IssueThe solutions in this document address the issue of print jobs getting stuck in the
print queue
. The following symptoms might also accompany this issue, and this document does address these other symptoms:
- Printer won't print
- Printer is offline
- No response from product
Click the plus sign () next to your operating system for more information.Show all '
Hide allMac OS X 10.4 and 10.5
Mac OS X 10.6 and OS X 10.7
Windows VistaFollow these steps for the Windows Vista operating system.
IMPORTANT:
You must follow these solutions
in the order presented
to resolve the issue.
NOTE:Some
of the following solutions require you to restart the computer.
Consider bookmarking this page on your Web browser, so that you can
reference it after restarting the computer.
Before you begin: Check the hardware
If your HP product has any problems with the hardware, such as a paper
jam or a carriage jam, incorrectly installed cartridges, or even low
ink, it could appear that print jobs are getting stuck in the print
queue. Following are some examples of hardware-related problems:
If you notice any of these issues, HP recommends searching for a
document that is more specific to the hardware issue. For example, if
you see blinking lights on your product, or there is an error message on
the computer, search HP's Web site for the specific error message or
blinking lights.
Otherwise, continue with the solutions in this document.
Solution one: Download a tool to resolve the issue automatically HP
designed a quick and easy tool that diagnoses and resolves many
printing problems: The HP Print Diagnostic Utility. HP recommends that
you download and install the Print Diagnostic Utility any time you need
to troubleshoot a printing problem.
What does the Print Diagnostic Utility do?
Step one: Download and install the Print Diagnostic UtilityNOTE:The
HP Print Diagnostic Utility might not be available for all HP products,
particularly older products. It is available for most products,
however, and in most languages. This tool is available only for Windows
operating systems. The tool is not available for Mac OS X operating
systems.
- Click the following link to download the Print Diagnostic Utility. Link to toolFile size
HP Print Diagnostic Utility
1.51M
- Make sure your computer meets the system requirements, and then click Download
.
- When the Security Warning
dialog box opens, choose one of the following methods to download the utility.
- When
the Print Diagnostic Utility finishes installing, it automatically
searches for installed printers, and then displays the list. Figure 21: Example tool with list of HP products installed
Step two: Run the Print Diagnostic Utility- Press the Power button (
) to turn on the product, if it is not already on.
- From the Printer
column in the Print Diagnostic Utility, select your HP product.
Product not in the list?
- Click Next
. The Print Diagnostic Utility first checks whether the selected printer
is the default, and offers the option to make it default.
- Click Fix Printing
. The Print Diagnostic Utility checks the connection for your product and, if the connection fails, it offers options to help. Figure 22: Example failed connection
- Then,
the Print Diagnostic Utility diagnoses various printing problems, and
then displays a list of results. The results will display either when an
error is detected, or when the diagnosis is complete if there are no
errors. Figure 23: Example Print Diagnostic Utility results
Step three: Resolve diagnosed printing problems- In the Print Diagnostic Utility results screen, look for items with a red X (
) next to them. Items with green check marks (
) are fine. Items with a green wrench (
) were identified and fixed automatically by the tool.
- If you see one or more red X
(
), continue with these steps.
- If you see only green check marks
(
), the tool did not find any problems.
- If you see green wrenches
(
), the utility identified an issue and corrected it automatically.
- If you see any yellow exclamation points
(
), treat this as a warning. The suggested fix is optional.
- Click the item with the red X (
) to select it, and then click Fix
. The Print Diagnostic Utility automatically fixes the diagnosed issues, if possible, and displays results on the screen.
- When you have finished fixing all the diagnosed problems, click Test Print
in the Print Diagnostic Utility. The product prints a test page.
- If the test page prints successfully
, you do not need to continue troubleshooting. You resolved the issue.
- If the test page does not print
, click Restart Computer
in the Print Diagnostic Utility. After the computer restarts, try running the tool again.
- If you are still experiencing printing issues
, click one of the options presented in the Print Diagnostic Utility.
You will be directed to support options tailored to your printer. Figure 24: Example of additional support options
- If these steps resolved the issue
, you do not need to continue troubleshooting.
- If the issue persists
, continue to the next solution.
Solution two: Restart the computer and check the print queueFollow these steps to resolve the issue manually if the tool did not resolve the issue.
- On the Windows taskbar, click the Windows icon (
), click the Right Arrow button (
), and then click Restart
.
- After the computer restarts, double-click the printer icon (
) in the lower right corner (the notification area) of the computer. The print queue opens.Figure 25: The printer icon in the notification areaNo printer icon in the notification area?
If you do not see the printer icon, click the Windows icon (
), click Control Panel
, click Printers
, and then double-click the icon for your product (
).
- If there are no print jobs in the print queue
, you resolved the issue and you do not need to continue troubleshooting.
- If the print jobs remain in the print queue
, continue to the next solution.
Solution three: Check the connection between the HP product and the computer (connectivity)A
common cause of print jobs getting stuck in the print queue is the
communication between your computer and your HP product (connectivity).
First, select the type of connection your HP product uses, and then
follow the steps.
USB
Wired (Ethernet) or wireless network
Solution four: Check the print driver and the portIf
you ever installed more than one HP product on the computer, the
product might not be the default printer, or the wrong print driver
might have been configured. Follow these steps to check the print driver
configuration.
- On the Windows taskbar, click the Windows icon (
), click Control Panel
, and then click Printers
. The Printers
folder opens.
