Cannot add shared printer - error 0x00003e3

Hi guys - stumped. I have a business I do work for that has the receipt printer for the cash system PCs shared from one PC to another. It's been working fine, but about 3 days ago it suddenly asks for a reinstall and then gives an error while asking for a driver it doesn't need (the driver is already installed).

I've checked all the settings on the PC that is sharing the printer and have even deleted and reinstalled it and it's drivers, and re-created the share. On the PC that needs to access the printer, trying to add it over the network repeatedly, no matter what I do, gives this error, and am I am stumped: "Error 0x000003e3 - Windows cannot connect to the Printer."



Any ideas what is going on here and why I can't get the printer re-added and working again to the PC that needs access to it? It worked perfectly before. There have been Windows updates to both machines in the last week, so I am wondering if something there could've been the culprit as I have had issues with filesharing lately as well.

Anybody know how to solve this 0x000003e3 error? Thanks for any suggestions!

From the pc that does not share the printer, click start run and then type in the following: \\computernamethathoststheprinter
and click enter. This should bring open a window with a list of shares on that computer. If you don't see the printer...then the printer isn't shared. If you see the printer, then double click the printer and see if it will install for you on the computer you did this from. Let us know the results.

Was a fix ever found for this problem? I have just run into the same exact problem.
I have a network of 3 computers. One of the computers (the server) has several printers connected to it that are shared over the network to the other computers.
I just installed a new printer on the server and one (only one) of the two network computers gets the same 0x00003e3 error message that the first poster had. The other network system can connect/print to the new printer without a problem.
The computer with the problem can print to other network printers just fine though which is what makes this weird.
All computers are running Windows 10 Pro.
Any help would be appreciated.

Thanks for the ideas, unfortunately none of those fixed it (printer doesn't have an ethernet port so I couldn't try that option). I managed to figure out a solution though.

The client computer that is trying to access the new network printer is running as a Standard User (not an Admin). It seems like it needs to be an admin in order to install the driver for this particular printer.

The workaround is to use the Credential Manager on the client and add a Windows credential for an account on computer acting as the print server. For example, if the Windows server is named 'SERV' and has an account named 'printerhelpacct', then the username to add to the Credential Manager is SERV\printerhelpacct with the appropriate password.

It's convoluted and I don't know why it works, but it does. I suspect it has something to do with all of the Print Nightmare stuff from a few years ago.

I've run into a small snag with my solution.
If something hasn't been printed from the client computer in a little while, it seems to require reauthenticating to the print server with the Windows Credentials I mentioned in my last post. I guess there must be some type of time-out.
The reauthenticating works automatically, it's just slow. It can take 10-15 seconds for it connect which temporarily locks up one of the programs I am printing from (as it's waiting for the printer to respond).
Are there any other options that people have found that work? These are type 3 drivers which are apparently a bigger pain to network than newer type 4 drivers (which this printer doesn't have).