How To Uninstall A Printer On Windows 10

Delete The Driver Entries From The Registry

Uninstall HP Printer Software in Windows 10, 11 | HP Printers | HP

Press Windows Key + S, type cmd, and click on Run as administrator to start Command Prompt as administrator.

When Command Prompt opens, enter net stop spooler and pressEnter.

Start Registry Editor. For more information on how to do that, check Solution 1.

Go to the following key in the left pane: HKEY_LOCAL_MACHINE\SYSTEM\CurrentControlSet\Control\Print\Environments\Windows NT x86\Drivers\Version-4

If you use the 64-bit version of Windows 10, youll have to navigate to the following key instead: HKEY_LOCAL_MACHINE\SYSTEM\CurrentControlSet\Control\Print\Environments\Windows x64\Drivers\Version-4

Expand the Version 4 key and locate your printer. Right-click it and choose Delete.

After doing that, go to the following path in File Explorer: C:\Windows\System32\spool\drivers\w32x863

Delete all files from that folder. If you have the w32x861 or w32x862 folders instead on your PC, be sure to delete all files from those folders as well.

Bear in mind that some printers can have extra folders, so youll have to find those folders and delete them. For example, HPs printers have hphp and Hewlett_Packard additional folders.

Delete the .inf files that are linked to the removed drivers %windir%inf.

Start Command Prompt as administrator and enter net start spooler. Press Enter to execute the command.

Bear in mind that this is an advanced solution, therefore we advise you to create a System Restore point so you can restore your PC in case anything goes wrong.

Use The Print Server Properties Window To Remove A Printer

If Settings doesnt remove your printer, another way to get rid of your installed printers is to use the Print Server Properties window. This window lists all your printers, and you can pick the one you want to delete from your system.

On Windows 10 and 11:

Open the Start menu, search for Control Panel, and select Control Panel in the search results.

Choose View devices and printers on the Control Panel window.

Find and select your printer.

Choose Print server properties at the top of your screen.

Access the Drivers tab, select your printer in the list, and choose Remove at the bottom.

Select Remove driver and driver package and choose OK in the prompt that opens.

Restart your PC and your printer should be removed.

Cancel All Print Jobs

Sometimes you wont be able to remove a printer because there are still active print jobs.

Before you can remove your printer, simply go to Devices and Printers, locate your printer, right-click it and choose to See whats printing option.

Be sure to remove all entries from the printing queue. After removing all printing jobs you should be able to remove your printer without any problems.

If the Devices and printers is not opening in Windows 10, we have an excellent guide that will help you fix the problem.

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Uninstall Printer Driver Using Control Panel

You can remove and uninstall your printer and leftover printer driver or related apps from Control Panel using these steps.

Open Control Panel> Hardware and Sound.

Click Devices and Printers.

Under Printers, right-click your device and click Remove device. Click Yes to confirm the action.

Next, go to Settings> Apps> Apps & Features and select the software you want to remove.
Click Uninstall and follow the on-screen steps to completely remove the printer software.

How To Remove The Printer Using The Control Panel

You can use the classic Control Panel to manage your printer. Useful if the printer wasnt removed correctly during the uninstallation process.

To remove the printer using Control Panel:

Press Win + R to open Run.

Type control and click OK to open Control Panel. You can also search for the app using the Windows search bar.

In Control Panel, go to Hardware and Sound.

Next, click on Devices and Printers.

Under the Printers section, locate and select the printer device you want to remove.

Right-click on the printer and select Remove Device.

Click Yes to confirm the action.

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Remove The Affected Printers And Reinstall Them

This is another common solution when things go wrong, but reinstalling printers with administrator rights might help get the printer working again:

Head to Settings> Devices> Printers and scanners

Find the faulty printer from the list, then click on it and choose Remove Device

To reinstall, simply click Add a printer or scanner on the same screen, or follow the instructions related to your specific printer

This method is definitely worth trying, but it may mean that workstations need to be reconfigured on a device-by-device basis. In business environments, this can be extremely time consuming.

