Network Printer Status Check Not Printing

Summary

This guide helps you troubleshoot and resolve: Network Printer Status Check Not Printing. Follow the steps below to fix the issue.

Common Causes

This article describes how to verify whether a network-connected printer is online and ready to receive print jobs. If your printer appears offline or print jobs are queued without printing, follow these steps to check physical connections, network settings, and spooler status. These procedures are applicable to small business and home office environments using Ethernet or Wi-Fi network printers.

Quick Fix Steps

1. Check that the printer is powered on and there are no error lights or messages on the control panel.
2. Confirm that paper is loaded correctly and there are no paper jams.
3. Restart the printer by turning it off, waiting 30 seconds, and turning it back on.
4. Restart your computer to clear any temporary print queue issues.

Detailed Instructions

Check Physical Connections

1. For Ethernet printers, ensure the network cable is firmly plugged into both the printer and the router or network switch.
2. For Wi-Fi printers, verify the printer is connected to the correct wireless network. Print a network configuration page from the printer's control panel to confirm the IP address.
3. Check that any indicator lights on the printer's network port are active.

Verify Printer Status on Windows

1. Select Start, then type Control Panel and press Enter.
2. Go to Hardware and Sound > Devices and Printers.
3. Right-click your network printer and select See what's printing.
4. In the print queue window, select the Printer menu.
5. Ensure Use Printer Offline is not selected. If it is, click it to remove the tick.
6. Ensure Pause Printing is not selected.
7. If jobs are stuck in the queue, select Printer > Cancel All Documents, then try printing again.

Verify Printer Status on macOS

1. Select the Apple menu > System Settings (or System Preferences on older macOS versions).
2. Click Printers & Scanners.
3. Select your printer from the list.
4. If the status shows Offline, click Resume or remove and re-add the printer using the + button.
5. Open the print queue by double-clicking the printer and delete any stuck jobs.

Restart the Print Spooler (Windows)

1. Press Windows key + R to open the Run dialog.
2. Type services.msc and press Enter.
3. Locate Print Spooler in the list.
4. Right-click Print Spooler and select Restart. If Restart is not available, select Stop, wait a few seconds, then select Start.
5. Close the Services window and try printing again.

Troubleshooting

Printer Still Shows Offline

• Power cycle the printer and your router, then wait two minutes for the network to re-establish.
• Print a network status page from the printer to confirm it has a valid IP address on your network.
• If the printer uses a static IP, ensure the address has not changed or conflicted with another device.
• Remove the printer from your computer and re-add it using the current IP address.

Print Jobs Remain in Queue

• Clear all documents from the print queue and restart both the printer and computer.
• Check that the correct printer is set as the default printer in your operating system settings.
• Ensure the printer driver is up to date by visiting the manufacturer's website.

If your printer supports a Web Management Interface, you can often check status and ink or toner levels by entering the printer's IP address into a web browser.

Avoid unplugging the printer while it is processing a job, as this can corrupt the print queue and require a full spooler reset.

For related guidance, see Printer not printing / offline.

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