Printer drivers may be known. I remember having a lot of problems with them during my college studies, and even now when I have several printers at home. One of the common problems we have cited in the forums is that where consumers have been unable to print documents. The error appeared in the Windows 10 settings page where it says – Printer driver is not available. In this article, I will share several tips to help you solve this problem.
Unable to print documents
Printer driver is not available in Windows 10
These are some of the best suggestions available from forum users that have worked for them. You should know that although people may have the same problem, the solutions may be different.
- Reset the firewall for network printers
- Reinstall the printer driver
- Use Microsoft driver
- Install the driver in compatibility mode
- Suggestions for an old printer
Some tips only work when you have administrator privileges. Be sure to check if the issue has been resolved after each listed solution.
1]Reset the firewall for network printers
If it is a network printer that you have installed on the computer, it may be blocked by the firewall. This can be the printer’s IP address or the port number. The first thing you need to do is find the printer’s IP address using your router or another computer. Then, if you can manage the Windows firewall, you can check if the port or IP has been blocked. You can either remove it manually or reset the firewall.
2]Reinstall the printer driver
The next step is the obvious step to reinstall the printer driver. You can install the driver from the OEM website or use Device Manager.
- Type devmgmt.msc in the Run prompt and press the Enter key
- Go to Print Queues and locate the printer
- Right click on it and select Uninstall.
- Restart the PC. Windows will then attempt to reinstall the driver.
During the installation, it will check with Windows Update Service and look for an official driver to install.
3]Use Microsoft driver
Some users have reported that the installation of the generic driver has helped. These drivers are offered by Microsoft in the event that an official driver is not available.
- Open the device manager (devmgmt.msc)
- Locate the printer and right click on it
- Click Update Driver from the menu and choose to navigate manually
- On the next screen, select “Let me choose from a list of drivers available on my computer”.
- Then select the driver that contains a “generic” name.
- Install the driver and check if it works.
4]Install the driver in compatibility mode
If there is a compatibility problem with the driver and the current version of Windows, you must install the printer driver using compatibility mode. To perform this method, you will need to install the driver from the OEM website.
- Right click on the installation file, select properties.
- Switch to the Compatibility tab.
- First, run the compatibility troubleshooter, if that doesn’t work, then check the box next to Run this program in compatibility mode
- Apply and then install the driver to see if it works as expected.
5]If it is an old printer
If you’re trying to get an older printer to work, here’s an interesting tip available with Windows.
- Go to Settings> Devices> Printers and scanners
- Then click on the Add a printer or scanner button
- When it displays a link that says …The printer I want is not listed, Click on it
- Select the radio button that says, “My printer is a little older. Help me find it. “
- He will then search for older models and may find it for you.
- Since Microsoft maintains a huge driver database via the update service, it will also install the driver.
This concludes our suggestions that may help you resolve the issue – Unable to print documents, the printer driver is not available in Windows 10.
