Alex Ruben
How To Fix Operation Failed with Error 0x00011b on Windows 10
If your printer suddenly throws up the “Operation FAILED with ERROR 0x00011b” message on Windows 10 2025, you’re not alone. This error shows up pretty often and can be a real headache, especially if your printer was working fine yesterday. Usually, it’s a mix of Windows services, registry quirks, or driver issues that cause this. Luckily, there’s a handful of things to try that might get your printer humming again. Sometimes it’s just restarting services, other times it’s updating or messing with registry keys. The end goal? Re-establish that communication between your PC and the printer, because Windows has to make it harder than necessary sometimes.
How to Fix the 0x00011b Print Error in Windows 10 2025
Try Restarting the Print Spooler Service
This service is basically the gatekeeper for print jobs. If it’s acting up, errors can pop up. Restarting it often clears out whatever’s hanging and gets the job back in the queue.
- Press Windows + R and type
services.mscthen hit Enter. - Look for Print Spooler in the list. Sometimes it’s a little stubborn, so you might need to scroll or use the search box.
- Right-click on Print Spooler and choose Restart. That should stop it completely and then start it again.
On some setups, this helps right away, but on others, you might need to reboot afterward. Weird, but it works most of the time.
Mess with Registry Settings
Yeah, fiddling in the Registry isn’t fun, but if incorrect settings are screwing with permissions or access levels, this might do the trick. Be careful — always back up the registry first if you can.
- Open Windows + R, type
regedit, and press Enter. If UAC prompts, click Yes. - Navigate to: HKEY_LOCAL_MACHINE\SYSTEM\CurrentControlSet\Control\Print. You can just copy-paste that into the Registry Editor’s address bar.
- In the right side, right-click anywhere, select New → DWORD (32-bit) Value.
- Name it
RPC_Access_Level. Yeah, sounds like some weird Windows secret sauce. - Double-click the new value, set it to
0, and hit OK.
Now, restart your PC (sometimes you have to, sometimes it’s enough just to restart the service). That change tweaks some permissions or access defaults that might be blocking the printer from communicating properly.
Check for Windows Updates (Yep, Keep Windows Fresh)
This is classic but still relevant—outdated Windows can cause all sorts of weird issues, including printing problems. Keeping everything up to date isn’t a bad idea.
- Press Windows + I to open Settings.
- Go to Update & Security → Windows Update.
- Click on Check for updates. If Windows finds anything, let it download and install everything.
- Reboot once it’s done, and test printing again.
If you’re stuck in an endless update loop, sometimes waiting or manually troubleshooting Windows Update can be a headache, but at least it’s often the fix.
Uninstall Recent Updates that Might Have Caused the Issue
Sometimes, a recent Windows update freaks things out. If this error showed up right after an update, it’s worth trying to roll that back.
- Open Windows + I and go to Update & Security → Windows Update.
- Click on View update history, then on the next screen, choose Uninstall updates.
- Find the latest installed update — probably near the top — right-click and select Uninstall.
- Reboot to see if that clears the error.
This may feel like a hassle, but sometimes a recent patch conflicts with printer drivers or services, so rolling it back can reset things.
Extra Tips & Common Pitfalls
If none of the above worked, here are some bonus tips:
- Check if your printer driver is up to date. Head to the manufacturer’s site, like HP, Canon, etc., and download the latest driver.
- Make sure your printer’s connected properly, whether via USB or on the network. Sometimes a loose or broken cable causes weird errors.
- Try printing from a different app, just to verify whether the problem is with Windows or the specific program.
And don’t forget: double-check your registry entries during this whole process. A typo or wrong value can make things worse.
Wrap-up
This isn’t a guaranteed fix, but more often than not, restarting the print spooler, tweaking a registry value, or updating Windows puts things back in order. Sometimes it’s just a matter of fumbling around and trying different combinations. And yeah, sometimes it’s a good idea to reinstall drivers or reconnect the printer completely.
Hopefully this shaves off a few hours for someone. Good luck fixing that pesky 0x00011b error!
Summary
- Restart the Print Spooler service from services.msc.
- Adjust registry setting
RPC_Access_Levelto0. - Update Windows to the latest version.
- Uninstall recent updates if they started the trouble.
- Ensure printer drivers are current and connection is solid.