my scanner (from Mac to HP via a bluetooth connection) failed this morning...

suebeland wrote:

'try disconnecting your VPN connection first and see what happens'......

The VPN forces your network connection to go through a separate tunnel and this makes many networked devices on your local network unreachable. As you found out the hard way. As Old Toad reminded you, the printer connects through the network (WiFi) not bluetooth so using VPN cuts you off that way. It's an annoying aspect that those of us who have to use VPN for our remote connections to the employer's network have to deal with. However I do have an AirPrint printer/scanner and I can use it even with the VPN running.

I guess I would echo the others. Why are you using VPN? If your employer mandates it, fine. If you are using it to be "more secure," or hide where you are, those goals are a mirage. VPN providers (private ones) have been in many scandals and lawsuits for revealing and selling their customers' private information.

Just so you know wireless scanners use WiFi not Bluetooth to connect with Macs.

Here's some food for thought"

Unless you're using a true VPN tunnel, such as between you and your employer's, school's or bank's servers, they provide false security from a privacy standpoint.  Read these articles: Public VPN's are anything but private, Former Malware Distributor Kape Technologies Now Owns a Number of Public VPNs and a Collection of VPN “Review” Websites and Security Risks: The Dangers of Using Free VPNs (eccu.edu).  

Mac OS is catlike in that it cleans itself, Mac OS does not benefit from nor does it require any of the following types of apps:

·      Antivirus Apps

·      Cleaning Apps

·      Security Apps

·      VPN Apps

·      Maintenance Apps

What these types of apps do is the exact opposite of what users want. They make Mac OS slow, appear buggy, can damage Mac OS and sometimes create unwanted behaviors. In short, they are really bad news!

So the first order of business for your computer is that you need to locate the developers. uninstall instructions for your VPN apps and please uninstall it!