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Thread: Can't delete printer - Access Denied

  1. #1
    Bill Guest

    Can't delete printer - Access Denied

    A friend has a Toshiba laptop running Vista Home. He has a printer that
    cannot be deleted. When I attempt to delete the printer from Control
    Panel | Printers I get an "accesss denied" error. The printer had five
    documents in the queue. I cannot cancel the documents (no error message
    is given).

    There are two user accounts on the computer. I have tried to delete the
    printer from both accounts and get the same error with both. I enabled
    the Administrator account, logged on as Administrator tried to delete
    both the documents and the printer. I could not delete the documents
    (no error message) and I got the same "access denied" error when I
    tried to delete the printer.

    How do I delete the printer? Note that I am very new to Vista so I need
    the answer for dummies.:) Thanks.


    --
    ..Bill.

  2. #2
    Alan Morris [MSFT] Guest

    Re: Can't delete printer - Access Denied

    Since you are not the printer owner and the printers folder is opened in
    user context, you are getting the proper Access Denied message. If you do
    not own the print job, you will need to open the printer queue view using
    Run as administrator.

    Open the printers folder, right click, select Run as administrator, Open

    After credential prompts you will be able to delete the scheduled jobs . If
    there is some 3rd party print monitor tools that reference the job, the
    spooler will not delete the job until the application decrements the
    reference counts.

    Once the jobs are deleted, right click the printer, select Run as
    administrator, Delete.

  3. #3
    Bill Guest

    Re: Can't delete printer - Access Denied

    Thanks Alan but when I right click the printer icon there is no Run As
    Administrtor choice on the context menu.

    --
    ..Bill.

  4. #4
    Alan Morris [MSFT] Guest

    Re: Can't delete printer - Access Denied

    is this a local printer or a connection to a shared printer

    -

  5. #5
    Bill Guest

    Re: Can't delete printer - Access Denied

    Good question. It is on a Vista Home system that I do not have easy
    access to. It is probably a local connection but I cannot be sure. What
    is the easiest way to tell? I don't know much about Vista and my friend
    is a typical home user who is also new to Vista.

  6. #6
    Bill Guest

    Re: Can't delete printer - Access Denied

    I have a borrowed Vista Business laptop (which I must return later
    today). I added both a local printer and a network printer. I right
    clicked the icon for each printer and neither of them has Run As
    Administrator on the context menu. I must be missing something.

    I also do not understand why logging on as a user other than
    Administrator and using Run As Administrator will let me delete the
    print jobs and the printer when enabling the Administrator account and
    logging on as Administrator will not let me delete either the print
    jobs or the printer.

    Thanks for your help. I appreciate it.

    --
    ..Bill.

  7. #7
    Alan Morris [MSFT] Guest

    Re: Can't delete printer - Access Denied

    Is User account control enabled?

    Does the admin user have a password set?

    For the local printer did you just create a fake printer or did you use a
    device that you plugged into the laptop and the Plug and Play portion of the
    OS installed the device.

  8. #8
    Bill Guest

    Re: Can't delete printer - Access Denied

    The printer was connected to the PC. I did not do it but I assume that
    PNP created the printer entry. This happened when the user was trying
    to connect to install a network printer on an XP Home machine on his
    home network and could not. He claims that he then connected the
    printer directly to the Vista PC and that is the printer that cannot be
    deleted.


    --
    ..Bill.

  9. #9
    Alan Morris [MSFT] Guest

    Re: Can't delete printer - Access Denied

    without the Run as administrator menu selection, you have two choices.

    Start
    All Programs
    Accessories
    Command Prompt, Right Click
    Run as Administrator (if that's not there then the reason you don't see it
    for the printer is the same and unrelated to printing)

    Open Task Manager
    terminate the explorer.exe process

    from the elevated command prompt type
    explorer.exe

    (this is now the explorer running in elevated privilege)

    Open the printers folder and delete the printer. If that fails open the
    printer properties, Security, Advanced, Owner and make the
    machine\administrator owner of the queue rather than System.


    now delete

    get back to me for options 2.

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