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Default Printer keeps changing
Question
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I recently upgraded one of our Windows 7 Pro computers to Windows 10 Pro. The computer has several printers attached to it. One HP networked printer and two Zebra label printers that are local via USB. Both of the local label printers are being shared through the computer so that others on the local network can use them as well.
The issue I am having since the upgrade is that when any of the other users on the network prints to one of the label printers, it changes the default printer on the hosting computer to that label printer. I can manually change the default printer on that computer back to the networked HP, but the next time some other user prints to one of the shared label printers, the default printer on the hosting computer switches the default back to that label printer.
Any ideas on how to stop this? I already turned off the Windows 10 option to manage the default printers. I've updated just about every driver I can think of, reinstalled printers, un-shared/re-shared the label printers, ran Windows updates, etc.
Thanks,
Answers
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Hi,
Try Navigating to
HKEY_USERS\USERS_SID_HERE\Printers\Connections and settings
And
HKEY_CURRENT_USER\Printers
Then compare it to your current printers, clear entries not belong to these four printers (backup first). Also you could try to clear all of them out and check the issue after a reboot.
Regards,
D. Wu
Please remember to mark the replies as answers if they help, and unmark the answers if they provide no help. If you have feedback for TechNet Support, contact tnmff@microsoft.com.
- Proposed as answer by Deason WuModerator Thursday, December 24, 2015 10:23 AM
- Marked as answer by Michael_LSModerator Monday, December 28, 2015 8:59 AM
All replies
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Interesting issue perhaps. The setting for managing the default printer appears to be per user. HKCU\SOFTWARE\Microsoft\Windows NT\CurrentVersion\Windows\LegacyDefaultPrinterMode
So thinking when the logged in user uses a different printer it does not change? So it maybe that the others are triggering the 'change to default printer to last used printer' as they do not have that settings.
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So when I use my own computer, not the printer that the label printers are attached to, I have mine also set for the HP networked printer as the default. My computer also has the "manage default printer" setting turned off/ When I print to one of the label printers, my default printers don't change at all, they stay at the HP networked printer.
But that print action from my computer makes the default printer for the other computer (which has the two label printers attached locally) switch defaults to whatever label printer I printed to. The registry key and that manage default printer setting never changes, it stays disabled. But the default printer changes and so the user of that computer has to manually switch it again.
Very strange, I've never seen this type of thing before.
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Also, you are correct, the "hosting" computer can print back and forth between different printers without having its default printer change at all. It isn't until a different computer sends a print job to one of the shared label printers that the default printer gets changed.
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If appears others users are triggering the manage default printer for the workstation, but I guess that would be intended so would appear perhaps a Windows bug to me. Beyond entering this in the feedback app not sure what else to suggest I am afraid.
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Hi,
Try Navigating to
HKEY_USERS\USERS_SID_HERE\Printers\Connections and settings
And
HKEY_CURRENT_USER\Printers
Then compare it to your current printers, clear entries not belong to these four printers (backup first). Also you could try to clear all of them out and check the issue after a reboot.
Regards,
D. Wu
Please remember to mark the replies as answers if they help, and unmark the answers if they provide no help. If you have feedback for TechNet Support, contact tnmff@microsoft.com.
- Proposed as answer by Deason WuModerator Thursday, December 24, 2015 10:23 AM
- Marked as answer by Michael_LSModerator Monday, December 28, 2015 8:59 AM