faxes. If this feature is off, a person must manually accept incoming faxes from the printer control panel.
   • Rings to answer: When the phone rings, the printer waits and counts the number of telephone rings before it answers the call.
     • If the phone line is shared with your voice calls, choose a number rings that provides enough time for you to answer the phone before the printer picks up a call.
     • If the phone line is shared with an answering machine, choose a number to pick up that is two rings more than the answering machine. Doing so ensures the answering machine answers the phone before the printer.
   • Set the ring type: Use the All Rings setting for a dedicated fax line or select Distinctive Ring if you set up a special ring pattern for the fax line.
   • Dial type: Match the type of analog phone service you have; tone or pulse. If the dial type does not match, the printer cannot detect rings and answer incoming calls.
     The current industry standard is tone dial in most areas. You might have pulse dialing if you use a rotary telephone. If you are not sure of the dial type, contact your phone service provider.
   • Fax volume: Select a volume level to hear sounds made during the fax call, such as dial tones and busy signals. Set the volume to Off if you want silent faxing.
5. Run a fax test to confirm the fax set up was successful. On the printer control panel, locate Run Fax Test or Fax Test Report in the Fax or Setup menus. A report prints with test results and any instructions to resolve issues.
   Additionally, you can test send and receive functionality with the HP Fax Test Service. Send a fax to 1-888-HPFaxme (1-888-473-2963 U.S.). The service receives faxes and returns faxes within 5 to 7 minutes to the fax number contained in the fax header.

note:

For steps to send faxes from your computer, go to the How do I send and receive faxes with my computer? section in this document.

1. If you know the recipient is in a home or home office and shares the phone line with their fax machine, call them to let them know you are sending a fax.
2. Load the document you are faxing.
   • Use the Automatic Document Feeder (ADF): Load single or multi-page document into the ADF tray according to the engraved guide or sticker.
     
   • Use the scanner glass: Load the document face down on the scanner glass according to the guide on the edges.
     
3. Make sure blank paper is loaded in the input tray for any fax reports that might print.
4. Make sure the phone line is currently not in use. Pick up any phone connected to the same phone line as the fax and listen for a dial tone.
5. From the printer, dial the receiving fax number as if you are making a phone call, including the area code, the outside line access code (such as '9'), and the long distance country code. If dialing with speed dial, confirm the saved number has required pauses between numbers (adding a dash between 9 and the area code, for instance).
6. Press the Black, Color, or Send button to send the fax.
   • If you hear a busy signal, the receiving fax phone line is busy. Try faxing again later.
   • If you hear someone’s voice answer the phone, wait until they manually accept your fax, or cancel the fax from the front panel if you suspect the phone number is wrong.
   • If you hear high-pitched sounds, your fax is being sent.
7. A fax report prints. Read the report to learn if the fax completed successfully, or if an error occurred.

• Answer mode/Auto answer: Select Auto Answer to receive fax calls after a specified number of rings. If this feature is off, you can manually receive faxes by pressing Fax or Black on the printer control panel when you hear a fax call on the phone line.
• Rings to answer: When the phone rings, the printer waits and counts the number of telephone rings before it answers the call.
  • If the phone line is shared with your voice calls, choose a number rings that provides enough time for you to answer the phone before the printer picks up a call.
  • If the phone line is shared with an answering machine, choose a number to pick up that is two rings more than the answering machine. Doing so ensures the answering machine answers the phone before the printer.
• Duplex fax printing: Some printer models support printing incoming faxes on both sides of the paper. Turn on the 2-Sided Fax Printing option, if available.
• Set up HP Digital Fax to save faxes to the computer or email: As an option to printing incoming faxes, you can automatically save incoming faxes to your computer, a folder on the network, or forward them to an email account. Go to Use HP Digital Fax to Receive Faxes to Computer or Email for more information.