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Kevin - The other possibility is an issue with the USB-Parallel converter.  I have heard lots of models that do not work.  The models in the posts tagged here are those users in the forum have reported working with Windows 7 x64.  If all else has failed I would suggest finding a USB-Parallel converter that works.  

 

You might go to Device Manager and see if there are any errors associated with the converter.


Bob Headrick,  HP Expert

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Hello, I tried this for a computer running Windows 7 64x and it will not allow the patches to install to C:\windows\system32\spool\drivers\x64\3. A pop up window says it is not a valid folder. Any ideas on this? Thanks for any help you may have. I am like the other guys. I have and old Deskjet 720C that works better than any printer I have bought before or after. I really hate to part with it.

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RE: bonsai1309 (Student) posted a new reply in Inkjet Printing on 03-12-2019 07:00 AM

Subject: Re: Deskjet 710/720/810/820/1000 Series printers - Patch for 64 bit Vista and Windows 7

"Hello, I tried this for a computer running Windows 7 64x and it will not allow the patches to install to C:\windows\system32\spool\drivers\x64\3. A pop up window says it is not a valid folder. Any ideas on this?"

 

The pathway should work, but if you are putting it in as printed above, the slash marks are backwards. Correct that and see if it works then. You might also let the install program choose optional pathways for you; then just click the one you want.

 

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@bonsai1309 wrote:

Hello, I tried this for a computer running Windows 7 64x and it will not allow the patches to install to C:\windows\system32\spool\drivers\x64\3. A pop up window says it is not a valid folder. Any ideas on this? Thanks for any help you may have. I am like the other guys. I have and old Deskjet 720C that works better than any printer I have bought before or after. I really hate to part with it.


There are a few possibilities:

  • It is possible that Windows is not installed in C:\Windows - perhaps on a different drive or directory.  For this case use "%windir%"  (without the quotes) rather than C:\Windows, as in %windir%\system32\spool\drivers\x64\3See the instructions in this post.
  • It is possible that you are not using an account with administrative privileges.  Make sure the patch is applied as a user with admin capability.

If the above does not resolve the issue please open a CMD prompt and type the following:

 

cd %windir%

cd system32\spool\drivers\x64\3

 

Report on your results.


Bob Headrick,  HP Expert

I am not an employee of HP, I am a volunteer posting here on my own time.

If your problem is solved please click the "Accept as Solution" button 

If my answer was helpful please click "Yes" to the "Was this post helpful" question.


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Hello Bob, I tried this with no luck. I am running as administrator on the system. I am not certain how to do the command  prompt but it I tried it, I had a pop up window that cautioned me about changing the DLL files and how it could harm your system so I was hesitant to do that. I know and I am close to the solution here but just cant find the correct folder for the zip files. Thanks, Bill

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Bob, I tried the command prompt you suggested with no luck. My printer shows up in devices and printers but when I send a print job to the printer it doesn't show up in the  print queue and nothing happens. Thanks again for your time, Bill

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@bonsai1309 wrote:

Hello Bob, I tried this with no luck. I am running as administrator on the system. I am not certain how to do the command  prompt but it I tried it, I had a pop up window that cautioned me about changing the DLL files and how it could harm your system so I was hesitant to do that. I know and I am close to the solution here but just cant find the correct folder for the zip files. Thanks, Bill

Bob, I tried the command prompt you suggested with no luck. My printer shows up in devices and printers but when I send a print job to the printer it doesn't show up in the  print queue and nothing happens. Thanks again for your time, Bill


Windows will warn about replacing dll files, but that is what is needed.  The dll files supplied through Windows Update are defective, they will cause the spooler to crash if you send a print job.  You will need to replace the files, until you do this print jobs will just disappear.  You will need to stop the spooler before the files can be replaced, then restart the spooler after the patch has been applied.

 

Let's do the following:  click Start. Search programs and files" box type CMD.EXE.  It will search, then list CMD under Programs.  Right click on the CMD icon and select "Run as administrator".  Reply "Yes" to the User Account Control prompt.  Now click in the command prompt window and type the following:

 

cd %windir%

 

What is the result?  Most likely the prompt will change to "X:\Windows>"  where "X" is your system drive.  This will typically be the C: drive, but may be different in some cases.  If there is an error please let me know the error message.  If there is no error and the prompt has changed to reflect the Windows directory then type the following:

 

cd system32\spool\drivers\x64\3

 

This should get you to the right place.  If not please indicate any error messages you see.  If things are OK then stop the spooler, copy the dll files, then start the spooler.


Bob Headrick,  HP Expert

I am not an employee of HP, I am a volunteer posting here on my own time.

If your problem is solved please click the "Accept as Solution" button 

If my answer was helpful please click "Yes" to the "Was this post helpful" question.


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Bob, I don't see my last post so I will do it again. When I tried the command prompt as you said, it does nothing. The window just sits there like it is waiting for the next command.No error messages either. Thanks again, Bill

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The basics of the command prompt (I've liked the prompt since DOS existed).The command line window doesn't show you anything once it's done with processing it's command. It just waits for the next one.

 

I can tell you what I'd expect to happen on your PC when executing this, but I can't see what is actually happening on there, so all information is provided as-is, and I'm not taking responsibility if this procedure results in a non-functional system for you (which it couldn't do, unless you completely butcher the commands).

