Fix 0x000003e3 Printer error in Windows 11/10

If you have encountered Printer error 0x000003e3 on your Windows 11 or Windows 10 computer when attempting to print to shared local network printers, then this post is intended to help you with the most suitable solutions you can easily apply to quickly resolve this issue.

Why does my printer keep giving me an error message?

There could be a number of reasons why your printer keep giving an error message. Among these reasons includes; corrupt data in the spool/printing tray might be causing this service to stop. The other most probable reason for the printing error is the connection between your computer and the printer – this can be the printer drivers or the USB port drivers.

Fix 0x000003e3 Printer error

If you’re faced with this issue, you can try our recommended solutions below in no particular order and see if that helps to resolve the 0x000003e3 Printer error on your Windows 11/10 computer..

Reconnect the Printer
Run Printer Troubleshooter
Restart the Print Spooler service
Create a New Local Port
Uninstall incompatible Printer driver
Manually copy/paste mscms.dll to destination folder
Modify the Registry

Let’s take a look at the description of the process involved concerning each of the listed solutions.

1] Reconnect the Printer

The first thing you need to try is to reconnect your printer to the Windows 11/10 computer. Simply turn off your printer and unplug the cable from its port. Wait for at least 30 seconds then plug your printer back in. Finally, turn on the printer and check if the error reappears. If it does, proceed with the next solution.

2] Run Printer Troubleshooter

As with most issues you may encounter on Windows 11/10, if there are troubleshooters for the hardware or software/services, you are encouraged to run the troubleshooter. In this case, you can run the Printer Troubleshooter and see if that helps to fix the 0x000003e3 Printer error on your Windows system.

Do the following:

Press Windows key + I to open Settings app.
Click System on the left navigation pane.
Click Troubleshoot on the right pane.
Next, click Other trouble-shooters.
Click Run button for Printer.

3] Restart the Print Spooler service

This solution requires you to restart the Print Spooler service. Here’s how:

Press Windows key + R to invoke the Run dialog.
In the Run dialog box type services.msc and hit Enter to open Services window.
In the Services window, locate the Print Spooler service.
Right-click on Print Spooler and select Properties.
In the Properties window, click Stop.

This will stop the print queue process. Keep the Print Spooler Properties window open.

Now, press Windows key + E to open File Explorer.
Navigate to the following location:

C:\WINDOWS\system32\spool\PRINTERS

Delete all the files in the Printers folder.

If you don’t see any files, you may need to show hidden files/folders.

Close the File Explorer window.
In the Print Spooler Properties window, click the Start button to restart the service.

3] Create a New Local Port

To create a new Printer Local Port, all you need to do is to reinstall or re-add the Local Printer to your Windows 11/10 PC.

4] Uninstall incompatible Printer driver

To uninstall incompatible Printer driver, do the following:

Press Windows key + R to invoke the Run dialog.
In the Run dialog box, type printmanagement.msc and click OK or hit Enter to launch the Print Management wizard.
Expand the All Drivers directory.
Next, right-click on the Microsoft Print To PDF and select Delete.

If there is more than one printing application, delete all of them.

Reboot your PC and add the printer again along with its drivers.

On boot, check if the issue is resolved. If not, try the next solution.

5] Manually copy/paste mscms.dll to destination folder

To manually copy/paste mscms.dll to the destination folder, do the following:

Open File Explorer.
Navigate to the following directory:

C:\Windows\system32\

At the location, scroll down and locate the mscms.dll file and copy the file.
Next, navigate to the following directory:

C:\windows\system32\spool\drivers\x64\3\

At the location, paste the mscms.dll file.
Exit File Explorer.
Restart PC.

On boot, check if the issue at hand is resolved. If not, try the next solution.

6] Modify the Registry

Since this is a registry operation, it is recommended that you back up the registry or create a system restore point as necessary precautionary measures. Once done, you can proceed as follows:

Stop the Print Spooler service.
Next, press Windows key + R to invoke the Run dialog.
In the Run dialog box, type regedit and hit Enter to open Registry Editor.
Navigate or jump to the registry key path below:

HKEY_LOCAL_MACHINE\SYSTEM\ControlSet001\Control\Print\Printers\*YOUR PRINTER’S NAME*\CopyFiles

At the location, expand the CopyFiles directory.
Delete the existing ICM folder.
Exit Registry Editor.
Restart the Print Spooler service.
Restart PC.

Hope this helps!

How do I fix a printer driver error?

To fix a printer driver error on Windows 11/10, do the following: Go to Control Panel > Hardware and Sound > Device and Printers > Device Manager. Click Print queues to view the drop-down list. Find your printer model on the list and then right-click on its icon. Go to the computer’s Control Panel and click on Devices and Printers. Reinstall your printer’s drivers.