How To Fix Your Printer’S “Driver Is Unavailable” Error On Windows

If your Windows PC displays a “Driver is unavailable” error, that means your system can’t find the correct drivers for your printer. You can’t print your documents or other items when this issue occurs. However, you can fix the problem by tweaking a few driver options on your PC.

The most common reason for the above error is outdated driver software. Other reasons include faulty drivers, corrupt Windows system files, and more. We’ll show several options to fix these problems so your printer starts working again.

Update Printer Drivers

The first solution to try when your PC displays a “Driver is unavailable” error is to update your printer drivers. Doing so updates the files that help your printer communicate with your computer.

You can use Windows’ Device Manager to perform the update process.

1. Open the Start menu, search for Device Manager , and select the tool in the search results.
2. Expand Print queues , right-click your problematic printer, and choose Update driver .

1. Select Search automatically for drivers on the window that opens.

1. Let Windows find and install the latest drivers.
2. If no drivers are available, Device Manager will say that you already have the best drivers installed. In this case, quit the window by selecting Close .

Automatically Reinstall Printer Drivers

If the above method didn’t work, try completely removing and reinstalling your printer’s driver. This removes the problematic files that may be causing the “Driver is unavailable” error.

Again, use the Device Manager utility to perform the process.

1. Launch the Start menu, search for Device Manager , and select the app in the search results.
2. Expand Print queues , right-click your printer, and choose Uninstall device .

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

1. Unplug the printer from your PC.
2. Restart your PC by right-clicking the Start menu icon and choosing Shut down or sign out > Restart .

1. Plug your printer back into your PC.
2. Follow the on-screen instructions to reinstall the printer drivers.

Manually Reinstall Printer Drivers

Windows’ default printer drivers may not always work. If this is the case with you, manually download the drivers from your printer manufacturer’s website and install them.

Here’s how to do that.

1. Launch Device Manager , right-click your printer in Print queues , and select Uninstall device .
2. Enable the Delete the driver software for this device option and choose Uninstall device .
3. Unplug your printer from your PC and reboot your PC.
4. Connect the printer to your PC.
5. Launch a web browser, access your printer manufacturer’s website, and download the latest drivers.

1. Double-click the downloaded file to begin the installation process.

Update Windows 10 or Windows 11

Windows’ core updates sometimes help fix many device issues. You may be able to resolve the “Driver is unavailable” error by updating your Windows 10 or Windows 11 computer.

1. Launch the Settings app by pressing Windows + I at the same time.
2. Choose Update & Security on the Settings window.
3. Select Windows Update from the sidebar on the left.
4. Choose Check for updates in the pane on the right.

1. Install the available updates.
2. Reboot your PC.

Prevent a Faulty Driver Update From Installing

Both Windows 10 and 11 automatically update your device drivers via Windows Update. Sometimes, these updates are faulty, causing random issues with your devices.

If you’ve been experiencing the “Driver is unavailable” only recently, your driver update might be the culprit. In this case, roll back the update and prevent Windows from installing the same update again.

1. Download Microsoft’s Show or hide updates tool.
2. Launch the newly downloaded wushowhide.diagcab file.
3. Select Next on the tool’s first screen.
4. Choose Hide updates .

1. Enable the box beside your printer update. Then, select Next at the bottom.

1. Select Close the troubleshooter .

Windows will now block the printer driver updates from installing.

Later, you can re-enable those updates by choosing Show hidden updates and activating your printer’s option.

Use Generic Printer Drivers

Microsoft offers generic printer drivers to use when your actual ones don’t work. You may want to use these to temporarily fix the “Driver is unavailable” error and print your documents.

1. Right-click the Start menu and choose Device Manager .
2. Expand Print queues , right-click your printer, and choose Update driver .
3. Select Browse my computer for drivers .

1. Choose Let me pick from a list of available drivers on my computer .

1. Select Generic software device and choose Next .

1. Restart your PC.

Fix Corrupt Windows Files

Corrupt Windows system files can make your devices go haywire. Your “Driver is unavailable” issue may be the result of a faulty core file. Luckily, you can fix the issue by checking and repairing all your problematic system files .

1. Open the Start menu, search for Command Prompt , and select Run as administrator .

1. Select Yes in the User Account Control prompt.
2. Type the following on the Command Prompt window and press Enter . Wait for the command to finish executing: DISM.exe /Online /Cleanup-image /Restorehealth

1. Next, run the following command: sfc /scannow

1. Wait for the tool to find and fix faulty files on your machine.

Making “Unavailable” Printer Drivers Available in a Few Easy Ways

Windows’ “Driver is unavailable” error makes your printer unusable, but not for long if you follow the methods outlined above and resolve the underlying problems. Once you’ve done that, you can print all your documents as well as configure various options for your printer on your Windows PC. Enjoy!

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Mahesh has been obsessed with technology since he got his first gadget a decade or so ago. Over the last few years, he’s written a number of tech articles on various online publications including but not limited to MakeTechEasier and Android AppStorm. Read Mahesh’s Full Bio

If you connect to different printers across several locations all the time, you’ll probably not use all of the printers installed on your device – probably just once or twice. However, your device ends up with many printers installed on it without you realizing it.

Thankfully, you can remove any printer you’re no longer using, except it doesn’t completely get erased from your device – the printer driver remains in your device’s inventory in case you need it again.

If you’re sure you won’t need it, you can remove or uninstall old, obsolete or uninstalled printer drivers , and leftover driver packages or registry entries from your device.

We’re going to walk you through five ways to completely uninstall printer drivers in Windows 10.

