In the present world, people are highly dependent on various modes of technology, particularly to meet their business goals. One of the main tools that cannot be ruled out while running a business will be a reliable printer. However, these machines may often test your patience with some annoying snags. For instance, assume the situation when you require the printed copies of an important project immediately, but your printer hesitates to cooperate. While faded images and poor print quality is one hassle, a printer that stops suddenly while functioning is another major issue. This may surely cost you a good amount of your time, money, and energy. In most cases, you may get an error message that can hardly be decoded or matches with the reality. In some instances, your printer may give you a silent treatment as well. Anyhow, knowing how to troubleshoot your printer issues in such cases will surely be a frustration-buster.
Note that the troubleshooting methods for the printers may vary, mainly depending on the type and manufacturing company. However, once you get an idea regarding troubleshooting some common printer issues, you can easily fix things whenever your printer act weird. Usually, you can access most of those troubleshooting tips through the online resources provided by respective manufacturers. Some of the basic troubleshooting tips for usual printer errors are given below.
Ghost Jams
You would have encountered the paper jam issue a number of times. In this condition, the printing paper will get stuck within the machine affecting its proper functioning. Usually, the printer will send a printer jam error message in such cases. Sometimes, your printer might send the paper jam error message even if there are no paper jams. This condition is known as ghost jams. The probable chance for ghost jams is mechanical errors. However, don’t jump into a conclusion soon. Note that sometimes the paper jams could leave its residue within the rollers of the printer. This can eventually interfere with printer operation even after a long period of time. Sometimes, shredded pieces of printing papers can get trapped between the gears that move the rear duplexer of the printer. This as well can result in ghost jams. Hence, make sure to thoroughly check and clean the mechanical parts of your printer if you encounter ghost jams. In case your printer is showing paper jams even after cleaning it well, just unplug your printer so as to reset its sensors. On a related note, some complex office printers are designed in a way to exactly locate the jams.
Printer Driver Issues
Sometimes, you would have seen a popup window on your computer screen quoting that the windows can’t find the printer on the network. Most people blame the hardware for this issue. Actually, this can be a result of a faulty printer driver as well. It is to be noted that your printer driver acts as a translator in between your printer and computer and hence, any defect in translation can result in improper printer functioning.
One of the main factors that contribute to printer driver issues is outdated driver software. Similarly, the updated version of your printer driver will be sometimes incompatible with the operating system of your computer. Otherwise, you would have downloaded wrong printer driver software on your PC. In such cases, uninstalling the printer driver software and replacing it with an up-to-date, compatible version of driver software would do the trick. If the printer driver issues persist after reinstalling the driver program, it will be better to consult your tech support team or a repairman.
Loaded Queue
As you are done with your printing job, the queue will get automatically cleared. However, it is not necessary for everything to work as per your plan. You are likely to encounter the issue of the loaded queue at times. This is mainly because of data connection issues that will put some prints on hold, postpone, or halt. It is worth noting that a loaded or blocked queue can cause your printer driver to grind instantly to halt. Usually, people may get frustrated and try to print the same data several times, in this case, overloading the queue further. Sometimes, a stuck print job will be the reason for a loaded queue rather than a faulty printer.
To tackle this, open the print spooler, right click on it, and press stop. This step will halt all the stuck print jobs in your queue. Then, open windows explorer and delete all the existing files in the queue and restart your computer. On a related note, make sure to save all your important documents before executing the steps mentioned above since you cannot retrieve the erased files. Apart from this, you can also consider any of the printer software choices that will run a scan, troubleshoot the common issues with your printer, and automatically resolve them. If you cannot still tackle the issue, it is recommended to uninstall your printer driver software and update it. Note that a corrupt or outdated printer driver as well can prevent your printer from processing the printing jobs.
