Why doesn't the computer see the printer? Many users face this problem. And everything is fine with both devices. In addition, the printing equipment can work perfectly on another PC. And when connecting to the right one, it’s buggy. It is not recognized by the system or produces errors. How to fix the problem?
From the source of the problem to its solution
What to do if the computer does not recognize the printer?
1) Check that the connection is working properly.
Most often due to poor contact Personal Computer does not respond to connected equipment. Therefore, remove the cable and reinsert it. Check that the connection is secure on both sides.
Make sure that the cable is inserted into the computer into the correct, working USB connector. Most printing devices require a USB 2.0 connection. During the test, you can release other connectors (disconnect the mouse, keyboard). Connect the cable to each of them one by one. Perhaps it will respond to some connector.
The banal reason for the invisibility of printing equipment is that the on/off button was not pressed. They just forgot. It is located in an awkward place (either behind or to the side). Make sure you press it. The light on the housing should light up.
2) The driver has fallen off.
Or you forgot to install it altogether. Let's look at the situation of forgetfulness first.
In order for the PC to recognize the connected device, you need to download a special program. She is on installation disk, which came with the printing device. Insert the disc into the drive and follow the instructions of the installation wizard. Everything is clear there. Every next step is displayed on the screen.
If there is no disk, you will have to look for drivers on the Internet. Look at the manufacturer of your printer, model (all data is on the device body) and enter this information into the search engine. Choose the official website of the manufacturer. There you will find the section with drivers. Download the necessary ones. What should you pay attention to? Compliance of drivers and utilities
- printing device models;
- operating system of your computer (programs for 64-bit, 32-bit, etc. OS).
If you are asked to restart your PC, comply with the request.
Now you need to check the result of the work done. How can I do that?
Go to the Start menu. Go to the “Printers and Facts” tab. The necessary equipment must be there.
But often everything is installed, but the problem still exists. It's inside the operating system. So, if the laptop does not see Wi-Fi, first check the settings of the laptop itself.
Let's consider a situation where the driver is installed, but it is buggy. Flew off. The device can be displayed, but it does not work. Step-by-step instructions for fixing the problem can be outlined as follows:
1. Go to “Control Panel” - “Add or Remove Programs” (in different systems the path may be slightly different).
2. Find the name of your printing device and delete it.
3. Go to “Start” again - “Printers and Faxes” - “File” (in the upper left corner) – “Server Properties” - “Drivers” (in some systems the path to them is through the “Device Manager”).
4. Select the model of the printing gadget and delete it (if the system does not show the desired name, delete everything).
5. Install the drivers again.
3) By default, other printing equipment is selected.
This is not a problem, but a problem. Very common and therefore easily solved. After installing the required equipment, click on its icon right click mouse and check the box next to “Use as default”.
4) Automatic printing service is disabled.
"Start" menu - "Control Panel" - "Administration" - "Print Spooler". Double click open the tab. We are looking for the inscription “Startup type”. Set it to “Auto” (“Automatic”).
5) Operating system failure.
How can I check this? Connect your printing device to another computer or laptop. If it works, then there is a problem in the system. You'll have to reinstall it.
Perhaps these are all the reasons for the invisibility of a working printer.
The article explains the reasons why a computer or laptop cannot detect the printer in the system.
Surely almost all users have encountered such a problem when certain external devices that they connected to their computers and laptops were not detected by the system " Windows».
This may affect the webcam, printer, and speakers. In this review we will talk about why laptops and computers do not see (do not recognize via USB) printers, and also how to deal with this.
Reasons why a computer or laptop may not recognize the printer
First of all, inspect USB cable, through which you connect the printer to your laptop or computer. Carefully examine whether it is worn out, whether there are any fractures, or whether there is any breakage at all. Check the USB plug itself on the wire, as well as the USB connector on the computer/laptop. All these components must not be loose or damaged.
Then check how the printer itself works. Turn it on and see if the corresponding indicators light up.
Why doesn't the laptop or computer see the printer? Computer, laptop does not find the printer, what should I do?
If everything works fine for you physically, then let's start checking the operating system and software.
