Two printers showing in device manager

[Tinyf]

Can anyone please tell me why my HP Office Jet Pro 6970 shows twice in my Device Manager. One entry is showing as -
HP Office Jet Pro 6970 [3DAC41] and the other is showing as HP Office Jet Pro 6970 PCL-3.

Which entry is correct and is it safe to delete the other one. I only have one Printer/Scanner.

Thanks.

[Irfan_06 · Accepted solution]

Hi @Tinyf,

Welcome to the HP Support Community.

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

Your HP OfficeJet Pro 6970 appears twice in Device Manager because Windows has installed two different driver versions for it:

1. HP OfficeJet Pro 6970 [3DAC41] – This entry likely represents the USB or network connection of your printer.
2. HP OfficeJet Pro 6970 PCL-3 – This entry represents a generic PCL-3 driver that Windows may have installed automatically.

Which Entry is Correct?

• If your printer is working correctly (printing, scanning, etc.), you don't need to delete anything.
• The HP OfficeJet Pro 6970 [3DAC41] is likely the actual full-featured HP driver.
• The PCL-3 entry may have been installed by Windows as a fallback driver.

Can You Delete One?

• If you are experiencing no issues, it's best to leave both entries.
• If you want to clean up, you can:
  1. Check which driver is in use:
     • Go to Control Panel > Devices and Printers
     • Right-click on your printer and select Printer Properties
     • Under the Ports tab, see which name is assigned.
  2. Try Removing the PCL-3 Version:
     • In Device Manager, right-click on HP OfficeJet Pro 6970 PCL-3 and choose Uninstall Device.
     • Restart your computer and check if the printer still works.
  3. If problems occur, reinstall the official HP driver from HP's website.

Please mark this post as “Accepted Solution” if the issue is resolved and if you feel this reply was helpful click “Yes”.

 

I hope this helps.

Take care and have a great day ahead!

Irwin6

HP Support

[Tinyf]

Thank you, Irwin. You've explained that well for me. I'll leave the entries as they are as I'm not experiencing any problems. I was just going to tidy things up but now know I don't need to.

Thanks again.

[Irfan_06]

Hi @Tinyf,

That's great! Happy to hear that the issue has been resolved for now. You can follow the above troubleshooting steps shared if you encounter the issue again.

I appreciate your efforts in contacting HP community support and If you need any assistance in the future, feel free to reach out to us.

Take care and have a great day ahead!

Irwin6

HP Support