Remove Printer Driver Completely Using Print Server Properties
Half of all failed printer reinstalls fail for one reason — the old driver was never actually removed. Print Server Properties is where drivers truly live, and this is the complete removal.
✍️ Technical Anshu🪟 Windows 10 / 11⏱️ 10 minute fix
🎥 The video's driver cleanup button explained — and the manual Print Server Properties route behind it
Here is the trap almost everyone falls into: the printer misbehaves, so you delete it from Settings and add it back — and the exact same problem returns, because Windows quietly kept the driver and used it again. Removing the printer icon and removing the driver package are two different operations. The toolkit's driver cleanup does both; this page shows the manual route through Print Server Properties, which is what the button automates, and explains why leftover drivers are behind so many "I already reinstalled it" failures.
Print Server Properties — the Drivers Tab
Installed printer driversName, Type, Version listed per driver
The button that mattersRemove driver and driver package
Unable to remove the selected driver. The specified printer driver is currently in use.
Wording varies slightly by Windows version. "Currently in use" means a printer or a queued job still holds the driver — clear those first, then remove.
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Step One — Remove the Printer Itself, Everywhere It Appears
A driver cannot be removed while a printer is using it, so remove the printer first:
Settings → Bluetooth & devices → Printers & scanners → select the printer → Remove
Check for duplicates — the same printer added twice (for example once by USB, once by network) keeps the driver in use
Cancel or clear any queued jobs for that printer; a waiting job also holds the driver
On a shared office printer, do this on the host PC that shares it, not only on your own machine
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Step Two — Remove the Driver and Its Package
Now remove what Settings never shows you:
Press Windows + R, type printui /s /t2 and press Enter — this opens Print Server Properties on the Drivers tab
Select the printer's driver in the list
Click Remove and choose Remove driver and driver package — not the weaker "Remove driver only"
Confirm, then restart the Print Spooler (net stop spooler followed by net start spooler) or restart the PC
The alternative route to the same list is printmanagement.msc → Print Servers → your PC → Drivers, which also shows every driver Windows is holding.
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If Windows Refuses — the Driver Is Still in Use
The "currently in use" refusal has a short list of causes:
A printer still using the driver exists somewhere — recheck Settings and the classic Devices and Printers panel for copies
The spooler has the driver loaded — stop it with net stop spooler, remove the driver, then net start spooler
Another user is signed in on the same PC with the printer in their session — sign them out and retry
As a last resort, restart the PC and remove the driver before opening any program that might print
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Step Three — Install Fresh, From the Maker Only
With the old package gone, the reinstall is finally a real reinstall:
Download the driver for the exact model from the manufacturer's own website — not a driver-download site
Prefer the maker's full package if you also use scanning; the basic driver is enough for print-only
Install, add the printer, and print the toolkit test page plus one real document
If the same fault returns on a provably clean driver, stop blaming drivers — the fault is the printer, the cable or the port
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What the Toolkit Button Does Differently ⭐
Honest answer: nothing different — it performs these same removals in sequence and reports which step failed. Its value is that it does not skip step two. Most failed home repairs are step-one-only repairs. Whether you click the button or run printui /s /t2 yourself, the rule that matters is this: a reinstall is only clean when the old driver package is gone before the new one arrives.
🔴 The reinstall rule: if the driver package was not removed, you did not reinstall — you reconnected the same driver. When a fault survives a “reinstall”, this missing step is the first suspect.
🎥 Complete Knowledge and Installation in the Video
Watch the complete driver cleanup in the video — the toolkit route and the manual route side by side.
What is the difference between removing a printer and removing its driver?
Removing the printer deletes the icon and its queue. The driver package stays in the Windows driver store, and when you add the printer back, Windows reuses that same driver. Removing the driver and driver package through Print Server Properties deletes the actual software, so the next install is genuinely fresh.
Print Server Properties says the driver is currently in use. What now?
Something still holds it: another copy of the printer, a queued job, the loaded spooler, or another signed-in user. Remove all copies of the printer, clear the queue, stop the spooler with net stop spooler, and remove the driver before restarting the service.
Should I remove every old printer driver I find in the list?
Only drivers for printers you no longer own or are reinstalling. The list can include drivers for shared office printers and PDF printers that other programs rely on. Remove the one broken driver, not the whole list.
This guide is based on the Printer Toolkit GUI video by Technical Anshu • Stuck on a step? Ask in the video comments — you will get an answer there 🙏