How to completely delete a print driver in Windows
After uninstalling or deleting a printer in Windows, its driver is not fully uninstalled.
To manually remove a printer driver:
- Click on the Start menu and in the search field type “print management.”
- On the left side of the Print Management window, select the “All Printers” folder.
- If present, right-click the unwanted printer and choose “Delete.”
- On the left side of the Print Management window, select the “All Drivers” folder.
- Right-click the unwanted printer and choose “Remove Driver Package.”
Note: Using the “Remove Driver Package” option will clear all driver installation files for that device, leaving no reference to the printer that Windows could possibly use to auto-reinstall again.
Failed to remove printer driver ?
- First remove the printer in “Devices and Printers”
- Stop the print spooler
- In registry open HKEY_LOCAL_MACHINE\SYSTEM\CurrentControlSet\Control\Print\Environments\Windows x64\Print Processors\
- Rename all Print Processors that were listed. Like Winprint to Winprint.old, Hpcpp107 to Hpcpp107.old, and so on …
- Start print spooler
- Remove the driver pack in Print Management MMC
- Reopen the registry location HKEY_LOCAL_MACHINE\SYSTEM\CurrentControlSet\Control\Print\Environments\Windows x64\Print Processors\
- Rename back all Print Processors back to Winprint.old to Winprint, Hpcpp107.old to Hpcpp107, and so on …
- Restart the print spooler
- Install the new printer drivers
- Test printing