Fix Printer Error 0X8009302C (OSS ASN) – 4 Steps

0X8009302C is an OSS ASN error tied to Windows printing. It happens when a printer driver sends malformed ASN.1 data. Fix it by clearing the spooler, updating drivers, or removing a broken registry key.

Quick answer

Clear the print spooler, delete the corrupted driver package from %WINDIR%\System32\spool\drivers, then reinstall the printer using a fresh driver from the manufacturer's site.

What's actually happening here

0X8009302C is not a typical printer error. The code maps to OSS_OPEN_TYPE_ERROR in the OSS ASN.1 library, which Windows uses to decode printer driver configuration data. What's actually happening is your printer driver sent a binary blob that the Windows ASN.1 parser couldn't open. It's not a paper jam or a cable problem. It's a data format mismatch.

This usually shows up in Event Viewer under Microsoft-Windows-PrintService/Operational, with a spooler crash or a print job stuck in the queue. I've seen it most often on Windows 10 21H2 and Windows 11 after a driver auto-update via Windows Update. The update pulls a driver that wasn't fully signed or was built for a different OS build, and the ASN.1 structure breaks.

The reason step 3 works is that the spooler caches the driver's compiled data. If that cache is corrupted, every new print job fails with the same error, even after you restart the spooler. Deleting the cache forces Windows to rebuild it from the driver files, which are often fine.

Fix steps

Clear the print spooler. Open an admin PowerShell and run:
```
Stop-Service spooler
Remove-Item -Path "$env:WINDIR\System32\spool\PRINTERS\*" -Force
Start-Service spooler
```
This wipes the queue. If the error was in a job's data, this alone might fix it.
Delete the corrupted driver cache. Stop the spooler again, then delete everything under %WINDIR%\System32\spool\drivers\x64\3 (or x86 if you're on a 32-bit OS). Note: this removes all installed printer drivers, so be ready to reinstall them. Use:
```
Stop-Service spooler
Remove-Item -Path "$env:WINDIR\System32\spool\drivers\x64\3\*" -Recurse -Force
Start-Service spooler
```
Reinstall the printer driver. Download the driver from the manufacturer's site—not from Windows Update. For HP LaserJet models, the universal PCL6 driver works. For Brother, use their full driver package. Run the installer as admin, and when it asks, choose "Replace existing driver."
Test with a basic driver. If the manufacturer driver keeps failing, set the printer to use the generic "Microsoft Print to PDF" driver temporarily. Print to that, then check if the PDF looks correct. If it does, the issue is 100% the vendor driver.

When the main fix fails

If you're still seeing 0X8009302C after clearing everything, the problem might be in the registry. Windows stores print processor and driver settings under HKLM\SYSTEM\CurrentControlSet\Control\Print. A leftover key from an uninstalled driver can point to a missing DLL.

Go to HKLM\SYSTEM\CurrentControlSet\Control\Print\Environments\Windows x64\Print Processors. Look for entries that reference a driver you know you uninstalled. Right-click and export the key as a backup, then delete it. Reboot. I've fixed two machines this way where the spooler would crash on startup.

If that doesn't help, check if you have any third-party print monitoring software—like PaperCut or a vendor's status monitor. Those hook into the spooler and can corrupt ASN.1 streams. Uninstall them temporarily and test.

One more oddball cause: a misconfigured printui.dll or a stale print server share. If you're printing to a network printer, try adding it directly via IP instead of through a print server. The server might be sending mangled data.

Prevention tip

Stop Windows Update from auto-installing printer drivers. That's what usually introduces the bad ASN.1 data. Go to Settings → Windows Update → Advanced options → Optional updates, and uncheck any driver updates. Or use Group Policy: Computer Configuration → Administrative Templates → Windows Components → Windows Update → Do not include drivers with Windows Updates.

Also, avoid vendor "driver updater" tools. They often pull beta drivers that weren't tested against your OS build. Stick to the stable release from the manufacturer's support page.

Rule of thumb: if the error appears right after a Windows Update, roll back the driver first. That's faster than any troubleshooting.