- Run " device Manager» (« Start-Control Panel-Device Manager"). Here you will need to check the operation of the printer drivers. Look in the list to see if this driver is there. If it is there, right-click on it and then click on “ Properties"(if it is not there, read below on how to install drivers).
Why doesn't the laptop or computer see the printer? Computer, laptop does not find the printer, what should I do?
- After this, a window will open. Look carefully at the screenshot. If you see approximately the same picture, then everything is fine with the driver. If you see something different, then the driver needs to be reinstalled. Although, sometimes it is necessary to reinstall the driver in both cases. It won't hurt.
Why doesn't the laptop or computer see the printer? Computer, laptop does not find the printer, what should I do?
- So, in the same window indicated in the previous step, go to the “ Driver" and uninstall the driver as seen in the image.
Why doesn't the laptop or computer see the printer? Computer, laptop does not find the printer, what should I do?
- After this, you need to install the driver again. Usually, when selling a printer, the seller is required to give you a disk with software. It has necessary programs and drivers.
- Insert it into your laptop or computer and then install the driver, the system will tell you how to do it. There shouldn't be any problems here. But if you do not have the specified disk, then you will have to download it from the official website of the company that manufactured your printer (“ Epson”, “Samsung”, “Canon" etc.).
- On the manufacturer's website, follow the same steps as shown in the screenshot.
Why doesn't the laptop or computer see the printer? Computer, laptop does not find the printer, what should I do?
- Next, you will need to download the driver for your printer model (after downloading, install it on your computer - just run installation file and follow the system instructions).
Why doesn't the laptop or computer see the printer? Computer, laptop does not find the printer, what should I do?
- Next, after installing the driver, go to “ Control Panel" and there go to the item " Devices and Printers».
Why doesn't the laptop or computer see the printer? Computer, laptop does not find the printer, what should I do?
- If everything is fine, you should see the printer in the list of devices visible on your computer/laptop.
Why doesn't the laptop or computer see the printer? Computer, laptop does not find the printer, what should I do?
- If you have several printers, right-click on the one you need, and then assign it as the default device.
Why doesn't the laptop or computer see the printer? Computer, laptop does not find the printer, what should I do?
- Next, right-click on it again and go to “ Properties" Then follow the steps as shown in the screenshot.
Why doesn't the laptop or computer see the printer? Computer, laptop does not find the printer, what should I do?
- In addition to this, it wouldn’t hurt to do one more action. The fact is that your operating system may have a disabled service that allows printers to function. Login via " Control Panel" V " Administration" and further - in " Services».
Why doesn't the laptop or computer see the printer? Computer, laptop does not find the printer, what should I do?
- A window will open with a list of all services that are available in the system. Find in the list " Print Manager» and click on it with the mouse twice.
Why doesn't the laptop or computer see the printer? Computer, laptop does not find the printer, what should I do?
- Next a window will open. In it, all options must be set exactly as indicated in the screenshot. If you have a different operating system, then you should take into account that the specified service must be started (enabled) and work automatically.
Why doesn't the laptop or computer see the printer? Computer, laptop does not find the printer, what should I do?
Video: What to do if the computer does not see the printer?
Are you connecting your printer to your Windows XP computer but nothing happens? The system does not recognize your printer, identifying it as unknown device? Or, despite the fact that the printer is installed and correctly detected, it is impossible to print on it? Let's try to figure out why printing equipment refuses to work normally.
Why doesn't my Windows XP computer see the printer?
The computer may not see or recognize the printer incorrectly for the following reasons:
- the printer is turned off or faulty;
- the cable connecting the printer to the computer is faulty;
- on older computers to which printers are connected via COM or LPT ports, these same ports either do not work or are disabled in the BIOS.
- when connecting modern USB printers, the reason may also be a non-working USB port;
- printer drivers are not installed;
- The Print Spooler service is not running;
- software the printer is not supported by Windows XP or conflicts with other software;
- If problems arise when connecting network printers, there are errors in the network settings.
Eliminating hardware reasons
It is not always possible to cope with hardware problems on your own, but you need to check what is within your power first. To make sure the printer is working properly, connect it to another computer - if the printer is faulty, the problem will occur there too.
