Printer not working after enabling Windows Protected Print? Here's how to fix it.

If your printer stopped working after enabling Windows Protected Print Mode (WPP), the most likely culprit is printer driver compatibility.

WPP automatically removes third-party printer drivers and requires Windows to use its fancy, modern Windows Ready Print (WRP) printing platform. Printers that depend on traditional manufacturer drivers will therefore disappear, stop printing, or lose functionality altogether.

TL;DR Printer stopped working after enabling WPP? Try this first:

1. Check whether your printer is Mopria-certified:
   1. Yes? Reinstall using Windows Ready Print and test it again.
   2. No? WPP won’t support it directly. Disable WPP and try printing again or use an IPP-based solution such as PaperCut Mobility Print.
2. Prints with WPP but missing features like stapling or hole punching?
   1. Temporarily disable WPP
   2. Open the printer’s Printing preferences. If a feature is available with the manufacturer’s driver but missing when the printer is installed through WRP it may not be supported by WPP.
3. Managing a mixed fleet?
   1. For organizations with mixed or non-Mopria printer fleets, or if you’re after a longer-term, WPP-compatible solution, Consider an IPP-based solution such as PaperCut Mobility Print, with Print Deploy for managed queue deployment.

Why did my printer stop working after enabling WPP?

WPP disables third-party printer drivers. That’s its job. Unfortunately, this makes printers that depend on those drivers unavailable. When WPP is enabled, Windows can remove printers using incompatible drivers and prevent those drivers from being used.

This is actually WPP working as intended. WPP is designed to move Windows away from third-party printer drivers and towards WRP, Microsoft’s modern, driverless, IPP-based printing platform.

That means a printer can work perfectly before WPP is enabled, and then suddenly:

• Disappear from your Printers & Scanners list
• Show as unavailable or offline
• Fail to install
• Lose certain printing features
• No longer appear in applications

It doesn’t necessarily mean the printer itself has failed. And it doesn’t necessarily mean you should junk your printer.

The big question is: can Windows communicate with this printer through WRP, without its traditional driver?

Step 1: Check if your printer supports WPP

The quickest compatibility check is to look for Mopria certification.

WPP is designed to work with Mopria-certified printers, and (according to Microsoft) more than 120 million current printers are already Mopria-certified. So your odds are pretty good.

You can check your exact model in the Mopria-certified products directory.

If your printer is Mopria-certified, there’s a good chance it will work with WPP. Try reinstalling it using WRP and test:

1. Go to Settings > Bluetooth & devices > Printers & scanners.
2. Hit Add device.
3. Let Windows discover the printer.
4. Install it using the available Windows Ready Print option.
5. Print a test page.

Hot tip: A printer that was previously installed with a manufacturer driver may need to be reinstalled this way after WPP is enabled.

If your printer isn’t Mopria-certified, it isn’t a supported WPP printing option. But that doesn’t necessarily mean you need to replace it; you’ll just need a workaround like an IPP print server or PaperCut Mobility Print (see below).

Step 2: Is the printer driver the problem?

If the printer worked before you enabled WPP, the driver is one of the first things to investigate.

When WPP is enabled, it prevents third-party printer drivers from being used. It may even uninstall a printer that relies on those drivers. This means a queue that depends on a manufacturer-specific driver may therefore stop working, even when the printer and network connection are totally fine.

Also check whether your printer relies on advanced features such as:

• Stapling or hole punching
• Multiple trays
• Custom paper sizes
• Finishing options
• Manufacturer-specific authentication

A printer might support basic WPP printing while losing some advanced functionality. You’ll still be able to print in that case, just not with all the bells and whistles.

A useful diagnostic test

If the printer works again when WPP is disabled, but stops working when WPP is re-enabled, you’ve identified a WPP compatibility issue rather than a hardware failure.

How to temporarily disable Windows Protected Print

If you need to restore printing while investigating, you can always temporarily disable WPP.

On an individually managed Windows PC:

1. Open Settings.
2. Go to Bluetooth & devices > Printers & scanners.
3. Find Windows protected print mode.
4. Click Turn Off.
5. Confirm the change.

Note: Any printers removed when WPP was enabled may need to be manually reinstalled afterwards.

What if WPP is controlled by Group Policy?

In a big organization, users might not be able to change these settings themselves. For that, you’ll need Group Policy.

The relevant Group Policy setting is:

Computer Configuration > Administrative Templates > Printers > Configure Windows protected print

This controls whether Windows Protected Print Mode is switched on or not. One you disable WPP any printers that Windows removed may need to be reinstalled with their original drivers.

Now while disabling WPP can restore compatibility, it’s really more of a temporary troubleshooting or transition measure. You don’t want to have to dive into Group Policy every time someone needs to print.

What’s the long-term fix?

If your printer isn’t natively compatible with WPP, well, you’ve basically got three options.

1. Replace or update the printer

Replacing older printers with Mopria-certified models is obviously your most straightforward (if expensive) path to modern Windows printing.

Just make sure to check the features your organization requires. Certification doesn’t necessarily mean that every advanced function will behave exactly as it did with the manufacturer’s traditional driver.

2. Use an IPP print server

An IPP print server can sit between WPP-enabled Windows clients and the physical printer. Windows talks to the server using IPP, while the server handles communication with the printer.

This can extend the life of your hardware, but it does add another layer of infrastructure to manage. Just something to keep in mind.

We’ve got more info on IPP(S) print servers over here.

3. Use PaperCut Mobility Print

For organizations with a mixed printer fleet, PaperCut Mobility Print provides an enterprise-ready bridge between WPP and printers that aren’t WPP-compatible.

Mobility Print basically exposes IPP/IPPS print queues that WPP-enabled Windows clients can use. The Mobility Print server then handles communication with the physical printer, meaning the Windows client doesn’t need the printer’s original, third-party driver.

WPP compatibility across major printer brands

Compatibility varies by specific printer model, so we can’t just assume an entire brand is WPP-compatible. Still, here are some broad strokes to get you started.

The safest approach is to check the specific device, its Mopria status and the features users depend on – before you go and enable WPP across your entire fleet.

Using PaperCut to bridge the gap

For a large organization, replacing every single non-Mopria printer simply to enable WPP may not be practical (or cost-effective).

PaperCut Mobility Print is your workaround here. It lets IT teams adopt WPP on Windows devices while continuing to use a mixed legacy printer fleet. Mobility Print queues can be deployed to WPP-enabled Windows computers using PaperCut Print Deploy, providing a managed IPP workflow (without requiring traditional printer drivers on the client).

What should IT teams do next?

If a printer stopped working immediately after WPP was enabled, don’t start by replacing it. Use this sequence instead:

1. Check whether the printer is Mopria certified.
2. Try reinstalling it using Windows Ready Print.
3. Identify whether the previous queue relied on a third-party driver.
4. Check whether users need advanced printer features.
5. Temporarily disable WPP if necessary (to restore service short-term).
6. For mixed fleets, consider an IPP bridge such as PaperCut Mobility Print.
7. Replace genuinely incompatible printers as part of the normal hardware lifecycle.

WPP doesn’t mean your entire printer fleet has to be replaced overnight. With PaperCut Mobility Print providing an IPP bridge, organizations can keep existing printers working while slowly moving Windows clients towards a more secure, driverless printing architecture.

Check out PaperCut’s complete guide to Windows Protected Print Mode