How to fix printer error code 0x00000040 in Windows?

Error 0x00000040 appears when you connect to a printer that another PC or a print server shares, and it means that the network name of that computer is no longer available to your PC. Open \\ComputerName in File Explorer first: if the host does not open, the fault is in the network link and not in the printer. If it opens, add the printer through a local port.

Facts checked on 14 October 2026. Steps written for Windows 11 (25H2 and 26H2) and Windows 10 22H2.

What error 0x00000040 means: the specified network name is no longer available

0x00000040 is hexadecimal for 64. Microsoft's list of system error codes names error 64 ERROR_NETNAME_DELETED. Its one line of text is "The specified network name is no longer available". The network name is the computer in the printer's address, the part between the double backslash and the share name.

So the code is not about ink, paper or the printer's own driver settings. Your PC had started to talk to the host over SMB, the Windows protocol for shared files and printers, and that conversation ended before the printer was connected. The host closed it, something between the two PCs cut it, or the host never agreed to it.

A neighbouring code on the same box is printer error 0x00000006. There Windows could not open the printer at all. Here it reached the host and lost it, so this page starts with the network name and the SMB connection.

Why the printer gives error 0x00000040: causes, ranked

Microsoft has no article that explains this code for printers, so nobody can name one official cause. The ranking below comes from what error 64 means, from Microsoft's documents about each link of the connection, and from what Microsoft's own support staff answer in its Q&A forum. It runs from the common and quick to rule out to the rare.

The earlier version of this guide named a buggy Windows update, damaged system files, stopped services and damaged drivers as the reasons, and a poor internet connection as a further one. Services and the local network come first here. The internet connection plays no part: a shared printer is reached over the local network only.

Shared printer error 0x00000040 in Windows 11 and Windows 10: what changed

Many reports of this error start with the same sentence: it worked until Windows was upgraded. In one thread on Microsoft's Q&A site, opened in September 2022, more than 1,100 people marked that they have the same question, and the asker says it began with the update to Windows 11 22H2. Four changes in Windows explain most of these cases.

Of these four, Windows 10 22H2 has only the changes of 2017 and 2021. Microsoft stopped supporting it on 14 October 2025, so its printing and SMB parts stay as they are. Microsoft does not tie error 0x00000040 to any of these changes by name. The link is the timing of the reports and the meaning of the code.

How to fix "Operation failed with error 0x00000040": nine fixes in order

The fixes follow the connection from your PC to the host. Fix 1 to Fix 4 repair the network name, the services, the share and the sign-in. Fix 5 to Fix 7 deal with the driver, the print RPC link and old hosts. Fix 8 and Fix 9 are the general checks from the earlier version of this guide.

Fix 1. Test the network name: open the host by name, then by its IP address

5 minutesNo riskFor everyone, as the first step. No administrator account is needed.

The error text is about the network name, so test the name before anything else. If the host opens by its IP address and not by its name, your PC translates the name wrongly. If it opens neither way, the fault is on the host or on the network, and no printer setting on your PC can cure it.

1. On the host, the PC that shares the printer, open Command Prompt from the Start menu, type ipconfig /all and press Enter.
2. Write down the Host Name at the top and the IPv4 Address of the active network adapter.
3. On your PC, open File Explorer, type \\ComputerName in the address bar with the real host name and press Enter.
4. If the host does not open, type two backslashes and the IPv4 address instead, for example \\192.168.1.20.
5. If only the address works, open Command Prompt on your PC and run ipconfig /flushdns. It empties the cache of names your PC has already looked up.
6. Open PowerShell and run the command below these steps with the host name. Look at the line TcpTestSucceeded.
7. Open Settings > Bluetooth & devices > Printers & scanners. If the shared printer is listed, select it, select Remove and restart your PC.
8. Select Add device, then Add manually, choose Select a shared printer by name and enter \\ComputerName\PrinterShareName.

PowerShell: is the SMB port of the host reachable?

Test-NetConnection ComputerName -Port 445

The earlier version of this guide ran five commands here: ipconfig /flushdns, ipconfig /registerdns, ipconfig /release, ipconfig /renew and netsh winsock reset. The first one is the one that matters for a name. The others, with what each one resets, are in Reset the network and flush DNS.

