A few days ago, Microsoft released the new Windows 11 22H2 update. As per usual, the update caused many serious issues including BSOD on systems with intel SST drivers .
Sadly the latest update is also plagued with troublesome Printer Issues . For those unaware, both Windows 10 and Windows 11 have faced a security vulnerability in the Windows print spooler service.
As the name suggests, this service takes care of print jobs and related protocols on servers and client PCs.
After updating to the Windows 11 22H2 feature update Twitter user, Thomas Førde noticed that their network printers had gone missing. When the IT engineer tried to manually reconnect the printers, he was welcomed by a “0x00000bc4” error code. This error code simply means that an “operation could not be completed.”
all my network printers are removed, and i get 0x00000bc4 when trying to add them manually. All our test machines with Win11 22H2 get this error…. Was not an issue on 21H2 — Thomas Førde (@thomas_forde) September 26, 2022
Thomas has confirmed that the problem is not limited to a single PC. According to him, all of the test machines used by him and his team with the Win11 22H2 update get this error.
He also stated that the issue was not present in the Windows 11 21H2 update.
Luckily after messing around for a while, Thomas was able to identify that the printer policy in the 2022 feature update was set wrong by default and it was preventing Windows 11 22H2 from identifying their network printers.
If you’re facing the aforementioned problem too then set the Remote Procedure Call (RPC) connection settings to “RPC over named pipes” transport protocol.
Microsoft has confirmed that Windows 10 optional update ( KB5014666 ), which was released on June 28, 2022, for adding new printing features and notable fixes, is affecting some printing devices following the installation of the update.
According to the company, the bug causes Windows 10 to show duplicate copies of printers installed on a device, commonly with a similar name and the suffix “Copy1”. Also, applications that refer to the printer by a specific name cannot print a document. The update also affects the normal printer usage and normal printing operations may be interrupted, resulting in failure of printing operations.
The Redmond giant says it is working on a new update to address the problem in a future update. Meanwhile, users who are experiencing issues can use the Feedback Hub to file a report and try temporary workarounds that might help resolve the issue:
- Open the Settings app, navigate to “Bluetooth & devices”, and select “Printers & scanners”
- If there appears to be a duplicate installation of an existing printer, such as with suffix “Copy1”, confirm if printing works for this printer. This printer should operate as expected.
- If there is a need to use the original printer installation and not the duplicate, right-click the duplicate printer, select “Printer properties” and select the “Ports” tab. Observe the port in use.
- Open “Printer properties” on the original printer and select the “Ports” tab. From the list displayed, select the port option in use by the duplicate printer. If this original printer works normally, the duplicate copy printer can be removed.
If the issue still persists, Microsoft recommends attempting the following steps:
- Update the print driver for your device. For guidance, see Install the latest driver for your printer.
- If you already have the latest driver, consult the printer Manufacturer’s web site for any device firmware updates
- If you are still having issues, uninstalling and reinstalling your printer might help.
- Turn off your printer and disconnect any cables
- Open the Settings app, navigate to “Bluetooth & devices”, and select “Printers & scanners”
- Select the affected printer and select the “Remove Device” option
- Restart your device
- Turn on your printer and reconnect it to your device
Currently, Microsoft is investigating the issue and will provide an update when more information is available. According to the Windows Health Dashboard, the affected platforms are Windows 10 21H2, 21H1, and 20H2 (including Windows Server version 20H2).
