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Add Printer Wizard Freezes up

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7 replies

by bob

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Windows does not see the new printer when rebooted. Continuing with the wizard, you can either pick it from the list, (where it does exist) or utilize the have disk button. I have tried both ways, because I do have the appropriate drivers on disk also, the wizard will process all task until the last frame where you are instructed to click the finish button. At this time the progress bar indicates the loading of the driver, then the wizard freezes up. Win XP Pro, fresh install - SP2 - logged on as administrator. Where could the problem be?

7 replies

by blackcurrant

Hi

Do you get the same problem when trying to install a different printer? Have you tried downloading the latest driver from the manufacturer's web site and tried installing that as well?

Also, is the printer a shared device on the network or attached to another computer? If so, make sure it has been shared properly and that the name does not contain any accents, commas, apostrophes etc.

Good luck

by bob

These are both excellent answers.
I, fortunately, stumbled into the answer to my delemna.
It seems that, for some odd reason, LPT1 was turned off in the bios.
I formatted the drive and reloaded Windows. I went to put the boot order right when I thought, "Let's just see if it could be here." It was. and turned off.
Thanks Guys

by bob

It's a local printer and have tried several with the same results.

by bob

I've tried the drivers in WinXP, from the manufacturer's website, and one I found on driversguide.com.
The driver doesn't seem to be the problem. The wizard is what's failing me. It freezes up just before it finishes. I even see the progress bar as it loads the driver. The wizard applet won't even Ctrl + Alt + Del from the screen. You have to reboot the computer, using the off or reset button, to get rid of it. While it is on the screen, you can navigate the rest of the machine and use other applications with no problem.

by willcomp

The key factor is that XP is not recognizing the printer automatically. That being the case, I would suspect a printer communication problem. Printer applet may freeze when it is necessary to communicate with printer to complete installation.

Is printer USB or parallel? If parallel, ensure that LPT port is functioning (check device mamager).

If USB, were chipset drivers installed after XP was installed? Does device show as connected (check Power tab for each USB Root Hub in Device Manager)?

First and simplest thing to try is to swap cables, preferably using a known good cable.

Dalton

by bob

These are both excellent answers.
I, fortunately, stumbled into the answer to my delemna.
It seems that, for some odd reason, LPT1 was turned off in the bios.
I formatted the drive and reloaded Windows. I went to put the boot order right when I thought, "Let's just see if it could be here." It was. and turned off.
Thanks Guys

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