If your HP printer will not print, there are several troubleshooting tips you can try to resolve the issue. Since there are so many reasons why this might happen, run through the following options until you find a resolution that matches your problem. It’s often faster and easier to simply uninstall the printer and install it again. If you have a USB printer and a modern Operating System like Vista or Windows 7, usually all you will need to do is plug in the USB cable and the printer will automatically install. If the printer is older, you may require the installation disk to reinstall. Normally, however, the following troubleshooting tips will work without the need to reinstall.
The very first thing you should do is try to reboot all affected devices. If you restart your PC and the printer problems persist, you can begin the printer troubleshooting process.
Network HP Printer Will Not Print
If this printer is a network printer, you should first try using the ping command to test your connection to the device. For instance, if the IP address of the printer is 192.168.1.10, you would go to Start>Run and type cmd and hit enter. At the prompt, you would type ping 192.168.1.10 and hit enter. If you do not get a response, you can try turning off the printer, wait a few minutes, then turn it back on. if the printer is connected to the switch or a hum, you might try unplugging the hub and plug it back in. it’s not uncommon for a network device to go stupid for no reason. If you still cannot ping the printer, toggle through the settings to confirm the printer’s network settings are correct.
Local HP Printer Will Not Print
If your HP printer will not print and it is physically attached to your PC, try unplugging the cable and plug it back in. USB devices will show when they are connected or disconnected down by the system clock in the lower right hand corner. If you do not see it being recognized as you plug it back in, you probably have a driver issue and will need to completely uninstall the printer and any software associated with it. You should look for a newer printer driver on the manufacturer’s website.
If the printer is recognized when you plug in the USB cable, open the printer options in Windows and see if your printer has jobs stuck in the queue. If there are stuck jobs, remove them all. You can sometimes clear the jobs at the printer, as well. You may need to hit Cancel Job several times until all of the print jobs are canceled.
Make sure the printer is “online.” Some printers will have a button to take it offline. The printer status will usually be shown in the printer’s display as well as within Windows.
Printer Only Prints Gibberish
Another printing problem is if your jobs come out in gibberish–which is usually ASCII characters consisting on shapes and symbols instead of text, then you need to make sure the printer is setup to print postscript. Unless otherwise set, high-end laser printers will have their personality set to AUTO, which means it has the capability to switch between postscript and non-postscript mode. It is also possible to install a driver that is not postscript, so if you problems occur when you first install it, look for a different driver that specifies PS.
If you HP printer will not print and you have followed the above directions, join our free forums and ask your question there or read our other printer troubleshooting articles.
hey guys thx for the gd material u provide us with.but i still hv a problem with my machine whenever i try to print the machine restarts i don’t kno the problem plz help me out cos im stuck .thak u.
collins
Sounds like the driver is corrupt. I would completely uninstall the printer and then download the driver directly from the printer manufacturer. If you continue to have problems join our free computer repair forums at http://www.pctechbytes.net/forums/forums.php
my hplaserjet m1522nf printer is failing to print any document through a direct connect to my laptop.What may be the cause,the drivers are there and the laptop runs windows7 Professional?
Uninstall the printer, disconnect the USB cable, reinstall the software and then attach the cable last.
When you plug in the printer, it should recognize it. If not, you may have a problem with your USB port.
Had the same prob. I noticed a warning box appear that I was being attacked by something and it had been sent to the vault. It happened next time as I was trying to print. I disabled the AVAST antivirus and hey presto my printer works perfectly. I pissed of the AVAST and installed AVG. Problem now solved, prior to realizing what was causing the prob I had uninstalled then reinstalled the printer and up to date drivers to no avail. Was driving me nuts.
i have a epson tx 300f , I tried to scan something and it would not do it, so i unstalled the printer drivers and reinstalled them and when I go to print I go to microsoft word and says no file and will not print anything