How to restart the Print Spooler and clear stuck jobs
Restart the Windows Print Spooler, clear stuck print jobs from its folder, or reset the printing system on a Mac when the queue won't empty.
The Print Spooler is the Windows service that holds your print jobs and passes them to the printer. When a job gets stuck, the queue won't clear or printers vanish from apps, restarting the spooler and clearing its job folder usually fixes it. On a Mac, you can cancel jobs or, as a last resort, reset the printing system.
Steps
Windows 11 / 10
0 of 7 steps tried
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Restart it from Services
Press Win + R, type
services.mscand press Enter. Scroll to Print Spooler, right-click it and choose Restart (or Start if Restart is greyed out). The Status column should then read Running. -
Or restart it from an admin Command Prompt
Press Win, type
cmd, right-click Command Prompt, choose Run as administrator and click Yes. Run the command below; you should see one message saying the service stopped and another saying it started. If you see "System error 5" or "Access is denied", the window isn't running as administrator.net stop spooler && net start spooler -
Stop the spooler before clearing jobs
If stuck jobs come back after a restart, clear the spooler's folder. First stop the service with Stop in Services or the command below in an admin Command Prompt. If asked whether to also stop dependent services such as Fax, type Y and press Enter.
net stop spooler -
Delete the stuck job files
Open File Explorer, paste
C:\Windows\System32\spool\PRINTERSinto the address bar and press Enter, clicking Continue if asked for permission. Select everything inside (Ctrl + A) and delete it, but keep the PRINTERS folder itself. These files are only queued jobs, so anything waiting to print will need sending again. The command below does the same in an admin Command Prompt.del /Q /F "%systemroot%\System32\spool\PRINTERS\*.*" -
Start the spooler again
Click Start on Print Spooler in Services, or run the command below. Open the print queue to check it is now empty.
net start spooler -
Make sure it starts automatically
In Services, double-click Print Spooler and set Startup type to Automatic, then click OK. If it is set to Manual or Disabled, printers can disappear after a restart.
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Print a test page
Send a test page to confirm printing works. If the spooler keeps stopping by itself, a faulty printer driver is a common cause; see the guide to a print spooler that keeps stopping.
macOS
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Cancel jobs from the queue
Click the printer's icon in the Dock, or open it from System Settings > Printers & Scanners. Select each stuck job and click the delete (X) button next to it.
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Cancel all jobs from Terminal
Open Terminal from Applications > Utilities and run the command below. It cancels every queued job on every printer without changing your printers or settings.
cancel -a -
Restart the Mac
A restart clears any stuck printing processes. Try printing again afterwards.
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Reset the printing system as a last resort
In System Settings > Printers & Scanners, Control-click an empty area of the printer list and choose Reset printing system, then confirm and enter your password. This removes all printers, their settings and any waiting jobs. On macOS 12 and earlier, the same option is in System Preferences > Printers & Scanners.
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Add your printer again
Click Add Printer, Scanner or Fax, select your printer, choose AirPrint or the manufacturer's driver from the Use menu and click Add.
Tips
- Clearing the PRINTERS folder only removes queued jobs. Leave the other folders inside
spoolalone, because Windows keeps printer drivers there. - If a job shows "Deleting" in the queue for minutes, restarting the spooler is the quickest way to clear it.
- Windows also has a printer troubleshooter that can restart the spooler for you: on Windows 11, Settings > System > Troubleshoot > Other troubleshooters > Printer; on Windows 10, Settings > Update & Security > Troubleshoot > Additional troubleshooters.
Common questions
Is it safe to delete the files in the PRINTERS folder?
Yes, as long as the spooler is stopped first. The files are only jobs waiting to print; deleting them cancels those jobs and nothing else.
Will restarting the spooler remove my printers?
No. Your printers, drivers and settings stay as they are. Only jobs in progress may be cancelled. On a Mac, resetting the printing system is different: it does remove all printers.
Why does the command say access is denied?
Stopping and starting services needs administrator rights. Close the window, then right-click Command Prompt and choose Run as administrator.