The PrintNightmare situation has plagued Windows 11 since the OS made its debut in the fall of 2021. Microsoft has had its share of Windows printing problems through the PrintNightmare problem. PrintNightmare started from an exploit PoC accidentally leaking online in June 2021, to Microsoft later issuing an emergency out-of-band patch. While the situation was different, Windows 11’s printer issues have also come to the 2022 Update (22H2). It is worth noting the PrintNightmare was specifically the June 2021 exploit problem. Even so, the term has become a catchall for all the issues Windows 11 is having with printers.
22H2 Issue
The latest problem came in late September when Microsoft was forced to put a hold on the 22H2 update for affected systems. In an update post on the Windows 11 Health Dashboard, Microsoft said the Windows 11 2022 Update may have issues finding full features from printers on those two drivers. In situations where the OS cannot find the printer, it will simply revert back to default features. Microsoft now says the issue is resolved and the following timeline shows how the company has managed the situation:
“October 7, 2022: This safeguard hold has been updated to only safeguard Windows devices with printers using Microsoft IPP Class Driver or Universal Print Class Driver which currently only allow default settings. Please note, if there are no other safeguards that affect your device, it can take up to 48 hours before the upgrade to Windows 11 is offered. Restarting your device and checking for updates might help it to offer sooner. October 21, 2022: 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. Please note, if there are no other safeguards that affect your device, it can take up to 48 hours before the upgrade to Windows 11 is offered. Restarting your device and checking for updates might help the troubleshooter apply sooner. November 10, 2022: Any printer still affected by this issue should now get resolved automatically during upgrade to Windows 11, version 22H2.”
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