Wednesday, October 15, 2014

Fix a Stuck Printer

Sometimes your printer just won't print.  It could be that it is shut off or not connected to the computer.  However, sometimes a document gets stuck while waiting to print.

To manage your print jobs, Windows uses what is called the print spooler, or print queue.  This allows you to send multiple documents to the printer simultaneously.  Without a print queue, you would only be able to send a document to the printer if it was not doing anything.  The print spooler service saves your document in the queue until the printer is ready to print it.

But sometimes, a file gets stuck in the queue waiting to print.  Many times, this happens when you try to cancel a print job after you have sent it, but it can happen at other times.  When this happens, the printer won't print anything until the queue is cleared.

Fortunately, it is fairly easy to clear the print queue.  (Note:  This will not only delete the stuck document, but also any other documents you have waiting to print.)  Even better, one website has assembled a free download that will do it for you!

The free Print Queue Cleaner can clear those stuck print jobs.  There are two versions available just above the Donate button.  The first is a simple utility that you can download and run for one-time use.  The second contains an installer that will allow you to install it on your computer.  Since these problems aren't extremely common, I would recommend that you just save the link and download it as needed.

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