Windows keeps changing and disabling my printer

I have Windows 10 Pro. I use the more classic form of the interface. For the past couple of weeks I have had issues with printing on my HP 8720.

First, I found that a Laserjet had been installed and the job had been being directed to that. There is no Laserjet and I had not visited any device settings. I cleared the print queue. I marked the 8720 as the default printer and again the job did not print, although it had been directed to the 8720. I cleared the print queue again and ran the HP Print and Scan Doctor. My document printed. The default printer remained as the 8720 and I deleted the Laserjet.

However, whenever I restart Word, and sometimes when I just want to print again, at least half of the time it does not print and again I find the document in the print queue, clear it, run the print and scan doctor, and get one or two more jobs printed and the issue recurs. (Print and scan doctor reports each time that it found and fixed issues.) This is getting old. What should I do?

One more question. Due to my constant need to clear the print queue, I looked for a way to put a print queue icon on the desktop, as I have done in Vista and Windows 7. The closest I could find was to put an icon for Devices and Printers. I think I can also put an icon for the printer, but I don't want to have all of the printer options, just the queue. (I am used to not having the risk of deleting the printer instead of just a print job!) Can I just put an icon for the print queue and save some clicks?

Thank you!

Thank you, Dalchina

I did as you recommended, and the version is 1909. Build 18363959. Windows 10 updates regularly. I have not done anything to adjust update parameters.

Does this look like I have an update issue?

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Berton said:

I looked at my HP OfficeJet Pro 8600 and LaserJet Pro M148dw and neither has an option on the icons to Send to the Desktop, create shortcut. [I still use the 'old' Control Panel at times.]

Two things about printers, there have been issues with a recent Windows update that caused issues with printers, last listing I saw had Brother, Canon, Panasonic and Ricoh but I did have to fix one for a client with an HP OfficeJet. The other thing is some printers don't like USB 3 connections, better with USB 2 ports, last one I saw would do half a page using USB 3 then lose the connection to the computer, changing to USB 2 worked.

Thank you Berton, I did have some connection problems a couple of weeks ago but the HP program fixed that too.

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dalchina said:

From the Tutorial section you can do this:
Create Printer Queue Shortcut in Windows 10

Usually I use the tray icon as illustrated here:
How to Cancel or Delete Printer queue in Windows 10

This gives a number of methods which you could use - Using the 3rd you could create a simple script and shortcut.

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Dalchina, I do not have a printer icon in my taskbar. I set the taskbar to show all icons, so I don't have the up arrow.

Thank you TV2.

I will try your first suggestion.

I have never had a Laserjet. I have never installed a Laserjet. It was in my Devices and Printers and I uninstalled it. It has not re-appeared.

I installed the 8720 with the HP software. It is my recollection that when I upgraded my Win7 to Win10, the upgrade process carried the printer over and it worked fine for several months. Then a couple of months ago HP changed their software and told me it was going to reinstall the printer. I had no choice and it did. I was concerned because the original install was very hard because there were no instructions for installing with a USB connection, which is what I wanted, and it took many requests to the HP forum before someone gave me the correct instructions for doing this. However, HP upgraded the software and maintained the usb connection and it worked until a couple of weeks ago when the issue I reported to this forum began to occur.

TV2, First, I followed your earlier suggestion and found that "Let Windows manage your devices and printers" was already unchecked.

About 5 or 6 weeks elapsed between me straightening out the HP reinstall and this issues

I think Windows has made 2 updates since this problem began. It has made at least one. I have not made any updates, these were both automatic.

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Dalchina, I turned on the printer and no printer icon appeared in the tray. The link you posted is for Windows 7.

I have tried the instruction to right-click on the taskbar. I ran the printer troubleshooter and it found no problems.

I finally followed your earlier pointer to create a shortcut on the desktop for the print queue of the 8720. Thank you.

Back in the day, I first learned computer programming in machine language (ones and zeros) on the IBM 650. (Then we moved to Assembly Language -- Hooray!) Along the way I was a pretty good DOS jockey and then programmed university library services that used databases. However, the newer operating systems are so layered and convoluted that I am reluctant to engage with them. The tutorial you sent me to was straightforward enough that I did it.

My original issue is not solved, but maybe it won't come back. If I see a Laserjet installed again I think I will attribute the change to HP, which keeps giving my printer its own internet access to the outside world. That is not a W10 issue and I am marking this thread solved.

I wholeheartedly thank all of you four your help.