The error “Canon Printer driver is unavailable” means that the driver installed against your printer is either not compatible or is outdated. It may also mean that the driver is corrupt and the computer fails to recognize it.
What to Do to Fix the Canon Printer Driver Is Unavailable Error
You could be at your computer having downloaded a file or typed a document that you need in hard copy, but when you try to send it to print, nothing happens. If your printer has stopped working and instead you see a Canon Printer Driver Is Unavailable error on your screen, then you need to find out what the problem is. Here are three possible ways to fix this common error when running Windows 10:
Fix 1: Run the Windows Update Tool
One reason why your Windows 10 computer may display the Printer Driver Is Unavailable error could be that you have an operating system that is out of date. For this reason, you should immediately install all available Windows updates as soon as possible. This will not only help you get printing again but will also ensure the overall stability and security of your computer. Here’s how to run the Windows Update utility:
- Click the Start button at the bottom-right corner of your screen.
- Click the Settings icon
- Choose the Update and Security option.
- Windows will search for updates and, if any are found, will download and install automatically.
- After the update process is complete, restart your computer.
After your Windows 10/11 PC has restarted, you may check for the error message and try to print to check if the issue has been fixed.
Fix 2: Manually Update Your Printer Drivers
If you still have an error after carrying out a Windows update, you should consider updating your printer drivers. You could visit the printer manufacturer’s website and find out if the device is supported by Windows 10. Driver downloads are commonly found in the manufacturer’s Support section.
If the device is supported, you should download the latest stable version. Once downloaded, double-click the installer file to add the new driver. However, you may find that your printer only supports the manual installation of drivers. You can do this by following the steps below:
- Open Control Panel.
- On the top right-hand side of the dialog, select the Small Icons view then click on Device Manager.
- Within the Device Manager window, find the printer that you wish to install drivers for. Often, you will find that a printer with missing, corrupt or outdated drivers will have a yellow exclamation mark next to its name.
- Right-click the printer name and choose the option Update Driver Software from the pop-up menu that appears.
- A new window appears with two options. Choose the option marked “Search automatically for updated driver software.” Follow the instructions in the wizard that appears to install the latest drivers for your printer if you do not already have them. If you had already downloaded drivers from the manufacturer’s support site, then select “Browse my computer for driver software” instead.
Fix 3:Uninstall the Printer Driver
There are mostly two main solutions which you can use to counter the error ‘Printer driver is unavailable’. Either you can uninstall the printer, all the related software and then install it in the system. Either this or you can go through all the drivers available and select the right one for your device.
We will uninstall the printer and all the related software and then try connecting it. This will, in turn, install the default drivers.
- Press Windows + R, type “control” in the dialogue box, and press Enter. Once in the control panel, make sure that the option View by: Large icons is selected. Now click Devices and Printers.
- Here all the printers will be listed. Right-click on the printer which is causing the problem and select “Remove device”.
- Now press Windows + R again and type “devmgmt.msc”. Navigate to the category “Print queues”, right-click your printer and select “Uninstall device”. This may not be present after you remove your printer from the control panel so nothing to worry about if you don’t have it.
- Now press Windows + R, type “appwiz.cpl” in the dialogue box, and press Enter. Here all the applications will be listed. Right-click on all your printer applications and select “Uninstall”.
- After performing all the above steps, disconnect your printer from your computer if it is connecting via a USB connection or disconnect it from the router if it is using wireless. Shut down your computer, printer, and your router. Plug out the power supply of all of them.
- After waiting for around 10 minutes, plug everything back in and start all the modules. Connect the printer with your computer using a USB cable initially. Wait for the detection and let it install the required drivers.
- Now navigate back to the control panel, right-click on the device and select “Set as default printer”. Now try printing a test page and check if the problem is solved.
Fix 4: Install all available Windows updates
If it’s been a while since you last did a Windows Update, that might be why Windows says your printer driver is unavailable. Here’s how to do a Windows Update to install all available operating system updates…
An update to your operating system may fix many underlying issues, such as the printer driver coming up as unavailable when trying to print. Download the latest version of Windows and see if the problem is fixed.
- Click on the Windows icon in the bottom left of your screen to bring up the Start menu. Choose Settings, or use the Windows + I shortcut.
- Click on the Update & Security tile. This is where you can find most of your Windows Update settings and choose when to receive updates.
- Make sure to stay on the default Windows Update tab. Click on the Check for updates option and wait for Windows to find available updates. If you see any updates displayed, click on the View all optional updates link to see and install them.
- When Windows finds a new update, click on the Install option. Wait for Windows to download and apply the necessary updates.
Fix 5: Install the generic printer driver
Users have reported that installing the generic printer driver of Windows 10 fixes this troublesome error. This driver is made to be compatible with most printers, and allows your computer to use the printer again.
- Press the Windows + X keys on your keyboard and click on the Device Manager option from the WinX menu.
- Expand the Printers menu by clicking on the arrow next to it. Right-click on your printer listed in the menu, and then choose Update Driver.
- Select Browse my computer for drivers from the options. You’ll be taken to the next section automatically.
- Click on the Let me pick from a list of available drivers on my computer button. This will list the available compatible drivers for your printer.
- Click on the Generic software device option, and then click on Next. Windows 10 will install the generic drivers for your printer, which may solve issues with it not being able to print because the driver is unavailable.
There you have it! We hope our tips and tricks on how to fix the “Printer driver is unavailable” error helped. Now, you should be able to continue printing on your Windows 10 device.