Also check the cable you use to connect the printer to your PC. If you have the opportunity to replace it and test the work with another, be sure to do so. And of course, try connecting the cable to other USB ports on your computer.
If your system does not see printers connected to COM ports, you need to make sure that the ports are not disabled in the BIOS. To do this, go to the “Advanced” tab – “IO Device Configuration” or “Integrated peripherals” and make sure that the COM Port parameter (other names for the option are Onboard Serial Port, Serial Port Address, Serial Port) is set to “Enabled”.
To check whether the LTP port is enabled, also go to the same tab in the BIOS and look at the value of the Onboard Parallel Port option (Parallel Port Address, Parallel Port). It should not be “Disabled” either. If the port is enabled, you can see some values in the settings of these options, for example, Auto, 378H/IRQ7 or other similar ones.
It happens that COM and LTP ports are enabled in the BIOS, but the computer still does not see the printers. This often indicates a fault with the contacts in the connectors or the controller chip that controls these ports (Super I/O chip). Sometimes this happens when the legs located around the perimeter of this chip move away from the contacts on the motherboard.
Troubleshooting software problems
Installing drivers
The most common reason that Windows XP does not see printers is the lack of necessary drivers. To check this, open Device Manager. Right-click on “My Computer” on the desktop, open “Properties”, go to the “Hardware” tab and click the “Device Manager” button.
If you see question marks or exclamation marks, such as here -
the reason is obvious: Windows XP simply doesn't know what the device is, so it can't use it.
Printers are always supplied with a disk with drivers, and to solve this problem, just insert the disk into the drive and point the New Hardware Wizard to the path to it.
The driver will install automatically. After restarting your computer, you can check how your printer prints.
If there is no such disk, but you have access to the Internet, you can find required driver by device code. To do this, do the following:
- Find your printer in Device Manager and open its properties.
- Go to the “Details” tab.
- Select “Equipment IDs” from the list.
- Copy the top line from the code list.
- Paste it into the line Google search, Yandex or others search engines. Most likely, several web resources will be found from where you can download suitable driver. It is more reliable and secure to download drivers from the websites of equipment manufacturers.
Checking if the Print Spooler service is running
Service Print Spooler or Print Spooler is responsible for the interaction of printer drivers with operating system, I/O components (ports) and network protocols. If it is disabled, don't be surprised if your printer doesn't print or Windows XP doesn't see it.
By default, the Print Spooler service is assigned a startup type of “automatic”. But sometimes users themselves turn it off as unnecessary, when there is no printing equipment.
- To check, open “Start” - “Run” or press the “R” and “Windows” keys.
- Enter the command in the “Open” line services.msc and click OK. The service management program will launch.
- Find “Print Spooler” in the list of services and open its properties (from context menu).
- Give it a startup type of “Auto” and also start it if it is stopped.
- If the “Print Spooler” does not start, check if the “Remote Procedure Call (RPC)” service is running and if the file C:WindowsSystem32Spoolsv.exe is on your hard drive.
Why won't the printer install?
However, in some cases, despite the presence of drivers and correct setting services, the system still does not see and does not install the printer. This happens for the following reasons:
- Windows XP has not been updated for a long time and therefore does not support new printers;
- Printers were previously installed on this computer and their utility utilities remained in the system, which conflict with the new drivers.
- Security software does not trust drivers, especially those that are not signed by Microsoft, and therefore blocks their installation.
To deal with the first problem, just update Windows XP. To do this, open the “Security Center” through the Control Panel and in the right half of the window select “Check for the latest Windows updates Update".
Download all available updates from the Microsoft website. It is especially important to install Service Pack 3 for Windows XP if you do not have it.
If the update did not help, and you know for sure that other printers were previously used on the computer, remove all components belonging to them through “Add or Remove Programs”.
The next step is to check whether the installation of unsigned drivers is blocked on your system. Since installing drivers without a Microsoft digital signature is quite dangerous (due to the possibility of viruses entering the system), Windows XP may prohibit this.
