Compatibility issue with Xerox Phaser 3020 on macOS Sonoma

On the Xerox Phaser 3020 page, it shows that this device is AirPrint ready under specifications. That means once it is on your LAN as a Wi-Fi device, you can use it without any Xerox drivers by using Apple's built-in AirPrint in Sonoma or later.

Power on the 3020 and ensure it is connected to your network via Wi-Fi. In Sonoma's System Settings > Printers & Scanners panel, locate the 3020 entry in Printers and Right-click on it and select Remove Printer… You will get an are you sure dialog where you click Remove Printer.

Now, click the [ Add Printer, Scanner, or Fax… ] button. That will open an Add Printer panel and you should see the Xerox Phaser 3020 detected by Apple's Bonjour service. The Default toolbar icon should be lit, and when you click on your printer entry, you will see Auto Select flash briefly in the Use: selector and then your printer name will appear there. Click Add. A new entry for your printer will appear under Printers again. Right-click on it and select Set Default Printer. You should be able to print now in Sonoma or subsequent releases of macOS.

Here is an animated example of performing the last paragraph on my AirPrint-supported Samsung ML-2955ND laser. To re-animate, refresh the browser as I limited the animation cycles.

My fix on the issue: install the printer for WiFi use only!

1. Download the WiFi Setting Utility for Mac OS 10.15 and Higher here: https://www.support.xerox.com/en-zw/content/150014
2. Sart your printer connected trough a USB cable to your Mac
3. Run the WiFi Setting Utility for Mac and choose to set your printer to your local WiFi network trough USB connection
4. Disconnect the USB cable and use printer as a WiFi printer

Hope it helps.

P.S. I use Squoia 15.1 on a M2 Macbook Air

EduardoJordan wrote:

I’m reaching out regarding a compatibility issue with my Xerox Phaser 3020 printer after updating to macOS Sonoma 14.6.1 on my new MacBook Air. This printer worked perfectly on my previous MacBook running macOS 12 Monterey, but it is no longer functional due to the lack of drivers compatible with newer macOS versions.

Did you try to reinstall the drivers?

After contacting Xerox support, they confirmed that they have no plans to release drivers for macOS versions beyond 12. As my printer is still in excellent condition, I’m looking for a way to integrate it into macOS Sonoma.

Actually it looks like they haven't updated it since 10.6. And even that installer is ancient and crude.

Is there any method or workaround that would allow me to use this printer on my current macOS version?

Maybe? I don't have that printer, so there is no way to really test it, but here's what I tried:

1. I downloaded the Monterey driver from here: https://www.support.xerox.com/en-us/product/phaser-3020/downloads?platform=macOS12&category=drivers&language=en. Note that this really isn't a Monterey driver. It's a combo 10.5/10.6 driver. Not only is it not Apple Silicon, it's barely Intel.
2. There is is "MAC_Printer" and a "MAC_Data" folder. The "MAC_Printer" seems to hold a non-functional "installer". In "MAC_Data" there is a file "Printer Driver.zip" that seems to hold the contents of the driver.
3. Expand "Printer Driver.zip" to a convenient location, such as "Downloads".
4. The files you want are in the 10.6 folder.
5. First, copy the PPD/gzipfile/Xerox Phaser 3020.gz file somewhere else and expand it. Rename the expanded file to "Xerox Phaser 3020.txt" so you can easily look at it.
6. Install the actual PPD file. I'm an old Unix guy, so I used the command line: "sudo cp Xerox\ Phaser\ 3020.gz /Library/Printers/PPDs/Contents/Resources"
7. Now, go through that expanded version of the PPD file in "Xerox Phaser 3020.txt" and look for any reference to a file in /Library/Printers/Xerox. You'll need to create the necessary folders with "sudo mkdir -p /Library/Printers/Xerox/P3020/PDEs" and "sudo mkdir -p /Library/Printers/Xerox/P3020/SCMS".
8. Look through the expanded installer folder and locate each file and copy it into it's appropriate folder in /Library/Printers/yada/yada/yada.
9. There is one reference to an "Easy Printer Manager" that I couldn't find.
10. Now try to add your printer. The "Default" option probably won't work. Hopefully this printer supports either Internet Printing Protocol - IPP or Line Printer Daemon - LPD. Enter the printer's address. Hopefully this really is a network printer. Under "Select Software", you should see it listed.

I made it this far. I was able to create the printer. Of course it complained that it couldn't communicate with the printer. I don't have the actual printer. But I was able to choose "Continue" and set it up anyway.

There is also an older "Wifi" utility on the Xerox web site under "Big Sur" and earlier downloads. Maybe that will work.

Not having the actual printer, I have no idea if any of this will work. The printer does appear to have Wifi and AirPrint. So maybe with the actual PPD and supporting files installed, Add Printer > Default might work for you.

Good luck!

Does Xerox offer a "generic" driver. If they do, it might work well enough for your needs.

You probably meant this response for etresoft as my approach was simpler using AirPrint. I am sure we are both satisfied with your successful result.