Fix 2. Restart the Print Spooler and Workstation services, and Server on the host

5 minutesLow riskThe printer worked before and stopped. It needs an administrator account on each PC you do it on.

Three services carry a shared printer. Workstation makes your PC's SMB connections, Server shares the printer on the host, and Print Spooler runs the print queues on both. A stuck one keeps answering every new attempt with the same dropped connection. Checking Workstation is the first answer of a Microsoft community support specialist in Microsoft's Q&A thread on the code.

1. On your PC, type services in the search box on the taskbar and select Services in the results.
2. Double-click Print Spooler, select Stop, then OK. Leave the window open.
3. In the search box on the taskbar, enter %WINDIR%\system32\spool\printers, open the PRINTERS folder and delete all files in it. Do not delete the folder.
4. In Services, double-click Print Spooler again, select Start, choose Automatic in the Startup type box and select OK.
5. Right-click Workstation and select Restart. If Windows lists services that depend on it, accept that they restart too.
6. If Workstation is not running, double-click it, choose Automatic under Startup type, then select Start, Apply and OK.
7. On the host, restart Print Spooler in the same way, then right-click Server and select Restart.
8. Restart both PCs if the error is still there, and add the printer again.

The Services window in general, with what each startup type means: Check and restart Windows services

Fix 3. On the host: check that the printer is still shared and that sharing is allowed

10 minutesLow riskEvery PC fails, or the host was reinstalled, updated or moved. It needs an administrator account on the host.

"No longer available" is literally true when the share is gone. A printer that was removed and added again on the host is not shared any more, and a Windows network set to Public hides the PC and blocks file and printer sharing. Microsoft's own guide for shared printers begins with these checks on the host.

1. On the host, check that it is switched on and awake. A sleeping PC answers nobody.
2. Open Settings > Bluetooth & devices > Printers & scanners, select the printer and select Printer properties.
3. On the Sharing tab, tick Share this printer, read the Share name letter by letter and select Apply, then OK.
4. Open Settings > Network & internet, select Wi-Fi and your network, or Ethernet. Under Network profile type, select Private network.
5. Go back to Network & internet, open Advanced network settings > Advanced sharing settings and turn on Network discovery and File and printer sharing.
6. If a firewall setting was changed on the host, open Command Prompt as administrator and run the command below these steps.
7. Restart the host, then repeat the test of Fix 1 from your PC.

Host, as administrator: switch the firewall's File and Printer Sharing rules back on

netsh advfirewall firewall set rule group="File and Printer Sharing" new enable=Yes

• Windows 10 host, printer: Settings > Devices > Printers & scanners, select the printer, then Manage > Printer properties.
• Windows 10 host, sharing: Settings > Network & internet > Status > Network and sharing center > Change advanced sharing settings. Turn both switches on under Private.

Fix 4. Give the host a user name and password it accepts

5 to 10 minutesNo riskThe host asks for a password, refuses access, or has an account without a password. No administrator needed on your PC.

Windows signs in to the host silently, with your own account or with a saved entry. An entry that holds an old password is sent again on every attempt, and a host that relies on guest access is turned away by Windows 11 24H2. In both cases the host ends the session and the name is no longer available to you.

1. Type credential manager in the search box on the taskbar and open Credential Manager.
2. Select Windows Credentials and look for an entry with the host's name or IP address.
3. Open Command Prompt from the Start menu, not as administrator. Saved credentials belong to your own account.
4. Run the first command below to remove the old entry. Put the host's real name in place of HOSTNAME.
5. Store the right account with the second command. Windows asks for the password, so it is never shown on screen.
6. The third command lists what is stored. The host must appear in it.
7. Open \\HOSTNAME in File Explorer. When it opens without a prompt, add the printer as in Fix 1.

Commands, one per line

cmdkey /delete:HOSTNAME
cmdkey /add:HOSTNAME /user:username
cmdkey /list

Fix 5. Install the driver yourself and add the printer on a local port

10 to 15 minutesLow riskYou can open the host and see the printer, and Connect gives the error. It needs an administrator account.

