Windows 11 has now got a fix for a seriously troublesome printer bug, affected users will doubtless be pleased to hear.
This particular bug sprang up back in September, causing some printers to revert to their default settings – a real headache as it means that certain important features, like duplex or even color printing, cease to work.
The glitch was brought in with the Windows 11 22H2 update and it affected printers using the Microsoft IPP Class Driver or Universal Print Class Driver.
The good news, as mentioned, is that Microsoft has now officially fixed the bug as reported in an update (opens in new tab) to the Windows 11 health dashboard, spotted by The Register (opens in new tab).
This means that Windows 11 users previously blocked from upgrading to the 22H2 update are now free to go ahead and grab it.
Microsoft noted: “A troubleshooter has been released which will automatically download and resolve this issue on affected devices running Windows 11, version 22H2. Once the issue with the installed printer is resolved, the safeguard should be removed and you should be able to upgrade to Windows 11, version 22H2.”
The caveat is that it may still take a while – up to 48 hours – before the upgrade is offered, and of course, this assumes there aren’t any other blockers or compatibility issues elsewhere stopping the 22H2 update for your PC. You can always manually check for Windows updates to attempt to speed up the process, Microsoft advises.
Analysis: Same old story, sadly
Obviously it’s good to see this one resolved in a reasonable timeframe, although as we said above, the bug will certainly have proved a frustrating one for those users (and businesses) hit by it.
The sad truth is we’ve seen a fair few Windows 11 bugs emerge of late, and just as Windows 10 experienced bouts of gremlins in the works causing serious problems all too often, it doesn’t appear that the new operating system is much different. But that’s no real surprise, seeing as Windows 11 remains the same in many core ways; and certainly Microsoft’s underlying testing and QA procedures don’t seem to have changed.
Other recent bugs which have impacted Windows 11 include a problematic issue with trying to eject USB drives, and a head-scratcher whereby the OS is slowing down performance of high-end models of AMD’s new Zen 4 processors.
