I have 3 different models of Mac including Intel and Apple Silicon and all of them can run windows either via Boot Camp or via a VM. For reasons unknown when I connect any of these Mac's via USB to the Zebra cradle with a MC920No scanner in place they just don't recognise that there is any kind of USB device connected. I don't get any beeps or pop up messages relating to device detection or driver installation. I have tried 2 different cradles/scanners and cables and I'm wondering if its something about the apple kit itself. I am running Windows on the Boot Camp machine which I think is going to have the best chance. I even got Windows XP with ActiveSync running in a VM but it did not acknowledge the presence of anything connected to the USB port. Very odd.
Ideally it would be nice to get some app with runs natively on the Mac but without USB connectivity even Android File Transfer is a non starter.
I am using MacOS Monterey.
Any ideas ? Support for connectivity seems a little ancient and flakey to be honest - I can understand the desire to move to Android but I foresee problems with that if the Mac does not recognise any connection to the USB port.
Any help most appreciated.
7 Replies
Hello,
I know you tried doing this on some Mac devices but do you have the possibility of checking this on a Windows PC?
If you're able to try this on a physical Windows PC, please follow this guide to get the WMDC working again:
https://www.zebra.com/us/en/support-downloads/knowledge-articles/evm/wi…
If you manage to get it working then unfortunately the root of the cause would be the Mac itself and unfortunately there isn't very much we could do about it.
Let me know how it goes..
Regards,
Daniel
Many thanks for that. I have an old 2013 MacBook which I have installed BootCamp onto with WIndows 10. Once I had applied the instructions above it would detect the cradle/scanner and I can now browse the file system.
Thanks again
Dave
I assume it's not going to be any easier when the customer moves to Android - I'm still going to have to use Windows 10 to connect. The problem is that Bootcamp has been removed as an option on modern MacBooks with the Apple Silicon M1 chips. You can run Windows 11 AARM64 in a VM but it's going to be a bit of a stretch getting some software working with that.
It would be great if Zebra wrote some client and server utils which could be installed on the scanners and laptop which would communicate and support multiple platforms. Maybe that's something I could consider as a Java developer.
Dave
As you might already know, the MC9200 devices were discontinued in June, 2020 (Android) and August, 2021 (Windows). However, both are still supported by Zebra through 2025 and 2026, respectively.
Since you mentioned ActiveSync, I would assume that your devices are running Windows Mobile/CE, the setup for which is tricky. You might try taking a look at the docs linked below. They're a bit dated, but were extensively tested on the Win Mobile/CE devices you are using:
https://techdocs.zebra.com/enterprise-browser/2-0/guide/setup/#deployme…
BEFORE YOU BEGIN, there are a few basic troubleshooting steps I suggest trying, just to clear the basics. The first obvious question would be whether other (non-Zebra) USB devices are able to connect and work properly with your Mac through BootCamp and/or VM. If yes, here are a few more things to test:
1. If possible, test the Zebra cradle and USB cable on a pure Windows machine to verify that they're working.
2. On the Mac, be sure that you're NOT connecting the Zebra cradle through any kind of hub. The cradle must connect DIRECTLY to a USB port that is known to be good (works with other non-Zebra peripherals).
If all that works, it's reasonable to expect the process linked above should produce results for you. If not, consider opening a support ticket at the link below:
https://www.zebra.com/us/en/about-zebra/contact-zebra/contact-tech-supp…
Best of luck, and thank you for choosing Zebra.
As you might already know, the MC9200 devices were discontinued in June, 2020 (Android) and August, 2021 (Windows). However, both are still supported by Zebra through 2025 and 2026, respectively.
Since you mentioned ActiveSync, I would assume that your devices are running Windows Mobile/CE, the setup for which is tricky. You might try taking a look at the docs linked below. They're a bit dated, but were extensively tested on the Win Mobile/CE devices you are using:
https://techdocs.zebra.com/enterprise-browser/2-0/guide/setup/#deployme…
BEFORE YOU BEGIN, there are a few basic troubleshooting steps I suggest trying, just to clear the basics. The first obvious question would be whether other (non-Zebra) USB devices are able to connect and work properly with your Mac through BootCamp and/or VM. If yes, here are a few more things to test:
1. If possible, test the Zebra cradle and USB cable on a pure Windows machine to verify that they're working.
2. On the Mac, be sure that you're NOT connecting the Zebra cradle through any kind of hub. The cradle must connect DIRECTLY to a USB port that is known to be good (works with other non-Zebra peripherals).
If all that works, it's reasonable to expect the process linked above should produce results for you. If not, consider opening a support ticket at the link below:
https://www.zebra.com/us/en/about-zebra/contact-zebra/contact-tech-supp…
Best of luck, and thank you for choosing Zebra.
Thanks for everyones help and links.
It is not the same story with Android. I regularly use adb within terminal on my Macbook to transfer files to and from Zebra Android devices. A Windows VM is not required for file transfers. With that said, there are some tools like Zebra StageNow that are Windows only so you may still need access to a Windows VM or PC for that purpose.