Microsoft XP SP3 stops printers from printing

With the latest XP Service Pack SP3, I found that when I was printing from a PC to a printer on another PC, this facility stopped working. After getting in touch with Microsoft, it seems that some permissions were changed. Following is a reply I received from Microsoft Support. I hope that it helps someone.

From your description, I understand that the printer is shared by two computers, it connected to PC1, after PC2 updating to SP3, we cannot print anything via PC2. If I have misunderstood your concern, please do not hesitate to let me know.

This issue may be caused by the SP3 update changed the Printer Share settings or permissions, to fix this issue, I suggest we first perform the following steps on PC1 to reset the sharing:

Step 1: Share the local printer attached to this computer
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1. Click Start, click Printers and Faxes.
2. Click Add a printer on Printer Tasks panel.
3. When Add Printer Wizard appears, click Next and choose "Local printer attached to this computer".
4. Choose the port the printer uses and click Next.
5. Choose the Manufacturer and model or click the Hard Disk button to navigate to the printer driver you would like to install.
6. Name your printer and set the printer as the default printer and then click Next.
7. When the printer sharing phase appears, choose Share Name.
8. Follow the instructions on the screen to complete the printer setup.

Note: If you receive a warning window regarding the setup not passing Windows Logo testing, please click the "Continue Anyway" button.
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Step 2: Configure the computer to use the printer attached to another computer
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1. Click Start, click Printers and Faxes.
2. Click Add a printer on Printer Tasks panel.
3. When Add Printer Wizard appears, click Next and choose "A network printer or a printer attached to another computer".
4. Choose the option "Browse for a printer" or other options to navigate to the printer shared on your home network.

Note: For the option "Connect to this printer", please use the format \\SharedComputerName\ShardPrinterName to access the home network printer.

5. Follow the instructions on the screen to complete the printer setup.

If the issue still persist after that, I recommend we connect the printer to PC2 and perform the above steps on PC2.

The only thing that I can add to the above is that firstly it worked for me and secondly you might need to delete the printer and reinstall it as the Printer Wizard does not like adding an existing printer.

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