A normal connection downloads the driver from the host and links the two Print Spoolers, and that is where many of these cases fail. A printer on a local port has its own driver and its own queue on your PC and only sends finished print data to the share. A Microsoft moderator recommends exactly this route in Microsoft's Q&A forum for this error.

1. Download the current driver for the printer model from the manufacturer's website and install it on your PC, with no printer connected.
2. Open Settings > Bluetooth & devices > Printers & scanners and select Add device.
3. Next to The printer that I want isn't listed, select Add manually. Newer builds call it Add a new device manually.
4. Choose Add a local printer or network printer with manual settings and select Next.
5. Choose Create a new port, set the type of port to Local Port and select Next.
6. As the port name, enter the share path \\ComputerName\PrinterShareName and select OK.
7. Pick the manufacturer and the model from the list, or select Have Disk and point to the driver you downloaded.
8. Give the printer a name, finish the wizard and print a test page.

• Windows 10: the wizard is the same. Start it from Settings > Devices > Printers & scanners > Add a printer or scanner > The printer that I want isn't listed.

Fix 6. Windows 11 22H2 and later: let the print RPC connection through

15 to 30 minutesRead the warningYour PC or the host runs Windows 11 22H2 or later and the error began after the upgrade. Needs an administrator.

Since version 22H2, two Windows computers talk about printing by RPC over TCP, and the older way, RPC over named pipes, stays switched off unless you turn it on. Microsoft calls blocked firewall ports the most common issue with this change. The fix is to let the TCP connection through, or, as a test, to put one side back on named pipes.

1. On the host, make sure File and printer sharing is on, as in Fix 3.
2. Check the firewall on the host and any firewall between the two PCs: TCP port 135 must not be blocked, and the ports 49152 to 65535 must be open on the host.
3. Restart both PCs and add the printer again. If it connects, stop here. This is the setup Microsoft recommends.
4. Only if that is not possible: on the Windows 11 PC, open the Local Group Policy Editor and go to Computer Configuration > Administrative Templates > Printers.
5. Open Configure RPC connection settings, select Enabled, set the protocol to RpcOverNamedPipes and select OK.
6. If the host runs Windows 11 22H2 or later too, open Configure RPC listener settings on the host, select Enabled and allow RpcOverNamedPipesAndTcp.
7. Restart both PCs and add the printer again.

Windows 11 Home has no policy editor. Same setting by command, on your PC, as administrator

reg add "HKEY_LOCAL_MACHINE\SOFTWARE\Policies\Microsoft\Windows NT\Printers\RPC" /v RpcUseNamedPipeProtocol /t REG_DWORD /d 1 /f

On a host with Windows 11 22H2 or later: listen on named pipes and TCP

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

Undo: remove the two values

reg delete "HKEY_LOCAL_MACHINE\SOFTWARE\Policies\Microsoft\Windows NT\Printers\RPC" /v RpcUseNamedPipeProtocol /f
reg delete "HKEY_LOCAL_MACHINE\SOFTWARE\Policies\Microsoft\Windows NT\Printers\RPC" /v RpcProtocols /f

• A user's answer in Microsoft's Q&A forum from 2026 names the named pipes policy as the cure for 0x00000040. Microsoft's own article on the change does not name any error code.
• According to the same Microsoft article, named pipes can also require the value RpcAuthnLevelPrivacyEnabled at 0 on the host and SMB guest access. Each of the two lowers protection again. If the printer only works with them, replace the host or use Fix 5.
• The policy editor step by step, and what Windows Home offers instead: Open the Local Group Policy Editor

Fix 7. Old NAS, print server box or Windows XP host: check for SMB1

10 to 20 minutesRead the warningThe host is not a current Windows PC, and it never worked from this PC. Needs an administrator.

Microsoft lists "The specified network name is no longer available" and "System Error 64" among the messages Windows shows when a device supports SMB1 only. Windows 11 ships without the SMB1 client, so the host answers in a language your PC no longer speaks and the session is dropped. Windows writes an event that proves it.

