Fix ERROR_PRINT_MONITOR_IN_USE (0x00000BC0)

What's Happening Here

The error ERROR_PRINT_MONITOR_IN_USE (0x00000BC0) pops up when you're trying to remove a printer driver or a print monitor (like the Standard TCP/IP Port monitor) and Windows tells you it's still in use. The culprit here is almost always a printer that's still installed, a stuck spool file, or a leftover registry entry pointing to a driver that didn't fully uninstall.

I've seen this on Windows 10, Windows 11, and Server 2016/2019/2022. It usually happens after you delete a printer but the port or monitor driver doesn't get cleaned up. Or you're trying to update a printer driver and the old one won't let go.

You don't need to reboot the server or reinstall the OS. Here's the fix flow — start at step 1 and stop when the error's gone.

Step 1: The 30-Second Fix — Clear Stuck Print Jobs

Before you do anything else, check the print queue. Someone might have a document sitting in the spooler from a printer that's already been disconnected. That job keeps the monitor alive.

1. Open Services.msc (hit Win+R, type services.msc, press Enter).
2. Find Print Spooler. Right-click it and select Stop.
3. Open File Explorer and go to C:\Windows\System32\spool\PRINTERS. Delete everything in there. Yes, everything.
4. Go back to Services and Start the Print Spooler.

Now try whatever you were doing that threw the error. If it's gone, you're done. If not, move on.

Step 2: The 5-Minute Fix — Remove the Driver Properly

If clearing spool files didn't work, there's a printer driver still loaded. Windows holds a reference to the monitor as long as any driver that uses it is installed. You need to remove every printer that uses that monitor.

1. Open Print Management — hit Win+R, type printmanagement.msc, press Enter.
2. Expand Print Servers > [your server name] > Printers. Delete every printer listed there. Don't worry, you can reinstall them later.
3. Now go to Drivers. Right-click each driver and select Remove driver package. If it asks about removing the driver package, say yes.
4. Next, go to Ports. Find any ports tied to the monitor you're trying to delete (like Standard TCP/IP Port). Right-click and delete them.
5. Now try your original action again — uninstall the printer driver or delete the print monitor.

If the error still shows, the driver removal didn't fully clean up. Skip the GUI and go to the command line.

# Run as Administrator
pnputil /enum-drivers | findstr "printer"

# Note the published name (e.g., oem0.inf), then remove it:
pnputil /delete-driver oem0.inf /uninstall

Repeat pnputil /enum-drivers for any printer driver you see. Then retry your action.

Step 3: The Advanced Fix — Registry Cleanup (15+ Minutes)

Okay, you've cleaned the spooler, deleted every printer and driver, but Windows still won't let go. There's a stale registry key pointing to a monitor that's no longer installed. You have to nuke it manually.

Back up the registry first. Seriously. Export the key before you touch anything. One wrong delete and your print stack is toast.

1. Open Regedit as Administrator.
2. Navigate to: HKEY_LOCAL_MACHINE\SYSTEM\CurrentControlSet\Control\Print\Monitors
3. Look for the monitor that's giving you the error (e.g., "Standard TCP/IP Port"). If you're trying to delete the monitor, you'll see it listed there. But don't delete it yet.
4. Expand that monitor key. Look for subkeys like Ports or Drivers. Right-click and delete those subkeys.
5. Delete the monitor key itself.
6. Now go to HKEY_LOCAL_MACHINE\SYSTEM\CurrentControlSet\Control\Print\Environments\Windows x64\Print Processors and check for any orphaned entries referencing the same monitor. Delete those too.
7. Close Regedit, restart the Print Spooler service, and try your original action again.

Heads up: If you delete the wrong monitor key (like the AppleTalk or LPR monitor that's still in use by another printer), you'll break that printer. Double-check you're deleting the right one. The error message tells you which monitor is in use.

When None of That Works

Rarely, the monitor is tied to a third-party driver like a Brother or HP printer management tool. Uninstall that software from Programs and Features first. Then reboot and retry the driver removal. If it's a manufacturer's print monitor (like Brother's BRUSB), you might need their cleanup tool.

I've also seen this happen when the printer is shared over the network and another machine still has it installed. Check the print server — if it's a network printer, make sure no other workstations have it added. Remove the printer from those machines, then try again.

Last resort: boot into Safe Mode, then run step 3. Safe Mode loads only essential drivers and can bypass some locks. It's a pain but it works when the monitor won't release.