Windows Preview Update Causes Printers to Spew Out Random Text
If you recently updated Windows 10 or 11 and noticed your printer randomly spitting out pages of nonsense, you’re not alone. A preview update released on January 29, 2025, has been linked to a printing bug affecting certain USB-connected printers, as reported by BleepingComputer.
What’s Causing This Printing Glitch?
The issue appears to stem from a driver error related to the Internet Printing Protocol (IPP) over USB, which causes affected printers to print unintelligible text strings—often beginning with "POST /ipp/print HTTP/1.1". Microsoft has confirmed that the problem only impacts printers that support IPP-over-USB and are directly connected via USB at the time of the update. Given that this was a preview update, the total number of affected users is expected to be relatively small.
Microsoft’s Response and Fix
Microsoft has acknowledged the bug and released a fix in the form of a Group Policy update for both Windows 10 and 11. The company recommends downloading and applying the fix manually to prevent further issues. The final version of the update—expected in a future rollout—should address the problem permanently.
For users who rely on USB-connected printers, it may be best to delay updates until Microsoft confirms a permanent fix or to apply the available Group Policy update to restore normal printer functionality.