How to fix connect to printer error 0x00000775 in Windows?

Error 0x00000775 is Windows error 1909, ERROR_ACCOUNT_LOCKED_OUT: the PC that shares the printer refused the account your PC signs in with, because it is locked out. Unlock that account on the sharing PC or wait 10 minutes, then clear the saved password on your PC and connect again.

Facts checked on 15 October 2026. Steps written for Windows 11 (25H2 and 26H2) and Windows 10 22H2.

What "Operation failed with error 0x00000775" means

The box is titled Connect to Printer. It says "Windows cannot connect to the printer." and, under the details, "Operation failed with error 0x00000775." It appears while your PC connects to a printer that another PC shares, before any page is printed.

0x00000775 is a hexadecimal number. In decimal it is 1909. Microsoft's list of system error codes names it ERROR_ACCOUNT_LOCKED_OUT. Its text reads "The referenced account is currently locked out and may not be logged on to." So the printer is not the problem: the sharing PC refused the sign-in of your PC.

Run in Terminal or Command Prompt to see Windows' own text for this code

net helpmsg 1909

Why Windows cannot connect to the printer with 0x00000775: causes, ranked

To use a shared printer, your PC signs in to the sharing PC (the host) with a user name and password. When the host has counted too many wrong passwords for that account, it locks the account and every new attempt gets error 1909. The ranking below comes from Microsoft's lockout rules and from what users report on Microsoft Q&A.

• Why lockout is now common. Microsoft says new PCs set up on Windows 11 version 22H2, or with the October 11, 2022 updates already in place, get an account lockout policy by default: 10 failed attempts within 10 minutes lock the account for 10 minutes.
• Why a saved password matters. Windows reuses the credential it saved for the host. If the host's password changed, every retry counts as a failed attempt, and a few retries can lock the account again.
• Why it is not your printer. The code comes from the sign-in step between two PCs. Ink, paper, cables and the printer brand play no part.

Windows 11 22H2 hosts and Windows 10 clients

The best known case on Microsoft Q&A, from June 2023, describes a host on Windows 11 build 22621 (version 22H2). Windows 10 and Windows 8.1 PCs got 0x00000775 with every printer it shared, even a PDF printer, while Windows 11 PCs connected. Updating drivers, SFC and DISM did not help, the user reported.

How to fix error 0x00000775: seven fixes in order

Fix 1 and Fix 2 deal with the locked account and solve most cases. Fix 3 is for a Windows 11 host with older clients. Fix 4 to Fix 6 repair the print connection itself, and Fix 7 avoids the shared route.

Fix 1. Release the locked user account on the PC that shares the printer

5 minutesLow riskEveryone with this error. Do it on the PC the printer is attached to, signed in as an administrator.

Error 1909 says the account is locked out, so nothing else can work until it is unlocked. Unlocking it, or waiting out the lockout, lets the next sign-in from your PC through.

1. On the sharing PC, open Terminal (Admin) or Command Prompt as administrator.
2. Run net accounts and read Lockout threshold, Lockout duration (minutes) and Lockout observation window (minutes). A threshold of Never means lockout is off and Fix 1 does not apply.
3. Run net user to list the local accounts and find the one your PC uses to connect.
4. Unlock it: net user "Name" /active:yes, with the account name in quotes.
5. On Windows 11 Pro or Enterprise you can also press Win + R, type lusrmgr.msc, open Users, double-click the account and clear Account is locked out.
6. If you cannot sign in as administrator, wait the lockout duration (10 minutes by default) without any further attempt.

Fix 2. Remove the saved password on your PC and sign in to the host again

5 to 10 minutesLow riskAfter Fix 1, on every PC that connects to the printer, and first when the error returns soon after an unlock.

Windows stores the user name and password it used for the host in Credential Manager and sends them again on every connection. An old password there keeps failing and keeps locking the account. Removing it makes Windows ask you again.

1. On your PC, open Control Panel > User Accounts > Credential Manager and select Windows Credentials.
2. Expand each entry with the host's name or IP address and select Remove, then Yes.
3. Or in Terminal: run cmdkey /list, then cmdkey /delete:HostName for each entry of the host.
4. Restart your PC so no open connection keeps the old password.
5. Test the sign-in with net use \\HostName\IPC$ /user:HostName\UserName and type the host account's password when asked.
6. When it reports The command completed successfully, run net use \\HostName\IPC$ /delete and add the printer again by \\HostName\ShareName.

Microsoft's own advice for shared printers is to use the same Microsoft account or local account on both PCs, or to enter the host's user name and password when asked. Tick Remember my credentials only after the test sign-in worked.

