What to do if your HP printer is not recognized by Windows 8

Windows 8

If you have recently changed your computer’s operating system to Windows 8, some users may encounter an error message when trying to connect their HP printer. The reason is because Windows 8 does not support some older (7 years or more) printers, nor does it provide driver updates to rectify this issue.

The list of printers that are no longer supported will be available at the end of this article. You can also go to the HP Web site (www.hp.com/ca/en.html) and search for your printer model. Once you have identified your printer model from their list, go to the “Drivers” section of the product page. If “Windows 8” is found in the dropdown menu of operating systems, your model is supported and you only have to install the driver update. If this option is not on the menu, your printer is unsupported. Fortunately, we can offer you solutions that can help you use your printer nevertheless.

The first step is to run the driver in “compatibility mode”. You can do this by going to the drivers page for your model mentioned above on HPs support site, and download the latest version of the driver. The driver for Windows 7 is preferred. Save the file with the setup.exe. Right-click and select “Compatibility” and then select “Run in compatibility modeÂ» and click “Apply”. Then run the installer.

The second option only works if you have a computer running an earlier version of Windows and it is networked with your Windows 8 computer. Connect your printer to the computer that is running Windows 8. Then open the Control Panel and select “Group Residential” and “Create”. Then select the printer you want to share. It may be that you need to add your computer that is not running Windows 8 to the home group. You can do this by following the same procedure to create it, but selecting “Join” instead.

If none of these methods solve your problem, you may have no choice but to wait until a new driver update becomes available on the HP website, or ultimately, you will need to change your printer completely. Visit our guide to help you choose your next machine.

List of printers that are not supported in Windows 8 HP printers: