With the advancement in time, various technologies have been introduced in the printing industry. Due to the huge impact of emerging technology, vendors introduce numerous printer models that are power-packed with all the technologies. Now printers have become a necessity need for every commercial or non-commercial domain. An innovative device that can easily transform the soft copy format to a hard-copy format.
With the help of these computing devices, individuals can send their overall documents effectively and get the desired outcome. Sometimes, technology can be weird when we talk about wireless or wired printer devices.
There arise multiple problems or errors that can ruin the entire printing experience of a user. The printer goes offline is one of them. This error is experienced by almost every second printer user. This fault frustrates every individual during the printing process.
Get in touch with the professional team of printer helpers as they effectively resolve offline printer problems in printers.
In this blog, we’ll highlight offline printer errors and some of the troubleshooting tips to resolve them.
Before we move on to the solution let’s get understand what exactly an offline error is and its critical reasons.
What do you mean by offline printer error?
A printer offline error is an error that arises when a printer refused to communicate with a desktop or failed to perform the printing process. There can be a number of reasons that can lead to offline printer errors.
Some of them are explained below:
Hardware problem
Having a hardware problem in the printer device sometimes leads to printer offline error. Whenever the external portion of the device is damaged or defective then this makes the printer device slow down the processing speed of the machine.
Installation error
Inadequate installation or without following the on-screen instructions during the installation process of a new & advanced printer machine. It may arise an offline printer error. Due to this, the printer machine failed to operate the instructions and didn’t even produce the desired outcome. It’s better for a user to read out all the installation instructions carefully for a greater printing experience.
Improper connectivity
Connectivity is one of the main concerns for almost every computing device except printers’ machines. If your printer machine doesn’t connect to your internet network then there arise connectivity error. Inspect all the physical cables or connections properly so that they can easily connect to the network. Defective USB cables also failed to perform the tasks in an effective manner.
Outdated printer driver
A printer driver is software that acts as a communicator between your printer machine and the computer system. Without it, a printer device refused to operate all the operations or functions. But sometimes, these driver versions become outdated or infected with the malicious or malware virus, which leads to turning your printer into the offline status. Incompatibility is also an issue. To settle the things, it is recommended that to upgrade the printer driver to its latest or newest versions.
Troubleshooting tips to resolve offline printer errors
Offline printer error is considered as most of the common printer errors, troubleshooting steps to refix this error are illustrated beneath:
Tip 1. Make your printer the default option
First of all, check all the physical connections and cables whether they all are placed effectively or not. Afterward, set your printer device to the default.
Keep these steps in mind while setting a printer device as default:
- Click on the start menu.
- Tap on the settings> devices> printers and scanners option.
- Find & select the printer from the list.
- After that, click to open the queue,
- Go to Printer and click Set As Default Printer.
- Clear Pause Printing and Use Printer Offline if they are selected.
- Click Ok after the message “Windows will stop managing your default printer for you,” pops up.
Tip 2. Clear the print queues
Clearing the overall print queues would solve the offline printer query and let the printer machine function properly. To clear the print queues, perform the following steps:
- On the Windows taskbar, type + R.
- Type services.
- Select Print Spooler and click the Stop icon, if it is not stopped already.
- Navigate to C:\Windows\system32\spool\PRINTERS and open this file.
- Delete all contents inside the folde
- Your print queues are cleared.
Tip 3. Restart the printer spooler service
Sometimes, restarting the printer spooler services may change the entire landscape of the process. Execute these steps for better results.
Type the text "services" in the search tab, which is usually placed next to the Start menu, and then click on Services from the search panel. Re-activate the Print Spooler by finding it and right-clicking it.
Tip 4. Re-insert the printer to the desktop
Re-adding up the printer machine onto the desktop would solve the printer offline printer error for sure. Tap on the Windows start button and then devices> printers and scanners. Choose the printer from the list and then click on remove device & click Yes. Go back to Printers & scanners, click on Add a printer or scanner, and then complete the on-screen instructions add your printer back.
Tip 5. Reboot the computer system
Rebooting the computer system would solve all the queries and gives your device a fresh look as all the pending processes are stopped.
Conclusion
No matter what kind of printer device you have (wired or wireless), offline printer error is the same in both types. Troubleshooting is the best way to get rid of this error. Above mentioned tips should keep in mind if any printer model experiences such a problem.
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