How To Restart The Spooler |link| (2026)

She clicked on it. The status said “Running,” but the printer was a brick. Leo’s voice echoed in her memory: “When in doubt, turn it off and on again.”

Open Command Prompt as Administrator and type net stop spooler, then press Enter.

Restarting the Print Spooler is a common fix for printers that are offline, stuck, or not responding. You can do this through Windows Services, the Command Prompt, or PowerShell. 🛠️ Option 1: Using Windows Services (Easiest) This is the most common method for most users. Press , type services.msc , and hit Enter . Scroll down the list to find Print Spooler . Right-click on Print Spooler and select Restart . If "Restart" is grayed out, click Start instead. 💻 Option 2: Using Command Prompt (Fastest)

Cue the internal screaming. Is there any phrase in the English language more aggravating? I wasn't asking for much. I just wanted ink on paper. Why must technology be a tyranny? how to restart the spooler

Sometimes simply restarting the service isn't enough because a corrupted print job file is clogging the system. In this case, you need to clear the temporary files.

“Great,” she muttered. “Time to become a wizard.”

Wait for the message saying the service has stopped successfully. She clicked on it

When your printer stops responding, jobs get stuck in the queue, or you see errors like "The Print Spooler service is not running," restarting the service is the most effective fix.

Press Windows Key + R on your keyboard to open the Run dialog box. Type services.msc and press Enter. Scroll down the list of services to find Print Spooler. Right-click on Print Spooler and select Restart.

I fought the “Printer Spooler” and I won (Here is the battle plan) Restarting the Print Spooler is a common fix

She had an hour to print 200 bound reports for the 3 p.m. board meeting. Her colleague, Leo, the unofficial IT wizard who wore Birkenstocks to work, was out sick.

A small progress bar spun. For five seconds, the universe held its breath. Then, a ding . The spooler restarted. She held her breath and sent a single test page to the printer.