Print Spooler Service Keeps Crashing? Try This Fix First

If your print spooler keeps crashing, you're not alone

It's annoying, right? You're trying to print something, and Windows tells you the Print Spooler service stopped. Or you see "Print Spooler Dependency Service Crashed" in Event Viewer. I've fixed this hundreds of times. Here's the fix that works almost every time.

Important: Don't bother reinstalling printer drivers or messing with Windows updates first. That rarely helps when the spooler crashes repeatedly. The real fix is simpler.

The Quick Fix: Clear the print spooler

On Windows 10, Windows 11, and Windows Server 2016/2019, this is my number one fix:

1. Open Services (type services.msc in Start).
2. Find Print Spooler. Right-click it and select Stop.
3. Now open File Explorer and go to C:\Windows\System32\spool\PRINTERS.
4. Delete everything in that folder. Yes, everything. Don't worry, it's just temp print files.
5. Go back to Services, right-click Print Spooler, and hit Start.
6. Try printing again.

That's it. In about 90% of cases, the spooler will stop crashing after this. The corrupt job or driver file is gone.

Why this works

The Print Spooler service saves print jobs as files in the PRINTERS folder. When a job gets corrupted — and I've seen it happen from bad PDFs, old drivers, or even a power loss mid-print — the spooler can't process it. It tries, fails, and crashes. Over and over. Deleting those corrupt files breaks the loop.

If it still crashes after clearing the folder, the issue is almost always a bad driver. Here's how to handle that:

Remove bad printer drivers

1. Open Devices and Printers (search it in Start).
2. Right-click any printer that's not working and select Remove device.
3. Now open Print Management (search printmanagement.msc).
4. Go to Print Servers → Your PC → Drivers.
5. Delete any driver you don't need. Especially if you see old ones from HP, Brother, or Canon — those love to cause crashes.

Less common variations of the same issue

Sometimes the fix above isn't enough. Here are other scenarios I've seen:

1. Corrupt registry entry

Rare, but happens after a bad uninstall. Open regedit and go to HKEY_LOCAL_MACHINE\SYSTEM\CurrentControlSet\Control\Print\Printers. Look for any printer with weird characters or missing data. Delete it. Yes, delete the whole key for that printer. Restart the spooler.

2. A service dependency failed

The Print Spooler depends on RPC Endpoint Mapper and Remote Procedure Call (RPC). If either of those is stopped, the spooler won't start. Check in Services that both are running and set to Automatic. If RPC is stopped, that means something serious is wrong — maybe a malware infection. Run a quick scan with Defender.

3. Corrupt Windows system files

This is a long shot, but I've seen it. Run sfc /scannow in an admin command prompt. If it finds corrupt files, run DISM /Online /Cleanup-Image /RestoreHealth afterwards. Then reboot. This fixes underlying system corruption that can mess with any service, including the spooler.

4. Group Policy blocking the spooler

On domain-joined PCs, a Group Policy might disable the spooler. Check gpedit.msc under Computer Configuration → Administrative Templates → Printers. Look for anything set to "Disabled." If you're not on a domain, this is unlikely.

How to stop it from happening again

Prevention is boring but works. Here's what I tell people:

• Don't cancel print jobs by unplugging the printer. That corrupts the spooler file. Always cancel from the print queue dialog.
• Update printer drivers from the manufacturer's site, not Windows Update. Windows Update drivers are often outdated or generic. Go to HP, Brother, Epson, or whoever made your printer.
• If you use a network printer, disable the "SNMP Status Enabled" option in the printer's driver settings. It polls the printer constantly and can crash the spooler on flaky networks.
• Set the Print Spooler service to restart automatically. In Services: right-click Print Spooler → Properties → Recovery tab. Set "First failure" to "Restart the Service." This at least keeps it running after a crash.

That last one — auto-restart — is a lifesaver. I set it on every server I manage. Even if the spooler crashes, it's back up in seconds. Users barely notice.

One more thing: if you're on Windows Server 2008 or older, stop reading this and upgrade. Those versions are unsupported and have known spooler vulnerabilities. But that's a whole other rant.