 

Be sure to read the whole procedure/post prior to doing anything. If you're unsure about the commands potentially investigate them on the web to make sure you understand the repercussions of the commands typed before you attempt the patch. Or ask for clarification here. Some people may jump in to verify my post, or even improve upon it 🙂

 

The blue text indicates clicking/typing. The bolded black text is there to indicate what you're seeing on the screen. The rest is purely for elaboration. Do note that the command prompt is very exact in it's commands. Mistype something, and it will not work, or worse, do something you don't want it to do.

 

Press Start, select Run and type in cmd in the box that appears.

 

You get a black screen with a prompt. Usually something like C:\Users\username>

 

Type cd %windir%

 

The prompt changes (cd is short for 'change directory', and directory was the old name for a folder) and becomes C:\Windows>. This indicates we're now in the Windows folder.

 

Type cd system32\spool\drivers\x64\3

 

The prompt changes and becomes C:\Windows\System32\spool\drivers\x64\3>. So we're now in the folder that contains the DLL files that govern the printer driver.

 

If you type dir here, it will show you the contents of the folder, and you're probably seeing one or more of the three DLL files mentioned in the patch (along with a heap of other files - which we can ignore since we're not doing anything with them in regards to this patch):

 

So we're looking for one or more of these files:

 

hpvdb720.dll
hpvdb820.dll
hpwm5db1.dll

 

Now... if you extracted the patch files to C:\Temp (as depicted in the opening post on page 1 (https://h30434.www3.hp.com/t5/Inkjet-Printing/Deskjet-710-720-810-820-1000-Series-printers-Patch-for...)), that means the files are located in that folder.

 

Step 1: stopping the printspooler, and allowing the files to be exchanged. We can do this with the command net stop spooler

 

Step 2: if you want to play it safe, we'll rename the files here to something else, so they will not get overwritten. That way you can always revert back:

 

So depending on which files exist (which is dependant on the printer you own), one or more of these three commands when typed will rename the .DLL file to a .OLD file. If the original file does not exist, it should toss you an error:

 

ren hpvdb720.dll hpvdb720.old
ren hpvdb820.dll hpvdb820.old
ren hpwm5db1.dll hpwm5db1.old

 

Step 3: So, then we proceed with the patch, as per the opening post. To do so we need to copy the file(s) we need to the folder we're currently in:

 

copy c:\temp\hpvdb720.dll
copy c:\temp\hpvdb720.dll
copy c:\temp\hpvdb720.dll

 

If you extracted the files somewhere else, you'll have to change out the 'temp' in the command to reflect where you extracted the files. And you should only copy the file(s) you needed to rename. The rest isn't needed (tho it won't hurt you if the file is still copied).

 

These three commands will actually copy the files from the C:\Temp folder to the C:\Windows\System32\spool\drivers\x64\3 folder (where you should still be residing according to the prompt shown). Since you renamed the files, the system will not prompt you that you're going to be overwriting anything. If you skipped the renaming and went straight to the copying, then the system will prompt you about overwriting the existing files.

 

Step 4: Restart the printspooler by issuing the command net start spooler

Or alternativly just reboot your PC.

 

Step 5: type Exit to close the window.

 

That should do it. I do want to underline that once you move to Windows 8 or Windows 10, the patch didn't work for me anymore. So Windows 7 is the last version I can reliably say I had the patch working. By now my Deskjet is collecting dust on the shelf behind me, seeing the newest Windows OS versions just do not like the printer anymore.

 

For completeness sake, if you wanted to revert back to the original files and thus remove the patch, you proceed from the start of my post to step 1 I mentioned above, and then replace step 2 with:

 

a) Delete the patch DLL files from the system:

 

del hpvdb720.dll
del hpvdb820.dll
del hpwm5db1.dll

 

The system doesn't ask for confirmation on this, and just removes the file. So be sure on what you type here!

 

and replace step 3 with:

 

b) Rename the original files back to their original names:

 

ren hpvdb720.old hpvdb720.dll
ren hpvdb820.old hpvdb820.dll
ren hpwm5db1.old hpwm5db1.dll

 

Then pick up with step 4 in starting the printspooler again.

 

Hope this helps you out a bit in implementing the patch.

I reject your reality, and substitute my own - Adam Savage
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I just want to say to Neko1308 (Top Student) that his reply to the inquiry about the Deskjet 720/820 patch is the BEST reply to any question ever posted here. I don't see how anyone could mess up or not understand his explicit instructions! Brovo! Very well written for us non-nerds. Sadly, as he notes, this patch only works on Windows 7 and earlier versions. Now that the vast majority of us are deeply into the Win10 generation, our favorite printers that served us so very well for many versions of Windows (e.g. Deskjet 720/820) now only collect dust (mine is under the bed). Interestingly, however, my wife's Deskjet 832C still chugs along under Windows10 Home version. I'm sure it's just a matter of time before some update will make it obsolete also. Sad, very sad. Cheers, Neko 1308! Some software or PC or periphial manufacturer ought to hire you to write instruction manuals for us non-nerds. But, alas, manuals are also a thing of the past. Manufacturers assum that all PC users and buyers have degrees in computer science and just somehow know what all the jargon means, and that we somehow just intrensically know how to make stuff work. Not!

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