Print queue says Error - Printing
"Error - Printing" in the Windows print queue means a job started but failed partway. Check the printer, clear the queue and fix the connection.
What this error means
In the print queue window, the Status column shows "Error - Printing" when Windows started sending a job to the printer and something went wrong before it finished. The job usually stays stuck at the top of the queue and holds up everything behind it. The cause can be on the printer (a jam, an empty tray, a cartridge problem), in the connection between computer and printer, or in the driver or the document itself.
Common causes
- A paper jam, empty tray, open cover or ink or toner problem on the printer
- The connection dropped mid-job because of Wi-Fi, a loose USB cable or the printer sleeping
- A damaged or very large print job
- The printer port points at an old address or the wrong connection
- A faulty or outdated printer driver
How to fix it
Start with the first fix. They’re ordered from safest and quickest to most involved.
Fixes for Windows
0 of 7 steps tried
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Check the printer for a problem
Look at the printer's screen or lights. Clear any jam, reload paper, close covers and deal with any cartridge or toner message, then press the printer's OK or resume button if it has one. Turn the printer off and unplug it before reaching inside, and on laser printers keep your hands away from the fuser area, which gets hot.
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Cancel the job and clear the queue
Open Settings > Bluetooth & devices > Printers & scanners (Windows 10: Settings > Devices > Printers & scanners), select the printer and choose Open print queue. Right-click the job showing the error and choose Cancel, then do the same for any others. If a job sits at Deleting and won't go, use the next step.
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Restart the spooler and remove stuck jobs
Open Command Prompt as administrator. Run
net stop spooler, then the command below, thennet start spooler. This removes every waiting job, including any that refused to cancel, and gives the print system a fresh start.del /Q /F "%systemroot%\System32\spool\PRINTERS\*.*" -
Power cycle the printer and check the connection
Turn the printer off with its power button, unplug it for about a minute, then turn it back on. For USB, plug the cable straight into the computer rather than a hub and try another port. For a network printer, check its screen or print a network configuration page from its menu to confirm it's connected to the same network as your PC.
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Check the printer port
In Printers & scanners, select the printer, choose Printer properties and open the Ports tab. The ticked port should match how the printer is connected. For a network printer, a Standard TCP/IP Port with the printer's current IP address is often more dependable than a WSD port; use Configure Port to correct an old address. As a test, you can clear Enable bidirectional support, which stops Windows querying the printer's status; turn it back on if it makes no difference.
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Print a test page, then a different document
In Printer properties, on the General tab, click Print Test Page. If the test page prints but your document doesn't, the document is the problem: try printing fewer pages at a time, or save it as a PDF and print that.
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Reinstall the printer driver
If every job fails, remove the printer, then press Win + R, run
printui /s /t2, select its driver and choose Remove driver and driver package. Restart, then add the printer again using the current driver from the manufacturer's official support site or Windows Update.
Did this fix it?
Good. To confirm everything is healthy, print a test page. It takes a minute and shows any quality problems early.
Still stuck? Our printer assistant can walk you through it by live chat, free. . Or the The troubleshooter asks a few questions and narrows it down. If your printer is under warranty, the manufacturer can repair or replace it at no cost. Find their official support site on our brand pages.
Common questions
Can I just restart the printer?
That often clears a temporary fault, but the stuck job may be sent again as soon as the printer reconnects. Cancel the job or clear the queue as well.
Why does every job show Error - Printing?
When every job fails, the cause is usually the connection, the port or the driver rather than one document. Check the port settings and reinstall the driver.