How to diagnose a printer connection problem.

We've all been there: printer works fine for months / years and then one day - nothing! What went wrong?

It could be a number of things: faulty printer; faulty cable; bad driver; bad software; bad windows install; user problem!

There are a number of steps you can take to diagnose the problem. Here are a few:

1. Go to the printers part of the control panel and delete all instances of the printer (don't worry!)
2. Go to "Add/remove programs" and uninstall any printer related software
3. Switch off and disconnect the printer
4. Reboot into Safe Mode (Press F5 or F8) when the computer starts
5. Insert the driver disk if you have one and follow the instructions
6. Switch on the printer and connect the USB cable when asked
7. Enjoy printing again!

If this doesn't work then (in no particular order)

1. Change the USB cable to one that you know works (try yours on a different device)
2. Make sure Windows is uptodate.
3. You're still having problems go to the manufacturer's website and check for the latest drivers.
4. While you're there, check for any known problems with your printer and your version of Windows.

If you're still having problems then take your install your printer on another computer and see what happens. If it doesn't work on someone else's then the chances are good that the printer is faulty (assuming you've changed the USB cable).

Please see this article for other printer problems: Solve Your Printer Problems.

Hardware