1. On your PC, try to open \\ComputerName once more so that a fresh event is written.
2. Right-click Start and select Event Viewer.
3. Open Applications and Services Logs > Microsoft > Windows > SMBClient > Security.
4. Look for event 32000 at the time of your attempt: "SMB1 negotiate response received from remote device when SMB1 cannot be negotiated by the local computer."
5. If the event is there, look for a firmware or software update for the device that adds SMB 2 or later. Microsoft's advice is to ask the manufacturer.
6. If the host is a Windows PC, run the two commands below on it in PowerShell as administrator. SMB2 must show True.
7. If no update exists and the printer has its own network port, connect to the printer directly, as described under "If the error is still there".

Windows host, PowerShell as administrator: check SMB2 and SMB3, and switch them on

Get-SmbServerConfiguration | Select EnableSMB2Protocol
Set-SmbServerConfiguration -EnableSMB2Protocol $true

PowerShell as administrator on your PC: is SMB1 installed? State should read Disabled

Get-WindowsOptionalFeature -Online -FeatureName SMB1Protocol

• Windows XP is older than SMB2, which Microsoft introduced with Windows Vista. A printer shared by an XP PC cannot be reached from Windows 11 without SMB1.
• Windows 7, 8.1 and 10 hosts speak SMB2 or later. For them this fix is not the answer: use Fix 3 to Fix 6.
• Event 31017 in the same log means something else: the host tried to sign you in as a guest and Windows refused. That is the case of Fix 4.

Fix 8. Run the printer troubleshooter, update both PCs and repair system files

15 to 40 minutesNo riskNothing above fits your case. The troubleshooter runs for any user, the repairs need an administrator.

These are the general repairs of the earlier version of this guide. They do not target the network name, but they repair what the specific fixes assume to be healthy: the print components of Windows and the files of the SMB client. Microsoft recommends its update rollups before any deeper SMB troubleshooting.

1. Open the Get Help app from the Start menu, enter printer troubleshooter in its search bar and follow the questions.
2. Open Settings > Windows Update on your PC and install all pending updates.
3. Do the same on the host. Two PCs on the same update level rule out a mismatch between them.
4. Repair the Windows system files with the commands below, in an elevated command window, then restart.

1. Run DISM first. Type the command below and press Enter. DISM downloads clean copies of damaged components from Windows Update, so it can take several minutes. Wait until it says The operation completed successfully.

   DISM.exe /Online /Cleanup-Image /RestoreHealth

2. Run System File Checker. In the same window, type the command below and press Enter. Do not close the window until the verification reaches 100%.

   sfc /scannow

3. Read the result and restart. Compare the last message with the table below this guide, then restart the PC so that repaired files are loaded.

These steps were written for Windows 11 24H2 and 25H2. The full page with the other versions and what each result means: Run DISM and SFC to repair Windows system files

The earlier version of this guide ran sfc /scannow first and then three DISM commands. The order above is the one Microsoft gives: DISM repairs the store that System File Checker copies from. The full procedure with every result message: Run DISM and SFC to repair Windows system files

Fix 9. If it began with a Windows update: uninstall that update as a test

10 to 20 minutesRead the warningThe printer worked the day before an update and failed right after it. Needs an administrator.

An update can change how two PCs talk about printing, as the changes of 2021 and 2022 showed. Removing the latest quality update tells you in one restart whether it is the cause. We found no entry in Microsoft's documents that names an update as the source of error 0x00000040, so treat this as a test.

1. Open Windows Update. Select Start > Settings > Windows Update.
2. Open the update history. Under More options, select Update history. Note the KB number and the date of the update you suspect.
3. Open the list of removable updates. Scroll down to Related settings and select Uninstall updates.

   

4. Uninstall the update. Find the update in the list and select Uninstall next to it. If the update is not in the list, Windows does not allow it to be removed this way.

   

5. Pause updates. Go back to Settings > Windows Update and select Pick a date on the Pause updates control. If your PC shows a list there instead, select the pause length you prefer. Without a pause Windows downloads the same update again.