Uninstall A Printer In Windows 10

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How To Remove The Printer Using Windows’ Print Server Properties

Sometimes, removing the printer device does not remove the drivers completely and can cause your printer to stop working. In such a situation, you can use the Print Server Properties dialog to remove the installed printer drivers.

To uninstall the printer drivers:

Press Win + R to open Run.

Then, type control and click OK.

In the Control Panel window, go to Hardware and Sound > Devices and Printers.

Select any available printer and click on Print server properties.

Open the Drivers tab in the Print Server Properties dialog.

Under Installed printer drivers, select the printer driver to uninstall and click Remove.

Next, select the Remove driver and driver package option.

Click OK to confirm the action and remove the driver.

Restart your PC to complete the driver removal process.

Delete Remnants From The Windows Driver Store

Uninstall Brother print driver Windows 10

This solution is meant to remove any remnants of drivers that may still be on your device even after deleting driver packages.

In the driver store, youll find inbox and third-party driver packages, which were installed and stored in the folder even before the driver itself got installed.

Each of the subfolders in the store holds a driver package and corresponding .inf file, but its a bit difficult to find the specific driver package youd like to remove.

The good news is you can use a third-party tool to explore the Windows driver store and completely remove the old printer driver once for all. Itll also save you lots of space that would otherwise have been occupied by junk files.

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Remove The Printer Using Powershell

Some users have successfully managed to remove the stubborn printer that was refusing to go away on Windows 10 by using PowerShell. While this method will require you to get a little technical, its reportedly more efficient than the majority of methods that are done through a graphical interface.

Heres a quick guide on removing a printer via PowerShell:

Press Windows key + R to open up a Run box. Then, type PowerShell and press Ctrl + Shift + Enter and hit Yes at the User Account Control prompt to open an elevated Powershell window. Open PowerShell

In the Elevated PowerShell window, type or paste the following command and press Enter to get a list of all your active printers:

Get-Printer | Format-List Name

Open notepad and copy the exact name of the printer that you wish to remove. Youll need it briefly. Copy the Faulty Printer Name

In the same elevated Powershell window, type the command below and press Enter.

Remove-Printer -Name "Printer name"

Note: Be mindful that Printer name is just a placeholder for the actual name of your printer. Replace the placeholder with the name of the printer that you extracted at step 3. The result should end up looking like this:

Remove-Printer -Name "Canon IP1188 Inkjet Printer"

Once the command has been successfully registered, close the Elevated Powershell window and restart your system.

At the next startup, see whether the printer device is still present in the printers list. If it is, move down to the next method.

How To Remove A Printer From Windows Via The Settings

You can easily add or remove printers from the Settings. Heres how to do it.

Press Win + I to open Settings.

Open the Bluetooth & devices tab in the left pane.

Scroll down and click on Printers & scanners. This will list all the printers connected to your computer.

Next, click on the printer device that you want to remove.

Click the Remove button in the top right corner and click Yes to confirm the action.

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Uninstall Printer Software To Remove The Printer

Its possible the printer software youve installed on your PC is causing interference with your printer removal process. In this case, first uninstall the printer software and then try to remove the printer itself.

Launch the Settings app by pressing Windows + I.

Select Apps on the Settings window.

Find your printers software in the list and select it.

Choose the Uninstall button for your software.

Select Uninstall in the prompt to remove the software.

Use the Settings app as described above to remove your printer from your PC.

How To Uninstall A Printer Using Print Management

On Windows 10, you can also use the Print Management console to remove a printer you no longer use with these steps:

Open Control Panel.

Click on System and Security.

Click on Administrative Tools.

Double-click the Print Management shortcut.

Under “Custom Filters,” click on All Printers.

Right-click the printer that you want to remove, and select the Delete option.

Click the Yes button.

After completing the steps, the printer that you removed will no longer be available to any user.

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Delete The Driver As Every User

If you have multiple users on your PC, you might not be able to remove the printer since the driver is in use.

In order to fix this problem, you need to log in to each user account that has the printer connected and delete the device. After that, log in to the administrator account and delete the driver package.

