How to Fix SCRCPY Stops Connecting to Phone Over TCPIP After PC Has Been Restarted
If you use SCRCPY to screen mirror and control your Android device wirelessly but always have to reconnect it after rebooting your PC, this guide will walk you through the problem, the limitations of SCRCPY and some potential workarounds you can use to solve this issue. While SCRCPY over WIFI is great it does have some limitations so you might not get the answer you're hoping for.
How to Fix SCRCPY Stops Connecting to Phone Over TCPIP After PC Has Been Restarted
When you run SCRCPY using the Wireless option --tcpip it initiates a wireless ADB connection to your phone. However, this connection is only maintained until your PC is restarted. As soon as you reboot your system, SCRCPY cannot connect wirelessly because the ADB server has lost the connection, and no device is actively connected via USB.
When this happens, you'll get the following error:
"ERROR: Could not find any ADB device
ERROR: Server connection failed."
Try Connecting Via Hostname or IP
ADB connections reset after a reboot.
When you run "scrcpy --tcpip" without specifying an address, it looks for a connected USB device, enables TCP/IP on it, and then connects wirelessly using the device's IP address. If no USB device is connected, scrcpy will try to use an existing wireless connection, but after a reboot, that connection no longer exists.
To reconnect, use "scrcpy --tcpip=[device name or IP address]" to directly connect to your phone by its hostname or IP.
For example:
- To connect via hostname: scrcpy --tcpip=Ryans-B250
- To connect via IP address: scrcpy --tcpip=192.168.1.101
If the router forgets the hostname, using a static IP ensures consistent connections though this might not always be a viable option.
Create a Shortcut for Quick Access.
To streamline the process, create a shortcut or script for your SCRCPY command.
Example Shortcut on Windows:
- Open Notepad and type your preferred SCRCPY command, such as:
scrcpy-noconsole.vbs --turn-screen-off --disable-screensaver --show-touches --stay-awake --video-codec=h265 --video-bit-rate=32M --audio-bit-rate=256K --max-fps=144 --tcpip=Ryans-B250
- Save the file with a .bat extension (e.g. SCRCPY_connect.bat).
- Double-click this file whenever you want to start a wireless SCRCPY session.
Check out the full guide here on how to do it if you get stuck.
Basic Steps you should always be following
If you are still having issues with SCRCPY Wireless you might need to go back to the drawing board and start the entire set-up process again. Remember that you need to be able to run the wired set-up first, followed by the wireless set-up. If it has been a while and you don't remember you can check out our comprehensive guides on both topics below. Remember! You need a cable capable of file sharing first.
How to use SCRCPY to Display and control your Android device on Windows
How to set up SCRCPY Wireless. (SCRCPY Wireless setup guide)