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If you're dealing with the issue of the computer not recognizing the printer and specific error codes such as 0x0000007e, 0x00000002, or 0x0000007a are displayed on the screen.
Read on to explore solutions in Mytour's article to troubleshoot this problem.
Fixing the issue of computer not recognizing the printer
Method 1: Restart Print Spooler service
Follow the steps below to stop the Print Spooler service and restart it.
Step 1: Press Windows + R to open the Run dialog box.
Step 2: Type services.msc into it and press Enter or click OK.
Step 3: In the Name section, locate and double-click on the service named Print Spooler.
Step 4: On the next window, in the Service status section, click the Stop button.
Step 5: Click the Start button to restart the service.
Step 6: Finally, click on OK and check if the computer has recognized the printer.
Method 2: Create a new local port
Follow the steps below to create a new local port and fix the issue of the computer not recognizing the printer:
Step 1: Open Control Panel.
Step 2: In the View by section, choose Large icons, then locate and click on Devices and Printers.
Step 3: Click on Add a printer at the top of the window.
Note: To proceed, you'll need to log into the computer with Admin privileges.
Step 4: Select Add a network, wireless, or Bluetooth printer.
Step 5: Choose Create a new port, change the Type of port to Local Port, and then click on Next.
Step 6: Enter the port name in the box. The port name is the address of the printer. The printer's address is in the format \\location <\\location> with either IP address or computer name\printer name). Then click on OK.
Step 7: Select the printer line from the directory, then click on Next.
Step 8: Follow the on-screen instructions to complete the printer addition process.
Finally, check if the computer has recognized the printer.
Method 3: Uninstall printer driver
The reason for the computer not recognizing the printer could be the printer driver. Try uninstalling the printer driver and then reinstalling it to see if the issue persists.
Step 1: Press Windows + R to open the Run dialog box.
Step 2: Type printmanagement.msc into it and press Enter or click OK.
Step 3: In the Print Management window, on the left pane, locate and click on All Drivers.
Step 4: On the right pane, right-click on the printer driver and choose Delete.
If there are multiple printer drivers, follow similar steps to delete them.
Step 5: Reinstall the printer driver. Visit the manufacturer's official website to download and install the latest version of the printer driver.
Method 4: Manually copy 'mscms.dll'
Step 1: Open the folder C:\Windows\system32 and locate the file named 'mscms.dll'.
Step 2: Copy the file to the path below, depending on whether you are using a 32-bit or 64-bit version of Windows:
C:\windows\system32\spool\drivers\x64\3\ if you're using 64-bit Windows
C:\windows\system32\spool\drivers\w32x86\3\ if you're using 32-bit Windows
Step 3: Finally, try reconnecting the computer to the printer and see if the issue persists.
Method 5: Delete subkey
Note: Improperly editing the registry key can lead to serious system errors. Therefore, before proceeding with the steps below, Mytour advises you to back up the registry key to avoid potential issues.
Step 1: Stop the Print Spooler service. Follow the instructions in Method 1.
Step 2: Press Windows + R to open the Run dialog box.
Step 3: Type regedit into it and press Enter or click OK.
Step 4: Next, expand HKEY_LOCAL_MACHINE\SOFTWARE\Microsoft\Windows NT\CurrentVersion\Print\Providers\Client Side Rendering Print Provider, find and right-click on Client Side Rendering Print Provider, choose Delete.
Step 5: Restart the Print Spooler service.
Step 6: Reboot your computer to apply the changes and check if the computer still doesn't recognize the printer.
In this article, Mytour has just guided you through some ways to fix the issue of the computer not recognizing the printer and not connecting to the printer. Hopefully, this article has provided you with useful information. Additionally, you can refer to the solution for printer not receiving print commands on the computer here.
