A Windows 11 Update Bug Is Making Printers Misbehave
Windows 11 users may run into a strange printer problem after installing update KB5050092 in the 23H2 beta build of Windows 11. Microsoft has confirmed the bug, which causes some USB-connected printers to suddenly print strange characters and random data, including network commands and cryptic symbols.
According to Microsoft's official documentation, when the bug strikes, the printed page may begin with the header "POST /ipp/print HTTP/1.1", followed by a stream of meaningless characters. The bug is more likely to occur when a printer is turned back on or reconnected after being unplugged.
At first, the behavior may seem bizarre and even funny, but in practice it wastes ink and paper and disrupts people's work. Some users have described the bug as a "haunted" printer, since it can spring to life on its own without any print command.
Cause and Fix for the Windows 11 Printing Bug
Microsoft says the bug only affects USB-connected printers that support both the USB Print and IPP Over USB protocols. Although it appears to show up on only some printers, Microsoft still treats it as a serious issue and has listed it among the known issues on the Windows Learn site.
Microsoft has now published instructions for using "Known Issue Rollback", a feature that reverses the problematic update to resolve the situation. Users can open Group Policy and make the adjustment at the following path:
- Computer Configuration > Administrative Templates > [Group Policy name]
After this workaround is applied, Microsoft has changed the status of the printing bug to "Mitigated", which means users can deal with the problem for now. However, Microsoft states that an official fix will be included in the next Windows update.
Windows 11 and Its History of Printer Bugs
This is not the first time a Windows update has broken printers. Earlier reports show that bugs involving the IPP printing protocol have appeared many times in Windows 10 and Windows 11 updates. Many users have previously complained about printing errors with headers identical to the ones in this incident, suggesting the problem may have been around for a long time.
For anyone affected, rolling back the update may get the printer working normally again. But if you're curious, you can let the printer run "free" and see what messages it prints. Either way, Microsoft is still working to fully resolve the issue in upcoming updates.
