My printer keeps printing

[court-garrett]

My printer keeps printing paper, and I have updated my drive, and it says that it is up to date.

[Sneha_01]

Hi @court-garrett 

Welcome to HP Support Community.

Thank you for posting your query, I will be glad to help you.

It sounds like your printer is stuck in an endless print loop, which can be quite frustrating. This issue can happen for a variety of reasons, including print queue errors, software glitches, or settings issues. Here are some steps you can take to troubleshoot and hopefully resolve the issue:

1. Cancel All Print Jobs in the Print Queue

The print queue might be stuck with jobs that are causing the printer to continuously print.

Windows:

• Go to Control Panel > Devices and Printers.
• Right-click on your printer and select See what's printing.
• In the print queue window, click on Printer at the top and select Cancel All Documents.
• If any jobs are stuck, cancel them and restart your printer.

Mac:

• Go to System Preferences > Printers & Scanners.
• Select your printer and click Open Print Queue.
• Delete all jobs in the queue by clicking on the X next to each one.

2. Power Cycle Your Printer

A simple restart can often help clear any stuck jobs or errors in the printer's system.

• Turn off the printer.
• Unplug the printer’s power cord from the wall for about 30 seconds.
• Plug it back in and turn the printer on.

3. Check Printer Settings

There might be some settings causing the printer to print unexpectedly.

• Check if “Print on startup” is enabled in your printer’s settings (especially in the case of network printers).
• Check for any "print test" settings that could be automatically printing test pages.

4. Disconnect the Printer from the Computer

Unplugging or disconnecting the printer from your computer temporarily can help stop the loop if it's software-related.

• Disconnect the printer from the computer (via USB, network cable, or Wi-Fi).
• Restart the printer and see if it stops printing. If it does, the issue is likely related to the connection or software.

5. Restart the Print Spooler Service (for Windows)

Sometimes, the print spooler service can get stuck, causing print jobs to queue up endlessly.

• Press Windows + R, type services.msc, and hit Enter.
• In the Services window, scroll down to find Print Spooler.
• Right-click on Print Spooler and select Restart.
• After restarting the spooler, check if the issue persists.

6. Update or Reinstall Printer Drivers

Even if the driver is up to date, it’s possible that the installation got corrupted. Reinstalling the printer driver can fix this.

• Go to Device Manager (press Windows + X and select Device Manager).
• Expand the Printers section, right-click on your printer, and select Uninstall device.
• Download and reinstall the latest driver from the manufacturer’s website (or use HP Smart for HP printers).

I hope this helps.

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