Fix 3. Windows 11 host with older clients: let the host listen on named pipes and TCP

10 minutesRead the warningThe sharing PC runs Windows 11 22H2 or later, Windows 11 clients connect and Windows 10 or 8.1 clients fail, after Fix 1 and Fix 2.

Since Windows 11 22H2, Microsoft says the host only listens for print connections over RPC over TCP. Older clients that expect named pipes then get no answer from the host. Letting the host listen on both serves old and new clients.

1. On the sharing PC, open Terminal (Admin).
2. Run the command below.
3. On Windows 11 Pro you can set the same with Computer Configuration > Administrative Templates > Printers > Configure RPC listener settings, set to RpcOverNamedPipesAndTcp.
4. Restart the sharing PC.
5. On the older client, add the printer again by \\HostName\ShareName.

Host: listen for print connections on named pipes and on TCP

reg add "HKEY_LOCAL_MACHINE\SOFTWARE\Policies\Microsoft\Windows NT\Printers\RPC" /v RpcProtocols /t REG_DWORD /d 0x7 /f

Our guide to error 0x00000709 explains every client and host combination of these settings. Microsoft's page also lists RpcAuthnLevelPrivacyEnabled set to 0 for some named pipe setups; that lowers protection, so leave it alone unless nothing else works.

Fix 4. Restart Print Spooler on both PCs and add the printer again by its share name

10 minutesLow riskThe account signs in fine, the printer worked before, or the host or its share was renamed.

A spooler that still holds the old, refused connection can keep failing after the account is fixed. A restart on both PCs and a fresh connection by the current share name start clean.

1. On the sharing PC, press Win + R, type services.msc and press Enter.
2. Right-click Print Spooler and select Restart. If it is stopped, double-click it, set Startup type to Automatic, select Start, then OK.
3. Do the same on your PC.
4. On the sharing PC, open the printer's Printer properties, then the Sharing tab, and note the Share name.
5. On your PC, remove the old printer in Settings > Bluetooth & devices > Printers & scanners. On Windows 10: Settings > Devices > Printers & scanners.
6. Select Add device, then Add manually, choose Select a shared printer by name and type \\HostName\ShareName. On Windows 10 select Add a printer or scanner, then The printer that I want isn't listed.

In Terminal (Admin) the same restart is Restart-Service -Name Spooler. Step by step with screenshots: Check and restart Windows services.

Fix 5. Install the printer driver on your PC first, then connect

10 minutesLow riskThe account signs in and the failure comes while Windows installs the printer's driver.

If your PC already has a driver with the same name, it does not need to fetch one from the host, and one more sign-in and transfer step drops out. Since August 2021, only administrators can install printer drivers this way.

1. On the sharing PC, open the printer's Printer properties, then the Advanced tab, and note the name in Driver.
2. On your PC, press Win + R, type printui.exe /s /t2 and press Enter. Print Server Properties opens on Drivers.
3. Select Add, then Next, tick x64 (or ARM64 on an ARM PC) and select Next.
4. Pick the driver with exactly the name you noted, or use Have Disk with the maker's .inf file, then Finish.
5. Add the shared printer again as in Fix 4.

More on this route, and on cleaning a damaged driver on the host, in our guide to error 0x0000007c. General driver steps: Update, roll back or reinstall a driver.

Fix 6. Install pending updates on both PCs, the sharing one first

15 to 40 minutesLow riskOne PC has not installed updates for weeks, or the two PCs run very different Windows versions.

Print sharing changed several times since 2021, and both sides must speak the same version of it. A host far behind or far ahead of its clients is a common reason for shared printer errors.

1. On the sharing PC, open Settings > Windows Update, select Check for updates, install everything and restart. On Windows 10: Settings > Update & Security > Windows Update.
2. Do the same on your PC.
3. Run winver on both PCs and note the version and build.
4. Add the printer again as in Fix 4.

Fix 7. Add a network printer by its IP address instead of through another PC

10 minutesLow riskThe printer has its own Wi-Fi or Ethernet connection and the route through a sharing PC keeps failing.

A printer with its own network port does not need a host PC, so no account on another PC is involved and error 1909 cannot occur. Each PC talks to the printer directly with its own driver.

1. Find the printer's IP address on its control panel or on a network settings page it prints.
2. Open Printers & scanners, select Add device, then Add manually. On Windows 10 select Add a printer or scanner, then The printer that I want isn't listed.
3. Choose the option to add a printer by its IP address or host name and type the address.
4. Let Windows find the driver, or install the maker's driver, and print a test page.
5. Remove the old shared printer entry so apps stop using it.

Still getting 0x00000775? Where the real cause is written

The error box never says which account was locked or which PC sent the wrong password. The host knows. Check these places on the sharing PC before you try anything else; support will ask for the same facts.

