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Print Spooler Service Not Running (and Keeps Stopping)? The Fix Order That Sticks

Published June 10, 2026 · by The FixHub Team

You try to print and Windows says “Print Spooler service is not running,” or the service starts and immediately stops again — so you can’t add or use any printer.

Why “just restart the service” rarely works: a corrupt print job stuck in the queue, or a bad printer driver, crashes the spooler every time it starts. So setting it to Automatic and clicking Start just produces another crash. The fix has to remove the cause (the stuck job or bad driver) before restarting — in order.

Fix 1: Clear the stuck print queue

  1. Press Win + R → services.msc → right-click Print Spooler → Stop (leave Services open).
  2. Open File Explorer and go to: C:\Windows\System32\spool\PRINTERS
  3. Delete everything inside that PRINTERS folder (leave the folder itself). These are queued jobs; a corrupt one crashes the spooler.
  4. Back in Services → right-click Print Spooler → Start.

Fix 2: Remove the conflicting/duplicate driver

If it crashes again right after starting, a bad driver is the cause:

  1. Win + R → printmanagement.msc (or Settings → Bluetooth & devices → Printers & scanners).
  2. Remove printers you don’t use, and under Print Server Properties → Drivers, remove duplicate/old drivers for the problem printer.
  3. Reinstall the printer with the latest driver from the manufacturer.

Fix 3: Set the service to restart on failure

So a future hiccup self-heals:

  1. services.msc → Print Spooler → Properties → Recovery tab.
  2. Set First/Second failure to Restart the Service.
  3. Confirm Startup type = Automatic on the General tab.

Fix 4: Run the printer troubleshooter

Settings → System → Troubleshoot → Other troubleshooters → Printer → Run. It restarts the spooler and clears common faults automatically.

On Windows Server: check Group Policy first

If this is a server and the spooler restarts then stops on its own, it’s often disabled deliberately by a PrintNightmare-mitigation Group Policy — cache-clearing won’t help. See the server-specific guide: Print Spooler disabled by Group Policy on Windows Server.

FAQ

Why does it keep coming back? A single corrupt job or a faulty driver re-crashes it on every start. Clear the queue (Fix 1) and replace the driver (Fix 2) — restarting alone never fixes the root cause.

My printer shows “offline” instead. That’s a different symptom — see printer says offline in Windows 11.

Sources: Microsoft Support — Fix print spooler service not running errors in Windows