- Look for a green checkmark (
) next to the product icon. This checkmark indicates which product is the default printer for Windows.Figure 36: Example of default printer icon
- If the wrong product is the default
, right-click the icon for the correct product, click Set as Default Printer
, and then continue to the next step.
- If the correct product is the default
, continue to the next step.
- Right-click the icon for your product, and then click Properties
. The printer Properties
window opens.
- Click the Ports
tab.
- Look for your product under the Description
column, and then view the Ports
column to the left.
- Select your connection type to determine which port you should use.
- Look under the Printer
column and make sure that the product listed matches your product. This indicates that the print driver is correct.If the port setting or the print driver is not correct, you must reinstall the HP software. See the instructions in this document
to remove and reinstall the HP software.
- Restart the computer, and then try the print job again.
- If these steps resolved the issue
, you do not need to continue troubleshooting.
- If the issue persists
, continue to the next solution.
Solution five: Determine whether the printer is paused or offline- Return to the Printers
folder that you opened earlier in this document.
- Right-click the name of the product, and then click Open
.
- Click Printer
.
- On the print queue menu bar, click Printer
, and then look for the Pause Printing
and Use Printer Offline
items in the menu.
- Make sure that there is no checkmark next to either item. If a checkmark displays next to either item, click to clear it.
- If these steps resolved the issue
, you do not need to continue troubleshooting.
- If the issue persists
, continue to the next solution.
Solution six: Manually clear the print queueVideo of manually clearing the print queueThe following video demonstrates how to clear the print queue in Windows Vista and Windows 7. If you cannot see the video or to view the video in a different size,
click here
to view the video on YouTube.
- Return to the Printers
folder that you opened earlier in this document.
- Right-click the name of the product, and then click Open
.
- Click Printer
, and then click Cancel All Documents
.
- Click Yes
to confirm the action.
- If documents remain in the print queue, restart the computer.
- Try printing again.
- If these steps resolved the issue
, you do not need to continue troubleshooting.
- If the issue persists
, continue to the next solution.
Solution seven: Restart the Print Spooler deviceVideo of restarting the Print Spooler deviceNOTE:The following instructions also work for Windows Vista.The following video demonstrates how to restart the Print Spooler in Windows 7. If you cannot see the video or to view the video in a different size,
click here
to view the video on YouTube.
- On the Windows taskbar, click the Windows icon (
), click Control Panel
, and then click Administrative Tools
.
- Double-click Services
.
- On the User Account Control window, click Continue
.
- Click Print Spooler
.
- Click Stop
to stop the Print Spooler.
- Click Start
to restart the Print Spooler.
- Click OK
.
- Restart the computer.
- Try the print job again.
- If these steps resolved the issue
, you do not need to continue troubleshooting.
- If the issue persists
, continue to the next solution.
Solution eight: Check the software programIf
print jobs from one specific software program are getting stuck in the
print queue, the issue might be with the software program or the print
driver.
- Close the software program from which you are trying to print, and then open it again.
- Print a document from the software program.
- If
the print job gets stuck in the print queue again, try printing a
document from Notepad to determine whether the problem is with the
program or the driver:
- Repeat the steps earlier in this document to manually clear the print queue.
- On the Windows taskbar, click the Windows icon (
), click All Programs
, click Accessories
, and then click Notepad
.
- Type a test message in Notepad.
- Click File
, and then click Print
.
- Select your HP product, and then click OK
to print.
If you can print
the document from Notepad, but not from the software program, contact
the software program manufacturer for assistance.
- If these steps resolved the issue
, you do not need to continue troubleshooting.
- If the issue persists
, continue to the next solution.
Solution nine: Remove and reinstall the HP softwareIf the previous solutions failed, follow these steps to remove and reinstall the product software.
Step one: Remove the software- Unplug the USB cable from the HP product.
- On the Windows taskbar, click the Windows icon (
), and then click Control Panel
. The Windows Control Panel
opens.
- Under Programs
, click Uninstall a Program
. A list of programs installed on your computer opens.
- In the list of installed programs, click your HP product, and then click Uninstall/Change
. The HP Uninstaller opens.
- Select Uninstall all HP products
, and then click Next
.
- Follow the on-screen instructions to complete the software removal.CAUTION:If the uninstaller asks you to remove shared files, click No
. Other programs that use these files might not work if you delete the files.
- Disconnect the product from the power source, and then restart the computer.
Step two: Reinstall the softwareAfter you complete the previous steps, you can reinstall the product software and drivers with one of the following methods:
- Download from the Web:
Right-click the following link,
HP Software and Drivers
, and then click Open in New Window
, to download the latest software from the HP Web site. The software
available on the HP Web site is usually more current than the software
on the CD.
- Software CD:
Insert the software CD that shipped with your HP product into the computer, and then follow the on-screen instructions.
When you have reinstalled the software, try printing again.
- If these steps resolved the issue
, you do not need to continue troubleshooting.
- If the issue persists
, continue to the next solution.
Solution ten: Perform a power resetA
power reset drains the power from the product and returns to the same
settings after restarting. A power reset is a common troubleshooting
step, and you can perform one for conditions like print jobs getting
stuck in the queue.
- Press the Power button (
) to turn on the product.
- With the product turned on
, disconnect the power cord from the rear of the product.
- Unplug the power cord from the wall outlet.
- Wait at least 15 seconds.
- Plug the power cord back into the wall outlet.
- Reconnect the power cord to the rear of the product.
- If the product does not turn on by itself, press the Power button (
) to turn it on.
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