Vent: My client's printer issue was fixed by restarting the spooler, not replacing parts

I almost ordered a new print head for a stubborn network printer that kept failing jobs. Then I remembered to restart the print spooler service, and it worked perfectly. Now I try the simple software fixes before assuming hardware is busted, lol.

3 comments

3 Comments

park.evan1mo ago

My buddy at his office was ready to order a new laser module because their printer was down. He had the part number pulled up and was about to submit the purchase order. Another tech suggested just clearing the print queue and rebooting the spooler service first. They did that, and the printer started working like nothing was ever wrong. He felt pretty silly for almost spending money on a part they didn't need.

the_james1mo ago

Back in college, our dorm printer would always jam on big documents. Everyone assumed it was a hardware flaw, but one guy just updated the drivers and it ran smooth. Saved us from pooling money for a new machine. Makes you wonder how often we overlook the easy fixes. You run into many of these software saves?

benc5325d ago

My old office had a scanner that would freeze every single Friday afternoon. The IT guy had a ticket open for weeks to replace the whole unit. I got bored one day, found a forum post, and just changed the USB port it was plugged into. Never had a problem again. It's crazy how often the fix is just a cable or a restart, but we jump straight to buying new stuff.