Printer not connecting
If your printer is not connecting to your computer, don’t worry.
You can fix the printer not connected issues easily with the solutions in this
article.
Why isn’t my printer connecting to my computer? The causes are
various. It’s likely that your USB cable is damaged or your printer’s not
detected by your computer. Maybe there’s something wrong with your printer
driver. Whether you’re getting the printer not connected issue suddenly or it
has never worked over the network, you can try the following solutions to fix
your problem.
Try these fixes
- Check
the printer connection
- Update
your printer driver
- Troubleshoot
printer issues
- Restart Print Spooler service
Note: Before getting started, ensure that your printer’s hardware
works properly. If there’s an issue with your printer itself, trying contacting
your printer manufacturer.
Fix 1: Check
the printer connection
1. Restart your printer
Power off and then power on your printer to restart it. Wait for a
while for it to be fully ready.
2. Check the connection issue
If your printer is connected by the USB cable, ensure the cable is
not damaged, and it connects firmly and correctly. Also, check the USB port and
clean the ports in case something inside the port is preventing your USB from
connecting.
If your printer is connected via wireless network or Bluetooth,
follow the manual delivered with your device to connect your printer to WiFi or
Bluetooth properly.
As this varies from manufacturer and printer, for example the
operations vary from HP printers to Brother printers, so we won’t
cover it here and you should follow the product manual.
3. Check the network connection
As the network issues can also cause your printer not connected,
you should also make sure your Internet connection works when you’re using your
printer.
Fix 2: Update
your printer driver
The missing or outdated printer driver can lead to your printer
not connected issue, so you should verify that your printer driver is up to
date.
Updating your printer driver to the latest version can not only
resolve any possible printer issues, like printer not printing, printer error,
etc, but also bring you the best possible experience.
There are
two ways to update your printer driver: manually and automatically.
Manually: you can manually download the printer
driver from the manufacturer, and install it in your computer. Ensure to
download the latest correct version that’s compatible with your Windows system.
As this varies from manufacturers and printer models, so we won’t cover it
here.
Automatically: if you don’t have time or patience, you
can do it automatically with Driver Easy.
Driver Easy will automatically recognize your system and find the
correct drivers for it. You don’t need to know exactly what system your
computer is running, you don’t need to risk downloading and installing the
wrong driver and you don’t need to worry about making a mistake when
installing.
You can update your drivers automatically with either the FREE or
the Pro version of Driver Easy. But with the Pro version, it takes just 2
clicks (and you get full support and a 30-day money back guarantee):
1) Download and install Driver Easy.
2) Run Driver Easy and click the Scan Now button. Driver Easy
will then scan your computer and detect any problem drivers.
3) Click the Update button next to the flagged printer to
automatically download the correct version of their driver (you can do this
with the FREE version), then install it in your computer.
Or click Update All to automatically download and install the
correct version of all the drivers that are missing or out of date on your
system (this requires the Pro version – you’ll be prompted to upgrade when you
Click Update All).
4) Restart your computer to take effect.
Try to use your printer again to see if it’s connecting.
Fix 3:
Troubleshoot printer issues
You can also try the troubleshooting tool to diagnose and fix your
printer issues. Here’s how to do it:
1) Open Control Panel in your computer, and view by large icons
or small icons.
2) Click Devices and Printers.
3) Find your printer, right click on your printer (sometimes it
may display as Unspecified) and select Troubleshoot.
4) Let your computer troubleshoot the issue and follow the
on-screen instructions to fix it.
The Print Spooler service spools print jobs and handles
interactions with the printer. If the service isn’t working, you won’t be able
to see your printers and your printers won’t be connected. So you can restart
the Print Spooler service to fix the issue.
1) On your keyboard, press the Windows logo key and R at the
same time to invoke the Run box.
2) Type services.msc and click OK.
3) Scroll down and find the Print Spooler service.
4) If the service is running, right click on the service and
select Stop, then right click on the service and click Start to restart the
service.
If the service isn’t running properly, right click on the service
and click Start to run the service.
5) Restart your computer and try your printer again see if your
printer is connected.
That’s it. Hope this post comes in handy and helps resolve your
printer not connected issue. If you have any questions, feel free to leave a
comment below.