How to fix printer spooler problems on Windows 11

• To fix the printer spooler on Windows 11, open Services, select and open the “Print Spooler” service properties, and stop the service. Then open the “printers” folder and delete its contents. Finally, start the “Print Spooler” service again.
• Another way to repair the print spooler is to open Command Prompt (admin) and run the “net stop spooler,” “del /Q /F /S “%systemroot%\System32\Spool\Printers\*.*,”” and “net start spooler” commands.

UPDATED 1/15/2024: On Windows 11, you can fix the printer spooler in at least two ways, and in this guide, I will teach you how to resolve this problem. Dealing with a document that becomes stuck during printing can be frustrating, and attempting to cancel the print job may result in it remaining in the “deleting” state indefinitely, adding to the inconvenience.

Usually, this problem can occur because of issues with the “print spooler,” a service that handles the print jobs queued between the computer and printer. When a user sends a document to print, the spooler temporarily stores the data in the spooler until the printer is ready to process it. This functionality allows users to continue working without waiting for the entire printing process to finish. Although rare, the print spooler sometimes can stop working, even after restarting the computer.

If you can’t print due to this issue, on Windows 11, you can reset the print spooler using the Services console or Command Prompt to resolve the problem.

This guide will teach you the steps to fix the print spooler on Windows 11.

• Fix print spooler on Windows 11 from Services
• Fix print spooler on Windows 11 from Command Prompt

Fix print spooler on Windows 11 from Services

To fix the print spooler on Windows 11, use these steps:

1. Open Start on Windows 11.

2. Search for services.msc and click the top result to open the Services console.

3. Right-click the Print Spooler service and select the Properties option.

   

4. Click the General tab.

5. Click the Stop button.

   

6. Use the “Windows key + R” keyboard shortcut to open the Run command.

7. Type the following path to the “printers” folder and press Enter:

   C:\Windows\System32\spool\printers

8. Click the Continue button (if applicable).

9. Select everything in the “printers” folder (Ctrl + A keyboard shortcut) and hit the Delete button to remove the contents.

   

10. Click the General tab on the “Printer Spooler Properties” page.

11. Click the Start button to restart the service.

    

12. Click the OK button.

Once you complete the steps, the Windows 11 spooler should be able to send the job and the printer for printing.

Fix print spooler on Windows 11 from Command Prompt

To fix print spooler problems from Command Prompt on Windows 11, use these steps:

1. Open Start.

2. Search for Command Prompt, right-click the top result, and select the Run as Administrator option.

3. Type the following commands (one line at a time) to stop the print spooler, delete the “printers” folder content, restart the printer spooler, and press Enter:

   net stop spooler
   del /Q /F /S "%systemroot%\System32\Spool\Printers\*.*"
   net start spooler

   

After you complete the steps, sending a print job from Windows 11 to the printer should work.

Update January 15, 2024: This guide has been updated to ensure accuracy and add more informatin.