While connecting to a network printer, if you see message Windows cannot connect to the printer, Operation failed with error 0x00000bcb; here are some suggestions to troubleshoot this issue. This error message may appear irrespective of the type of printer you have for your networked computers.
Network Printer error 0x00000bcb, Cannot connect to printer
To fix network printer error 0x00000bcb in Windows 11/10, follow these suggestions:
- Run Printer troubleshooter
- Restart Print Spooler
- Check Printer drivers
- Add a local printer
- Change LAN Manager authentication level
To know more about these steps, keep reading.
1] Run Printer troubleshooter
Windows 11/10 comes with numerous in-built troubleshooters to fix common problems like this one. You can find and run troubleshooters in Windows 10from the Windows Settings panel in case you do not know. Therefore, pressWin+Ito open the Windows Settings and go toUpdate & Security > Troubleshoot > Additional troubleshooters.
Here you can find thePrintertroubleshooter. Select it and click on theRun the troubleshooterbutton.
Then, it shows various options according to the cause of your problem. Follow the on-screen instructions to fix the issue.
However, if running the Printer troubleshooter doesn’t solve your network printer issue, there is something more you can follow.
2] Restart Print Spooler
Print Spooler is a background service, which needs to be running to establish the connection between your printer and computer. There could be times when it might stop running due to internal conflicts, causing the issue, as mentioned earlier. If that situation arises, restarting the Print Spooler service would fix the problem.
To do that, search for “services” in the Taskbar search box, and click on the individual result to open Services on your computer. Following that, search forPrint Spoolerservice and double-click on it.
If the Service status is showing asRunning, click theStopbutton and restart it by clicking theStartbutton.
However, if it is already disabled, clicking theStartbutton would do the job. Next, click theOKbutton, restart your computer, and check if the problem still remains or not.
3] Check printer drivers
Every manufacturer provides drivers to build the connection between your system and the printer – whether you use it as an offline or network printer. If you have fresh Windows 10 installation, you should install the drivers as given with the printer. In case you cannot find the driver media, you can download it from the official website of your printer manufacturer.
4] Add a local printer
Adding your printer locally might fix the issue when your system is not detecting it automatically. To do so, you can take theDevices and Printerspanel’s help, which stores all the connected devices’ information. To open this window, open Control Panel and click on theDevices and Printersoption. In case you cannot find this option, make sure theViewis set asLarge icons.
Once theDevices and Printerswindow is opened, click theAdd a printeroption visible in the top menu bar.
It opens up a window and searches for available printers. Don’t wait for the completion and instead click onThe printer that I want isn’t listedoption.
Next, choose theAdd a local printer or network printer with manual settingsoption and click theNextbutton.
Now, choose theCreate a new portoption > selectLocal Port, and click theNextbutton. Enter your port name and click theOKbutton. Next, it asks you to install the printer drivers. Do it, and click theNextbutton.
Once done, you will be able to use your printer without any problem.
Related: Network Printer errors 0x00000002,0x0000007a, 0x00004005, 0x00000057, 0x00000006.
5] Change LAN Manager authentication level
There are two ways to change the LAN Manager authentication level on a Windows 10 computer – using the Local Group Policy Editor and the Registry Editor. If you are using Windows 10 Home Edition, you must follow the REGEDIT method, as GPEDIT is not available on your PC.
Using Local Group Policy Editor:
At first, pressWin+R, type gpedit.msc, and hit theEnterbutton to open the Local Group Policy Editor. Then, navigate to the following path-
Computer Configuration > Windows Settings > Security Settings > Local Policies > Security Options
Here you can find a policy calledNetwork security: LAN Manager authentication level. Double-click on it and selectSend LM & NTLM – use NTLMv2 session security if negotiatedoption.
Click theOKbutton, restart your computer, and check if it solves the issue or not.
Read: Windows cannot connect to the printer error 0x0000011b
Using Registry Editor:
PressWin+R, type regedit, press theEnterbutton, select theYesbutton to open Registry Editor on your computer. After that, navigate to the following path-
HKEY_LOCAL_MACHINE\SYSTEM\CurrentControlSet\Control\Lsa
Right-click onLsa > New > DWORD (32-bit) Value, and name it asLmCompatibilityLevel.
Double-click on it to set the Value data as1.
Click theOKbutton to save the change. After that, close the Registry Editor, and restart your computer.
That’s all! Hope these solutions helped you to fix network printer error 0x00000bcb on Windows 11/10.
Related: Windows cannot connect to the printer, Error 0x0000052e.
