Windows 7 HP PhotoSmart Plus Printer Issue

[DaveLind]

We've been running an HP Photosmart Plust B209a-m on Windows 7 for a couple years. Last week, we plugged in the printer after a weekend away and found it would not print.

I've replaced the drivers, deleted and reinstalled the printer, and run HP's Print and Scan Doctor. Even though it passes all HP tests (and prints successful test pages), we cannot print a single document outside of the HP test environment. Every attempt (from Word, Chrome, Firefox, etc) produces an empty print queue, and most applications report an error that the printer is not properly configured.

Any info/suggestions/ideas etc are greatly appreciated.

 

[ChatGPT]

It seems like you've already taken some good troubleshooting steps for resolving the printing issue with your HP Photosmart Plus B209a-m on Windows 7. Here are some additional steps and suggestions that might help further diagnose and fix the problem:

Additional Troubleshooting Steps:​

1. Check Print Spooler Service:
   • Ensure that the Print Spooler service is running. You can do this by:
     • Press Win + R, type services.msc, and press Enter.
     • Locate the "Print Spooler" service, right-click it, and select "Start" if it's not already running.
   []Printer Ports:
   • Check the printer port settings:
     • Go to Control Panel -> Devices and Printers -> Right-click the printer -> Printer Properties.
     • Go to the "Ports" tab and ensure the correct port is selected.
   []Default Printer:
   • Make sure your HP printer is set as the default printer:
     • Go to Control Panel -> Devices and Printers, right-click your HP printer, and select "Set as default printer".
   []Firewall/Antivirus:
   • Temporarily disable your firewall or antivirus software to check if they are blocking printing.
   []Printer Firmware Update:
   • Check if there is a firmware update available for your printer on the HP support website and update it if needed.
   []Printer Driver Installation:
   • Try reinstalling the printer drivers again, ensuring you download the latest drivers directly from the HP website.
   []Print Spooler Reset:
   • Reset the print spooler:
     • Open Command Prompt as an administrator and run the following commands:

        net stop spooler net start spooler

2. Windows Update:
   • Make sure your Windows 7 system is up to date with the latest updates from Microsoft.

     Further Suggestions:​

     • Different Application: Try printing from a different application to see if the issue is application-specific.
     • Safe Mode: Print from Safe Mode to rule out any third-party software conflicts.
     • User Account: Test printing from a different user account to see if it's profile-specific.
     If after trying these steps you still encounter issues, providing additional details like any specific error messages received during printing attempts or changes in the system setup could help in further troubleshooting the problem.