I have rewcently upgraded to a new Windows 11 PC and my old scanner will not work.

Hi, just scanned a bunch of photos using my Epson Perfection 4990 Photo, here in April 2026. If you download the latest Event Manager SW v3.11.77 (from Epson, which works for Windows 11), install that. Believe it or not, Epson 4990 Scanner driver v. 3.04a for Windows 7 64 works fine for Windows 11! You can download that there too.

I already had Epson Scan 1.3.0.1 and that is what I use, but I don't know where to get it now; I did not find it under that scanner's downloads page at Epson but it works!

Hope this helps. It still is a fine scanner, better than with most multi-function printers.

T

Hi Don,

Sorry about the issue you are having with you're scanner, a quick check: your scanner is quite an older model, so native support on Windows 11 might be limited. Epson officially lists drivers for some older scanners only up to Windows 10, But you can First, check for Windows 11 compatible drivers on Epson’s support page for the Perfection 4990, and if none are listed, download the Windows 10 driver instead. Next, install the driver in compatibility mode by right-clicking the installer, selecting Properties, then Compatibility, then Run this program in compatibility mode for Windows 10, and run it as administrator this helps older software work on newer Windows versions. Then, check Windows Update, under Optional updates and Driver updates, to see if Windows can provide a generic scanner driver automatically. Also, make sure the scanner is connected directly via USB to the PC, not through a hub, and try different ports if needed, as older scanners sometimes struggle with USB 3.0. Finally, a couple of questions to narrow this down: did your old scanner ever work on Windows 10, or is this the first time trying it on a new PC? And is the scanner connected via USB directly, or through a hub?

Kind regards,

You install full feature software from Epson and NOT winupdate

https://www.epson.co.uk/en_GB/support/sc/epson-perfection-4990/s/s509

Win11 by default only installs critical security updates, unless you made the mistake of selecting “Get latest updates” which includes drivers.

See your laptop/PC makers support to update both bios and makers drivers.

There should be a shortcut to that makers update utility on your system.

Then set Bios to defaults & Pwr to balanced. At the end of the day shutdown, do not leave in sleep.                                                                                                              

Do NOT update from any other source inc Device Manager

You only need to set the Advanced options for notify & Time, then leave win update to do its own thing.