Troubleshooting Your Printer
The ubiquity of digital platforms has not rendered printing obsolete. Rather, it has incredibly transformed it into a unique marketing alternative. Despite the widespread shift to digital channels, many of today’s businesses still utilize printed materials to establish their brand’s visibility, reach a wider spectrum of audiences, and solidify the connection with their target market. Another significant benefit of printing is that it offers a more secure way to receive and send information. Business, regardless of size and shape, largely relies on information to communicate better decisions and translate their plans into reality. Storing information in digital forms provides a high degree of convenience, but it can put valuable information at risk of being intercepted by unauthorized individuals. Hence, it is always essential to have printed copies of important documents.
Printers, without doubt, are a crucial and indispensable part of every corporate environment. However, such technology doesn’t come without its own set of complexities and challenges. Although recent innovations in technology have fueled the emergence of highly efficient and more advanced printing equipment, print-related issues remain a huge concern in the workplace. The awful reality is that no matter what printing equipment you use, there is always the possibility that it will break down. If your print system fails, the impact can be catastrophic, from costly delays and frustrations to crippled business performance. Therefore, they must be resolved quickly before they cause more errors and become serious roadblocks. If you have ever encountered problems with your printer and asked yourself, “ Why won’t my printer print?”, then now is the time to learn more about the most common printer issues and master some basic troubleshooting skills. Here is a list of the most common culprits that cause your printer to stop printing, and how you can troubleshoot them.
Printer Driver Issues
Printer drivers play a critical role in the proper functioning of hardware devices. They are usually installed to enable communication between the operating system and the hardware device. Just like any other device, your printer needs a driver to install in the computer system so that the printer could perform its task. One way of installing printer drivers on windows is by navigating to settings and devices. Without a driver, it would not be possible for the computer to properly send and receive information or data to the printer. So, why won’t my printer print? An outdated or incompatible printer driver is just one of the many reasons why your printer isn’t printing. When the driver installed against your printer is outdated or simply not compatible, your printer will not be able to do its job. To enable communication with your printer and desktop, uninstall your old driver and replace it with an up-to-date version.
Loaded Queue
Why won’t my printer print? Another reason why your printer isn’t working is that the printer fails to clear itself. All printers have a printing queue that handles all the print jobs being sent to the printer. If your print jobs get stuck in the print queue, your printer will not be able to receive print jobs. When that happens, you will not be able to resume printing. A loaded print job can be a huge source of frustration if not resolved quickly. Clicking delete can sometimes do the trick, however, it doesn’t work most of the time. To fix the issue, you need to clear the print queue manually to get your printer working again. Before clearing the queue, switch off your printer first and disconnect it from the power source. Input “services” in the search box to open windows services. You can also click the window button on the keyboard to do this step. Scroll down to locate Print Spooler. Once you see the print spooler, double click on it and look for the stop button. Press the stop button to disable the spooler. Once you’ve stopped all print jobs, press the file explorer button and navigate to C:\Windows\System32\Spool\PRINTERS. Select all the files in the folder and press the delete button to delete existing files in the queue. Open the print spooler dialog box again and turn on the print spooler. Turn on your printer, and start printing.
Paper Jams
Why won’t my printer print? When paper gets jammed in the printer, the printer will stop printing. Paper jam is one of the most frustrating problems you can run into when printing. Clearing paper jams is not only a huge source of employee frustration but it is also a major cause of wasted time in the workplace. Since paper jam is a common printer problem, learning how to efficiently deal with such situation can significantly reduce the amount it takes to clear up the problem. Check the print model and brand first so you can implement the best solution. Although most printers are similar in design, there can still be variations. Modern printers often come with a diagnostic tool and information which can be usually found in the maintenance menu. Incorrect alignment of sheets in the tray can cause the paper to jam. To fix this problem, remove the paper from the printer and be sure to align the edges before loading it back to the tray. Overfilling tray cab also causes the paper to jam in the printer. To prevent the occurrence of paper jams, make sure not to overload the printer tray and check the printer guidelines for the recommended number of sheets. Low-quality paper can also be a possible cause for printer jams. This is primarily because cheap or low-grade paper can leave behind a huge amount of tiny dust particles that over time accumulate in the machine. While these particles are not visible, they can cause the printer’s components to jam up. When clearing stuck paper from the printer, always try to remove the paper with both hands and pull it from the back of the printer tray. Pulling the jammed paper out forcefully from under the front cover can potentially damage the unit.
Aside from these common printer problems, there are other issues that you need to address to maintain an efficient printing environment. Implementing a reliable managed print services solution can also help you optimize your company’s printing performance.