Windows 10 1511 update breaks LPT ports

L

Lothar

Limp Gawd
Joined
Jun 7, 2004
Messages
305
This is head up for any of you running into this issue. The Threshold 2 / 1511 Windows 10 update breaks parallel ports, causing printers and other LPT devices to stop working. I ran into this for the second time last night and after some searching found that this is a known Microsoft issue. In both instances everything worked fine until the update.

See. https://answers.microsoft.com/en-us/windows/forum/windows_10-hardware/windows-10-and-parallel-port-lpt-printer-doesnt/4f3ab63c-d6c6-4815-bff2-65c8ad6357d1?page=2&auth=1

The work around is to make any change to the port settings in device manager and then change back. This is temporary and the port will lock again after a system restart.
 
Breaks the what now??

Oh parallel ports, to be fair you're lucky Windows 10 supports them at all :p
 
Had this problem at a remote location where there was no way I could mess with it on a daily basis. I was never actually able to find a solution myself to getting it working on the windows 10 PC, but there is a tiny server PC in the office also. I was able to hook it up to the server and share it.

The printer in my case was a beast of an old HP Laserjet and there is really no reason why it can't go another decade. I might even try to track down an appropriate JetDirect module.
 
Luckily I trashed my last printer with a parallel port 6 years ago. That was a close one :cool:

Oh wait no, even that printer from 2000 had a USB port:

http://www.amazon.com/Brother-HL-1240-Laser-Printer-Mac/product-reviews/B00000J4WI

Still, anyone running such ancient hardware should stay away from a fast-and-loose platform like Windows 10. Either stick with Windows 7 for the next 4 years it's supported, or go hardcore neckbeard and run Linux :D
 
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defaultluser said:
Still, anyone running such ancient hardware should stay away from a fast-and-loose platform like Windows 10.
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I'm sure MS would like Windows 10 systems to work with CNC machines, including those made this decade. :p

Like other similar bugs, MS changed legacy API behavior without fully considering the consequences, instead of succeeding the API call using a new name (as even n00b software architects know).
 
One thing I really do like about Windows 10 is the Feedback app. This problem has been logged there. Though it only had 8 votes until I added my vote to make it 9. Does seem to be a careless mistake as it this wasn't an issue in Build 10240.
 
You would think that with MS pushing the upgrade to 10 so hard, they would have fixed this by now.

Also some of those ancient HP laser printers will still be working fine long after the cheap shit made today dies. I have a 1320n (Networked) that is 12 years old that runs great. I have only had to replace the pickup roller once for $5. I would not trade it for an equivalent made today.
 
Lothar said:
You would think that with MS pushing the upgrade to 10 so hard, they would have fixed this by now.

Also some of those ancient HP laser printers will still be working fine long after the cheap shit made today dies. I have a 1320n (Networked) that is 12 years old that runs great. I have only had to replace the pickup roller once for $5. I would not trade it for an equivalent made today.
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Yes, but my point is that USB and Ethernet quickly replaced LPT ports about 15 years ago, so it's not unreasonable for them to have broken it. There's no reason they can't make it work once again in a later update - it's just that they can't test everything :D

Even the printer you mentioned is only Ethernet and USB, so you can see the transition happened pretty fast. The number of people/businesses that still have working printers older than 15 years is likely tiny.
 
Rofl.. as a long-gone returning lurker, it's hilarious to see the entire OS section dominated by Win10 glitches and subterfuge
 
StealthNinja007 said:
Rofl.. as a long-gone returning lurker, it's hilarious to see the entire OS section dominated by Win10 glitches and subterfuge
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Strangely the initial Win10 release in July was not particularly buggy. The November update just did weird, weird things. So far I've run into two specific November update bugs, one with Bitlocker with Self-Encrypting Drives, and one with 175% DPI scaling. It's very "didn't you test this?" stuff.
 
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