network printer driver installation issue

[lost_in_space]

Hey, all -

I have an XP Pro laptop that used to happily live on my LAN - it accessed a
network printer as it's default printer with no problem. Something seems to
have changed, though, and now I can't access the printer, and when I try to
access it's properties I'm told I need to load a driver, which then fails to
load.

Between the time when it did work and now, quite a bit has changed - I
upgraded from XP SP2 to SP3, I'd upgraded the Office installation from 2K3
to 2K7; I took it on a couple of business trips, during which I'd disabled
the 'File and Print Sharing' firewall exception and made other changes to
the TCP/IP configuration; struggled with a permissions issue with my MOSS
install that had me mucking with registry settings/permissions, etc, etc. I
have undone the changes made while hooking up to a different LAN - reset the
TCP/IP config, re-enabled the firewall exception, etc, but still have
problems. It's not infected with any malware - it's regularly scanned and is
used responsibly.

If I try to print from Word, it say it can't print because I don't have a
default printer selected. If I look at Control Panel/Printers, the printer
in question is there and it's selected as the default printer. If I
right-click on it and select 'Printing Preferences...', I get an error
dialog that says 'Operation could not be completed'.If I right-click and
select 'Properties...', I get a dialog that says the driver is not installed
on my machine and asking if I'd like to install it. Click 'Yes' and it
launches the 'Add Printer Driver Wizard'. A digitally signed correct driver
is pre-selected when I click 'Next'; click 'Next' again and it says I've
succesfully completed the Add Printer Driver Wizard, and that I'm about to
add the correct driver. Click 'Finish', and an error dialog pops up saying
'Unable to install yada yada driver. Operation could not be completed'.

Any help would be greatly appreciated.

TIA.

 

[Alan Morris [MSFT]]

delete the connection to the HP printer, then in the printers folder File,
Server Properties, Drivers.

Delete the HP driver that is giving you the problems.

If the driver cannot be deleted one of the dlls is still in use by the
spooler or the explorer process.

Stop the spooler, start the spooler, try to delete. If the driver is still
in use, log off, log on , delete the driver.

reboot if it's still loaded.

Now make the connection again.


If this is not an HP printer, please state the driver name.

--
Alan Morris
Windows Printing Team
Search the Microsoft Knowledge Base here:
http://support.microsoft.com/search/?adv=1

This posting is provided "AS IS" with no warranties, and confers no rights.

 

[lost_in_space]

Hi, Alan -

Thanks for the reponse, but I'm afraid I don't understand. (You're right,
though, it's an HP.)

delete the connection to the HP printer, then in the printers folder File,
Server Properties, Drivers.

Delete the HP driver that is giving you the problems.

I can delete the printer connection from the 'Printers and Faxes' list under
the control panel, but I have no idea what you're referring to with the rest
of the above; and how do I determine what driver is giving me trouble if I
can't install it?

 

[lost_in_space]

Hi, Alan -

All right, I've managed to decipher your sentence fragments. It might be
helpful if, in the future, you conversed with complete sentences.

I've uninstalled the troublesome driver.

However, when I try to connect to the printer I get an error message
saying - 'The server for the HP Deskjet printer does not have the correct
driver installed. If you want to search for the correct driver...' yada yada
yada.


Clearly, the server DOES have the right driver installed - it works with all
other machines on the network, and used to work with the laptop in question
before the previously described upgrades were made.


Not to sound TOO disgusted or impatient, but it seems, from the number of
other threads on similar topics, that a recent update has broken HP network
printer driver configurations for a large number of MS customers.

Is there any cogent attempt to address these issues in the works (e.g., a
service pack that FIXES problems instead of introducing them)?

Or are we all left basically to our own devices, groveling for a moment of
time and disjointed, barely literate 'support' postings from informal online
support?

 

[Alan Morris [MSFT]]

What operating system is the "server"?

open a command prompt and type

dir \\printserver\print$


you should see something like this


05/15/2008 08:26 AM <DIR> BIDI
03/27/2007 07:00 PM <DIR> color
04/03/2008 08:38 PM <DIR> w32x86


Are there any other print drivers installed on your machine?

If so what is the version of unidrv.dll? in
\windows\system32\spool\w32x86\3
--
Alan Morris
Windows Printing Team
Search the Microsoft Knowledge Base here:
http://support.microsoft.com/search/?adv=1

This posting is provided "AS IS" with no warranties, and confers no rights.