• Event 4740 is written only when the audit policy Audit User Account Management is on. If the Security log has no such event, the policy is probably off.
• What to send to support: both Windows versions and builds, the account type on the host, the share path, the net accounts output and any 4740 or PrintService events with their time.
• On a work PC: lockout limits and printers often come from Group Policy or a domain. Ask your administrator to release the account.
• Is it hardware? No. The code comes from the account check between two PCs. A test page printed on the host proves the printer itself is fine.

How to keep error 0x00000775 from coming back

The error returns whenever the host's password changes while other PCs still remember the old one. A few habits keep the account unlocked.

Frequently asked questions

What does error 0x00000775 mean?

It is Windows system error 1909, ERROR_ACCOUNT_LOCKED_OUT: "The referenced account is currently locked out and may not be logged on to." With printers it appears as "Windows cannot connect to the printer. Operation failed with error 0x00000775." The PC that shares the printer refused the account your PC uses to sign in, because too many wrong passwords locked it. Release the account on that PC (Fix 1) and clear the saved password on yours (Fix 2).

Are 0x0000775, 0x000000775 and 0x0000075 the same error?

0x0000775 and 0x000000775 are. Zeros in front of 775 do not change the number, so both are error 1909, the locked account. 0x0000075 is most likely the same message typed with a digit missing, and the fixes here apply if your box says 775. Read the code again, though: 0x75 on its own is error 117, an unrelated code. "Erro 0x00000775" is the same error on a Portuguese Windows.

How long does the account stay locked?

On a PC set up with Windows 11 version 22H2 or later, Microsoft's default is 10 minutes. The account locks after 10 failed sign-ins within 10 minutes and unlocks by itself 10 minutes later. Run net accounts on the sharing PC to see its own values. If a PC keeps sending a wrong saved password, the account locks again at once, which is why waiting alone often does not help. Clear the saved credential (Fix 2).

Why does only my Windows 10 PC get 0x00000775 when Windows 11 PCs connect?

Users on Microsoft Q&A report exactly this with a Windows 11 22H2 host: Windows 10 and 8.1 clients fail with every shared printer, Windows 11 clients work. Since 22H2 the host listens only on RPC over TCP for print connections, and new 22H2 installs lock accounts after 10 wrong passwords. Clear the saved password on the Windows 10 PC first (Fix 2). If it still fails, let the host listen on named pipes and TCP (Fix 3).

Which user name and password should I type for the shared printer?

Those of an account on the PC that shares the printer, not of your own PC. For a local account type HostName\UserName and its password. For a Microsoft account type its email address and the Microsoft account password. The Windows Hello PIN does not work over the network, and typing it a few times is a common way to lock the account. Microsoft also suggests using the same account on both PCs.

How do I release a locked account on Windows 11 Home?

Windows 11 Home has no Local Users and Groups console, but the command works. Open Terminal (Admin) on the sharing PC and run net user "Name" /active:yes with the account's name. If you cannot sign in as an administrator there, wait for the lockout to end; 10 minutes is the default. Then clear the saved credential on the PC that showed the error before you try again (Fix 2).

Does the printer troubleshooter or SFC fix 0x00000775?

Usually not. The error is a sign-in refusal from the other PC, and neither the printer troubleshooter nor SFC and DISM look at accounts or saved passwords. The user on Microsoft Q&A with this error reports that SFC and DISM did nothing. Use them only if Windows itself is damaged. Start with Fix 1 and Fix 2, which act on the account that the code names.

Is 0x00000775 a fault of my printer or its driver?

Not of the printer. The code comes from the account check between two Windows PCs, before any page reaches the printer, and it occurs with every brand, from HP and Canon to Epson and Brother. A driver can play a part only after the sign-in works, which is when Fix 5 helps. Print a test page on the PC the printer is attached to: if that works, the printer is fine.

Should I turn off account lockout on the sharing PC?

No. Lockout limits how many passwords someone can try against the PC over the network, and Microsoft made it the default for that reason. Turning it off hides the error but leaves the cause, a wrong saved password, in place. Find the PC that sends the wrong password with event 4740 or cmdkey /list, fix its credential, and keep the threshold at Microsoft's recommended 10.

Nothing on this page worked. What else can I try?

Take the shared route out of the picture. If the printer has Wi-Fi or Ethernet, add it by its IP address on every PC (Fix 7). If it only has USB, connect it to the PC you print from as a test. Then collect net accounts, both Windows builds, any 4740 and PrintService events and send them to Microsoft support or the printer maker. This page is about the Windows printer error; other questions are not covered here.