Network Printer Error Message "Unable to Connect"

ID: Q225837

The information in this article applies to:

Microsoft Windows 2000 Advanced Server
Microsoft Windows 2000 Datacenter Server
Microsoft Windows 2000 Professional
Microsoft Windows 2000 Server

SYMPTOMS

When you check your network printer status, you may see the following error message:

Unable to connect.

You may also notice that network printer connections do not automatically reconnect when you log on to your computer, even though they appear to be connected in Print Manager. If you send a print job from a program, the print job hangs, and then times out.

CAUSE

This issue can occur if you connect to any network print share (NT, OS/2, or Netware) that requires alternate access credentials, such as a different user name or password, and then you log off and log on to your computer again.

RESOLUTION

To resolve this issue, remove and reinstall the printer each time you log on to the network using the appropriate credentials.

STATUS

Microsoft has confirmed this to be a problem in Microsoft Windows 2000.

Additional query words:

Keywords : kberrmsg kbprint msnets
Version : WINDOWS:2000
Platform : WINDOWS
Issue type : kbprb