What this means

When your computer or network loses connection to your Canon printer, print jobs get trapped in the queue.

Windows often forces the printer offline during a communication drop. You might assume the machine is broken or out of ink. It is simply failing to receive incoming data.

The root cause is usually a temporary connection glitch. Wi-Fi interference, router sleep settings, or a corrupt print job will block the transfer. Clear the queue and restore the connection to get printing again without touching any hardware.

Common causes

  • The printer is turned off or in sleep mode
  • The printer lost connection to the Wi-Fi network
  • Use Printer Offline mode is enabled in Windows
  • The Print Spooler service is frozen or crashed
  • The printer IP address changed on the router

What to check first

  1. 1Verify the printer is turned on and has no blinking error lights
  2. 2Check that the printer is connected to the same Wi-Fi network as the computer
  3. 3Ensure cables are secure if using a USB connection

Step-by-step fix

  1. 1

    Disable Use Printer Offline Mode

    Open Printers and Scanners in your computer settings, open the print queue, click the printer menu, and uncheck Use Printer Offline.

  2. 2

    Clear Print Queue and Restart Spooler

    Open Windows services, restart the Print Spooler service, and clear any stuck documents from the print queue.

  3. 3

    Power Cycle Printer and Router

    Turn off the printer, unplug your Wi-Fi router for ten seconds, plug the router back in, and turn on the printer to refresh the network connection.

  4. 4

    Reconnect Printer to Wi-Fi

    Use the printer control panel setup menu to reconnect your Canon printer to your wireless network.

    Ensure you enter the correct Wi-Fi password to avoid connection lockouts.

  5. 5

    Reinstall the Printer Driver

    Remove the printer from your computer devices list and add it again using the official Canon setup utility.

When to contact a professional

Call a professional or your network administrator if the printer network card is physically damaged, or if enterprise firewall settings block printer traffic on a secure office network. Stop. Fixing broken hardware and network security rules require specialized tools and administrative permissions.