Read more about this topic

Uninstall A Printer Driver Using The Control Panel

As an alternative, you can use the Control Panel to remove the printer driver from your computer. Here is how to do it

Make sure the View of the Control Panel items is organized by Category.
Select the Hardware and Sound section.

Click on Devices and Printers.

On the following page, go to the Printers section and select the Printer you want to remove.
Finally, do a right-click on the device and select the Remove device option.
If the system asks for your confirmation, click on the Yes button.

After performing the above steps, the printer that you uninstalled will no longer be available on your device.

Try To Delete The Printer Quickly After Restarting The Print Spooler Service

A few users reported that you can fix this problem by trying to remove the printer after restarting the Print Spooler service.

We already explained how to restart this service in one of our previous solutions, so we advise you to check it out.

This process requires speed, therefore be sure to remove the printer as soon as you restart the Print Spooler service.

According to users, you only have a few seconds to remove the printer, so be sure to do it as fast as you can. If Print Spooler doesnt work, we have a helpful guide on how to solve its issues.

Remove Old Printers Via Print Management

How To Delete A Printer In Windows 10

The Print Server properties method should do the trick. As an alternative, you can use the Print Management console to remove old printers and their drivers. Print Management is a Microsoft console which lets you view and manage printers and print jobs on the computer.

Open Print Management via Start Search. Or run the command printmanagement.msc to launch Print Management.

Select All printers section.

Go to the following key:

HKEY_LOCAL_MACHINE\SYSTEM\CurrentControlSet\Control\Print\Printers

Expand the key and select the old printer listed under the key.

Right-click on the old printer and choose Delete.

Additionally, one of the following subkeys may contain references to your old printers. You may want to clear that as well:

HKEY_LOCAL_MACHINE\SYSTEM\CurrentControlSet\Control\Print\Environments\Windows NT x86\Drivers\Version-3HKEY_LOCAL_MACHINE\SYSTEM\CurrentControlSet\Control\Print\Environments\Windows x64\Drivers\Version-3HKEY_LOCAL_MACHINE\SYSTEM\CurrentControlSet\Control\Print\Environments\Windows x64\Drivers\Version-4

The registry had references to my old inkjet printer HP F4488 . I had to delete it and its driver store using earlier methods, as Iâve replaced the HP with a Canon G2012 series printer recently.

Exit the Registry Editor.

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Delete Old Printers Via Registry Editor

If you open the Add a printer page and find old printers still listed there, edit the registry to remove leftover entries. To do this, start by creating a system restore point, and then follow the steps below.

Right-click Start> Run.
Type regedit.exe and click OK to open the Registry Editor.

Find the registry key:

HKEY_CURRENT_USER\SOFTWARE\Classes\Local Settings\Printers\Roamed

Right-click the printer from the right pane, and select Delete.
Check printer entries and delete unwanted items by going to this key: HKEY_CURRENT_USER\Printers\Connections

Next, go to this key:

HKEY_LOCAL_MACHINE\SYSTEM\CurrentControlSet\Control\Print\Printers

Click to expand the key, right-click your printer and select Delete.

Some subkeys may still have references to your old printer, so you can clear the following as well:

HKEY_LOCAL_MACHINE\SYSTEM\CurrentControlSet\Control\Print\Environments\Windows NT x86\Drivers\Version-3HKEY_LOCAL_MACHINE\SYSTEM\CurrentControlSet\Control\Print\Environments\Windows x64\Drivers\Version-3   HKEY_LOCAL_MACHINE\SYSTEM\CurrentControlSet\Control\Print\Environments\Windows x64\Drivers\Version-4

Once this is done, exit the Registry Editor.

Use Device Manager To Delete A Printer

You can remove pretty much any device from your computer, including printers, using Device Manager. Heres how to use this utility to remove your stubborn printer:

Open the Start menu, search for Device Manager, and select that tool in the search results.

Select View > Show hidden devices on the Device Manager window. This ensures your printer appears on the list.

Find your printer in the Printers section, right-click the printer, and choose Uninstall device.

Enable the Delete the driver software for this device option and select Uninstall.

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How To Force Delete Or Uninstall A Printer In Windows 10 & 11

Sometimes printers overstay their welcome. Here’s how to delete one from your Windows PC once and for all.

