Are you suffering from printer issues on Windows 11 24H2 for Arm? It's not just about you, says Microsoft

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Key insights

  • Microsoft confirms printer issues on Windows 11 Arm devices.
  • Users cannot install printer drivers, even from the manufacturer's website.
  • The solution is to add your printer manually through Settings instead of using the installer.



If you're having trouble getting your printer to work properly on your shiny new Windows on Arm device, don't worry. You are far from alone. Microsoft has confirmed that the new devices are currently having difficulty recognizing printers. Luckily, the Redmond giant has released some guides for those affected to help them get back to printing, because God knows printers aren't causing enough problems in their current form.

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Microsoft confirms printer issues with Windows 11 24H2 on ARM devices

On the Microsoft support website, the company describes the problem and who may be affected. As it turns out, people with one Windows on Arm Device encountered a problem where you cannot install the drivers required for your printer. This problem affects people whether they use the software that came with the printer or whether they download the latest driver versions from the manufacturer's website. Fortunately, it also provides a solution for anyone who encounters this problem:


Notes:
We are aware that some ARM PCs (e.g. Copilot+ PCs) cannot add/install a printer using the included installer or by downloading the installer from the manufacturer's website.

  • To fix this, go to Settings > Bluetooth & Devices > Printers & Scanners and click “
    Add device
    ” instead of adding the printer manually unless the manufacturer has specific instructions for Windows on ARM PCs.
  • To find out if you have an ARM device, go to Settings > System > About and search for “
    System type
    “Property under”
    Device specifications
    “. ARM devices have ”
    ARM based processor
    ” under System Type.


When you click on the links in the quote above, Windows should automatically open the corresponding menu for you. And while it's a real pain to get printers working on an Arm device, at least we have a working solution until Microsoft finds a way to get everything running smoothly again.


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