Open system properties by right-clicking on “My Computer”. Go to the “Hardware” tab and click the “Driver Signing” button. If in the list of Windows XP actions you have the option “Block - prevent installation of an unsigned driver” selected, select “Warn - prompt you to choose an action every time.”
If you use third-party software such as antiviruses and firewalls to protect your computer, temporarily disable them during driver installation.
How to connect a network printer
In cases where the network printer of a home group of computers does not print or is not recognized, the highest frequency of reasons is incorrect network settings.
First of all, make sure that in your network environment there is a computer to which the printer is physically connected. Both your and that PC must be part of the same workgroup, which is configured through System Properties - the “Computer Name” tab.
Open the “Network Neighborhood” window and click on the “Show workgroup computers” menu item for network tasks.
If the required PC is not in this window, make sure that it is working and connected to home network. Check it and your network settings. Local IP addresses these two computers must be within the address range for private networks, for example, 192.168.0.0 – 192.168.255.255 and not repeated.
If you see a computer with a printer in the workgroup window, but the printer still does not print documents to your PC, check the sharing setting. On the PC to which the printer is connected, open the “Printers and Faxes” window through the “Start” menu. In this window you should see all your network printing equipment.
Click on the “Printer Sharing” menu and turn on “Sharing” in the properties. After that, check if the network printer prints documents from your PC.
Still no results? Check to see if the ports that the print service uses are blocked (TCP ports 139 and 445). If you are using Windows XP Firewall, open it through Control Panel. On the Exceptions tab, check the box next to File and Printer Sharing. Save the settings and check if the printer prints after these changes.
Why doesn't the printer print?
What to do if the printer still does not print? Perhaps your documents simply haven’t gotten around to it yet. This happens when there is a long print queue for this printer, as well as when there are problems opening a file.
To resolve this issue, you must clear the print queue.
- After opening the “Printers and Faxes” window, right-click on the printer icon.
- Select “Open” from the context menu. You will see how many documents your printer is printing at a given time. Or rather, how many are waiting for their turn.
- Click on “Printer” from top menu and select “Clear print queue” from the list.
- After everything, send the documents to print again. If this was the whole problem, you can see how the printer prints them.
Other reasons that your equipment does not print are: low level ink or toner, as well as various problems in the device itself. Any modern printing equipment informs the user about a lack of ink by turning on special indicators on the body.
As for the breakdown, this option is likely when you have tried all available means of solving the problem, but the printer still does not print or the computer with Windows XP still does not see it. There is nothing left to do but contact the service center.
It is difficult to answer the exact question - why the computer does not see a printer connected via a USB connector. There can be many reasons. Here we will consider, if not all, then most of them. Before you do anything, you need to turn off the printing device and computer. Wait a minute and turn on the devices. If the problem persists, read on.
Turn off the printer and disconnect the USB cable. We look at the connectors in the computer and in the printer. If they are dirty, we clean them. Perhaps an old toothbrush would come in handy here. Connect the cord. If it doesn’t see it, connect it through another USB connector on the computer. If you have a desktop PC, connect to another connector on the back system unit. If the problem persists, disable others for a while peripherals(webcam, scanner, monitor, adapters and other devices). We connect one printer and a mouse with keyboard. If the problem persists, you need to connect the printing device with another USB cable (preferably a thicker and shorter one).
Understanding the printer
Ideally, connect the printer to another computer, install the drivers and try to print something. If printing works, then the problem is in our computer. If the other computer also does not see the printer, then I would take the printing device to a service center.
Getting to grips with the computer
Viruses
It is advisable to check your computer for viruses and other evil spirits. I wrote in detail how to do this in the articles:
It is advisable to scan your computer with two antivirus solutions, preferably different from the antivirus that you have installed. For example. If you have Windows Defender running, then you need to check it using Dr.Web CureIt and Kaspersky utilities Virus Removal Tool. I would also use Malwarebytes Anti-Malware Free and HitmanPro 3 from the last article on the list.
Recovering system files
If viruses or something else (someone else) by mistake or otherwise damaged the system files, you can try to restore them. How to do this was explained and shown in detail in this article. We need to make sure that our Windows is working properly.
After recovery system files I would install all important Windows updates.
