purchased a HP ENVY 17 in laptop with Windows 8, to replace a prior HP Laptop that stopped working. The Laptop came with a fingerprint reader which I activated upon setup. It stopped working 1 week ago. When I start up or wake up, the reader light does not indicate ready and when I swipe my finger, it doesn't do anything. I see the hard drive running like it is doing something but the reader does not function. How can I get this feature working again? I get tired of retyping a password to login (which is why I chose a fingerprint reader option).

1. Are you aware of any changes made to the computer prior to the issue?

2. What is the complete model number of the laptop?

This issue may be caused by the fingerprint reader driver.

Method 1:

Run the Hardware troubleshooter.

a) Press the ‘Windows + W’ key on the keyboard.

b) Type troubleshooter in the search box and then press enter.

c) Click hardware and sound and run the hardware and device troubleshooter.

Method 2:

Download the finger print detector drivers from the manufacturer’s website.

Refer:

http://www8.hp.com/us/en/drivers.html

Note: Download and install the fingerprint reader driver for your laptop model.