How To Remove Or Uninstall Printer Drivers In Windows 10

These are a few of the ways you can remove printer drivers in Windows 10:

• Uninstall printer software using Settings.
• Remove printer driver from Print Server Properties.
• Uninstall printer driver using Control Panel.
• Use Print Management to remove old printers.
• Delete old printers via Registry Editor.
• Uninstall printer using Command Prompt.
• Remove a printer using PowerShell.
• Delete remnants from Windows driver store.

Uninstall Printer Software Using Settings

If you don’t need a particular printer anymore, you can follow the usual steps to uninstall a printer from Settings and then uninstall its software, especially if using a third-party utility.

If the Settings app installed other tools to manage your printer automatically, you’ll have to manually remove the leftover software.

• Open Settings>Devices.

• Click Printers & Scanners .

• Select your printer, click Remove device , and click Yes when asked to confirm the deletion.

Note: The steps above only remove the printer from the list, so you’ll need to remove any leftover printer software or related applications.

• Open Settings>Apps .

• Click Apps & Features and select the printer software you’d like to remove.

• Click Uninstall and follow the steps to completely remove any leftover printer-related applications.

Remove Printer Driver From Print Server Properties

If you’re still seeing an old printer, or one that you previously uninstalled, appearing on the Printers & Scanners page, you can remove or uninstall the printer driver and driver packages.

• Open Settings>Devices>Printers and Scanners on the left pane.
• Scroll down to Related settings and click Print Server Properties . Alternatively, you can right-click Start>Run and type printui /s /t2 to go to the Print Server properties page directly.

• Select the Drivers tab. From the list, click on the old printer entry and select Remove .

• You’ll get two options in a popup – Remove driver or Remove driver and driver package . Select the latter and click OK .

• If you get a confirmation prompt to Remove Driver Package , click Delete .

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.

Use Print Management To Remove Old Printers

Ideally, if you used the Print Server properties method above, it should remove and uninstall the printer driver. However, you can use the Print Management console to completely remove printers you no longer use, and their drivers.

The Print Management dialog shows you the printers and current print jobs on your device. Before you delete the old printer driver though, make sure it’s not being used by any other printer.

• Open Control Panel>System and Security .

• Click Administrative Tools .

• Double-click the Print Management shortcut.

• Under Custom Filters , select All Printers .
• Right-click the printer you want to remove.

• Click Delete and Yes to confirm the action.

• Open Settings>Apps>Apps & Features and click the printer software you want removed.
• Click Uninstall and follow on-screen instructions to completely remove the printer driver.

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 (or press Enter on your keyboard) to open the Registry Editor.

Find the registry key:

HKEY_CURRENT_USERSOFTWAREClassesLocal SettingsPrintersRoamed

• 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_USERPrintersConnections

Next, go to this key:

HKEY_LOCAL_MACHINESYSTEMCurrentControlSetControlPrintPrinters

• 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_MACHINESYSTEMCurrentControlSetControlPrintEnvironmentsWindows NT x86DriversVersion-3 HKEY_LOCAL_MACHINESYSTEMCurrentControlSetControlPrintEnvironmentsWindows x64DriversVersion-3   HKEY_LOCAL_MACHINESYSTEMCurrentControlSetControlPrintEnvironmentsWindows x64DriversVersion-4

Once this is done, exit the Registry Editor.

Uninstall Printer Using Command Prompt

If you’re a fan of command lines, the Command Prompt is another tool you can use to delete a printer and remove related drivers and apps.

• Click Start and type CMD in the search bar.
• Click Command Prompt and select Run as administrator from the right pane.

• In the Command Prompt window, type this command: wmic printer get name and press Enter to see the list of printers on your device.

• To uninstall the printer, type printui.exe /dl /n “YOUR-PRINTER-NAME” and press Enter. Remember to replace YOUR-PRINTER-NAME with your printer’s full name. For example, printui.exe /dl /n HP DJ 2600 Series CL3 .

• To uninstall the printer software, open Settings>Apps>Apps & Features and select the printer software you want to remove. Click Uninstall and follow the on-screen instructions to complete the process.

Remove a Printer Using PowerShell

If you prefer PowerShell over Command Prompt, here are the steps to take to remove the printer and related software.

• Right-click Start > Windows PowerShell (Admin) .

• Type this command: Remove-Printer –Name “YOUR-PRINTER-NAME” .

• Open Settings > Apps > Apps & Features , and click the software you want removed.
• Click Uninstall and follow the directions to remove it completely.

Delete Remnants From The Windows Driver Store

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, you’ll 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 it’s a bit difficult to find the specific driver package you’d 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. It’ll also save you lots of space that would otherwise have been occupied by junk files.

What Happens When Drivers Are Deleted?

A device driver is a piece of software that tells your computer’s operating system how to communicate with the device it’s connected to.

For example, to connect to your printer and execute the print command, a printer driver is needed to bridge the gap between the two devices, and deliver the print job to you.

Without the printer driver, your printer is just hardware that doesn’t work. Similarly, deleting the printer driver after deleting the printer from your computer renders it inoperative.

However, if you delete the driver, you can undo the deletion using System Restore , from the previous restore point created when you deleted the driver from your computer.

Alternatively, Windows will automatically install the driver on your operating system by searching for it from its extensive library of drivers. If it doesn’t find a suitable driver, it’ll search for a driver online through Windows Update. Otherwise, you can visit the device manufacturer’s website to find the specific driver for your printer.

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Elsie is a technology writer and editor with a special focus on Windows, Android and iOS. She writes about software, electronics and other tech subjects, her ultimate goal being to help people out with useful solutions to their daily tech issues in a simple, straightforward and unbiased style. She has a BCom degree in Marketing and currently pursuing her Masters in Communications and New Media. Read Elsie’s Full Bio