Often you will need to remove and reconnect your printer for troubleshooting purposes. Other times, removing old and unused devices helps you keep your connected device list organized in Windows 11 and 10.

You can remove any connected printer from the Settings panel. If that does not work, you can use the Command Prompt and other ways to remove the printer. Here we show you the many ways to delete a printer on Windows computers.

Remove Printer Driver From System Registry

Now, open Run again and type regedit and click Ok to open Registry Editor.

Now Expand HKEY_LOCAL_MACHINE and then expand SOFTWARE

and then expand Microsoft

Update

MacOS Monterey 12.x version has been released in December 2021. You can now easily download your drivers for MacOS 11.x, 12.x Monterey. Read More. December 27, 2021

Disclaimer

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Fix Printer Problems With An Uninstall And Reinstall In Windows 10

Printers and printing have long been their own special source of frustration in Windows. From early days to the present, printers have been known to behave oddly and even stop working on occasion.

Its gotten better, especially when it comes to installation, but random frustrating things still happen.

I dont have a solution for everything, but I do want to share the first thing I do when a printer goes awry. Id say it resolves over half, maybe as many as 80%, of the cases Im asked about.

Use the Windows 10 settings app to remove your printer from Windows and then add it back again. Doing so re-initializes much of the printers configuration information. While this approach doesnt solve all problems, its a safe and easy first step to fixing printer issues.

Delete Hidden Printers From Device Manager

Press Windows Key + X to open the Power User Menu.

Select Device Manager from the list.

When Device Manager opens, select View and select Show hidden devices.

Delete your printer from Print queues and Printers sections.

After youre done, restart your PC.

Sometimes hidden devices can cause problems with printers, therefore youll need to remove them. To do that, follow the steps above.

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Clear The Print Jobs And Then Remove The Printer

A possible reason you cant remove the printer from your Windows 10 or 11 PC is that your printer still has pending print jobs. You should clear these print tasks before uninstalling the printer.

Open Control Panel and select View devices and printers.

Right-click your printer and choose See whats printing from the menu.

Cancel all print jobs in the window that opens.

Remove your printer using the Settings app as outlined above.

Remove Printer Via Device Manager

Fix Cant Remove Printer on Windows 10

Removing the printer from the list of devices can also be done from Device Manager, but keep in mind that some users have reported that this method was ineffective in their case the printer has only briefly removed from the list of devices and was back at the next startup.

If you decide to try it, heres a quick guide on removing a printer using Device Manager:

Press Windows key + R to open a Run box. Then, type

devmgmt.msc

and hit Enter to open Device Manager.

Open devmgmt.msc

In Device Manager, expand the Print queues drop-down menu, right-click on our printer and choose Uninstall Device. Uninstall the Faulty Printer in Device Manager

Close Device Manager and make sure you disconnect the printer cable from the PC, then restart your computer.

At the next startup, return to Device Manager and see if the printer was successfully removed from the list of devices. If it was, you managed to permanently remove the printer from your Windows 10 PC. If youre still seeing the printer listed, move over to the other methods below.

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Delete Printer Driver With Powershell

On Windows 10 Home, the Print Management app is not available, but you can still use PowerShell to uninstall the driver quite easily. You can also use these instructions on Windows 10 Pro.

To remove a print driver with PowerShell, use these steps:

Open Start.

Search for PowerShell, right-click the top result, and select the Run as administrator option.

Type the following command to list all the print drivers installed on Windows 10 and press Enter:

Get-PrinterDriver | Format-List Name

Type the following command to remove the print driver and press Enter:

Remove-PrinterDriver -Name "Your-Printer-Name"

In the command, update the printer name with the name that appears in step No. 3. The quotation marks are required if the name includes spaces.

For example, this command removes the HP Officejet Pro 8620 from Windows 10 Home:

Remove-PrinterDriver -Name "HP Officejet Pro 8620"

Once you complete the steps, the printer driver will no longer be available on the system. You may need to repeat the steps to uninstall other printers as necessary on Windows 10.

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