Print Manager Service
I described in detail how to enable the Print Spooler service. The service must be enabled and start automatically.
Driver
If we have done all of the above and still, when connected via USB, the computer does not recognize the printer, you need to completely remove the printer driver. How to do this is described in detail in this article.
Then, download fresh driver either from the official website or from the website and install. It is advisable to download the full driver, if available. How to install is described in detail in the following articles:
I would be very pleased if you write in the comments what helped in your case.
How to connect a printer to a computer
There are only two ways to connect the printer to a computer:
- Local.
This method involves connecting the printer to a computer via Wi-Fi or USB. In this case, the connection occurs using the driver included with the purchased printer. The driver can also be downloaded from the Internet. As a rule, connecting in this way eliminates any problems with the connected printer, unlike the second method. - Network.
With this method, the printer can be connected to a computer locally and, thanks to the shared access provided, it also becomes possible to connect to other computers local network or the print server for this printer. It is very easy to make a network printer: just connect it to a computer or print server using Wi-Fi, USB or Lan and open access to all users of this network.
Situations often arise when there are fewer printers in an office or home than there are computers on a given network, and when printing documents, additional printer settings are required so that it can print over the network.
An example of the most common situation. There is a printer to which one computer is connected, and printing is required from another over the network. In such cases, there are several options for connecting the printer to a second computer. The simplest ones are the following:
Connect a network printer using a computer
Sometimes, in order for two computers to work with a printer over a network at the same time, additional settings are necessary (if the “No access” error occurs during setup of a network printer).
Method No. 1
Initially, you should find out the name of the computer (to which the printer is connected). To do this, you need to right-click on the “My Computer” icon. In this menu, select the “Properties” checkbox and in it – a tab called “Computer name”. In Windows7 software, this tab will be the last one in the list of “Properties” marks. You can also get to this menu in another way - by going to the control panel menu, find the “System” icon (“System Properties”).
Having found out the name of the computer we need, we can move on to another computer. In it, click on the “START” button, or you can simply open one of the folders. Next, in the address line (folder address) that appears at the top, you must enter \\computer name. Example: if the computer name is “printserver”, then you need to enter “\\printserver” in the line. After these manipulations, press ENTER. Thus we find ourselves in remote computer and we can see all the network resources available to it. These include a printer that can be installed by simply clicking on it.
If the printer does not appear in the list of available network resources, then you need to open access for it. To do this, go to the computer to which the printer is connected. In it we go to “START”, then selecting the “Printers” tab and in this window that appears we should right-click on the printer that we need. In this menu window, select “Properties”, then find the “Access” tab. In this tab, you need to check the box next to “Open” general access" Thus, this printer will appear in the list of network resources.
Method number 2
You need to go to the control panel and select the “devices and printers” folder from the proposed menu. Then click “Add a printer” (or in other versions “Add a printer”). In the wizard window that appears for installing new devices, you need to click the “Next” button, then selecting “Connect to a printer” or “Browse printers on the network”, confirming your choice by clicking the “Next” button. A new window that appears will offer a list of devices on the network, where you will need to find the printer you need and confirm its selection by clicking the “Next” button. The process will be completed by the operating system without your further participation.
Note
There are cases (if computers on a network with different versions Windows), when during installation you may need a driver for the printer. Such a driver can be taken from the disk that came with the printer, or downloaded from the Internet - from the website of the manufacturer of this printer.
If the printer is connected to the network directly using its own network interface or through a print server, then it is easier to connect such a device using the installation wizard, which, as a rule, comes with the printer (MFP) in the form of a CD.
If it is not possible to use such a disk, then you should use another method. To do this, go to the “Add Printer Wizard” following the instructions in Method 2. Here you should select the “ Local printer"and further - "Create new port" In this menu, select “Standard TCP/IP port”. The “Add Printer Wizard” will appear on the screen. In the “Printer name/IP address” field, you must enter the IP address of the printer, which is specified in the instructions and settings of the printer itself. Having completed all the steps correctly, the process can be completed with a few clicks of the “Next” button in the windows that appear.
Some printing devices require additional settings, which includes TCP/IP port settings.
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