These steps were written for Windows 11 25H2 and 26H2. The full page with the other versions and what each result means: How to uninstall a Windows update

• If the printer works after the removal, the update was the trigger, and the cause is still one of the changes in Fix 5 to Fix 7. Fix that, then install the update again.
• If nothing changed, install the update again at once.
• The same steps for Windows 10, and for a PC that will not start: How to uninstall a Windows update

If the error is still there: four tests and the SMB client log

By now you know more than the message box tells. Four short tests show on which side the fault is, and one event log names two of the causes directly.

1. Right-click Start and select Event Viewer.
2. Open Applications and Services Logs > Microsoft > Windows > SMBClient > Security.
3. Try to connect to the printer once more, then press F5 to refresh the log.
4. Read the newest entries. Event 32000 points to an SMB1-only host (Fix 7), event 31017 to a rejected guest sign-in (Fix 4).

• What to send to the administrator or to support: the exact message, the time, the name and Windows version of your PC and of the host, the share path you used, the results of the four tests and the SMBClient events.
• When it is hardware: a failing network cable, switch port or Wi-Fi link drops SMB sessions at random. If shared folders on the host also disconnect, test the network before the printer: How to check your internet connection in Windows
• It is not the printer itself. The error is raised before any page is sent. A printer that is out of paper or offline shows other messages, on the host.

How to undo the changes made on this page

Fix 1, Fix 2, Fix 4 and Fix 8 leave nothing to put back. Always reverse the entries that lower protection.

How to keep error 0x00000040 from coming back

Frequently asked questions

What does error 0x00000040 mean on a printer?

It is Windows system error 64, ERROR_NETNAME_DELETED, and Microsoft's text for it is "The specified network name is no longer available". On a printer it means that your PC started a connection to the computer that shares the printer and that connection was refused or dropped. The code does not say why. The usual reasons are a host name that leads nowhere, sharing or a firewall rule switched off on the host, a rejected sign-in, or a failure in the driver and spooler step that follows.

Is printer error 0x00000040 the same as the blue screen 0x00000040?

No. The numbers are equal and the problems have nothing in common. On a blue screen, 0x00000040 is the stop code TARGET_MDL_TOO_SMALL, which Microsoft describes as a driver bug in the way a driver uses memory. The whole PC stops. The printer error is a normal message box with an OK button, and Windows keeps running. If your PC restarts with a blue screen, this page is not the right one.

Why did my shared printer stop working after the Windows 11 22H2 or 24H2 update?

Because both versions changed how PCs talk to each other. From 22H2, printing between computers uses RPC over TCP and no longer uses named pipes by default, so a blocked port or an old host breaks the link. From 24H2, the Pro, Enterprise and Education editions require SMB signing, which shuts out hosts that let everybody in as a guest. Microsoft documents both changes, although it names no error code for them. Fix 6 covers the first case and Fix 4 the second.

Should I enable SMB 1.0 to fix error 0x00000040?

Only as a short test, and only if the host is a device that cannot speak anything newer. Microsoft does list "The specified network name is no longer available" among the messages for SMB1-only devices, so the idea is not wrong. But Microsoft strongly recommends not to reinstall SMB1, because the protocol has known security issues regarding ransomware and other malware. Check the event log first, as in Fix 7. A Windows 7, 10 or 11 host never needs SMB1.

Do I need the Computer Browser service for a shared printer?

No. The earlier version of this guide and many forum answers ask you to start Computer Browser and Workstation. Workstation is real and needed: it makes your PC's SMB connections. Computer Browser relies on SMB1 and is uninstalled together with it, so current Windows 10 and Windows 11 do not have it. Microsoft states that the service is no longer required when a network runs Windows Vista and later. If you cannot find it in the Services window, nothing is wrong.

Does error 0x00000040 also appear on Windows 10 and Windows 7?

Yes. Error 64 is a general Windows network error that is far older than Windows 11. On Windows 10 the usual reasons are the name, the services, the share and the saved password, so Fix 1 to Fix 5 apply as written. Windows 10 does not have the RPC change of Fix 6. Windows 7 appears mostly as the host: it speaks SMB2, so it does not need SMB1, but it gets no updates and can fall behind what a current Windows 11 PC expects.

Why can I see the printer on the network and still not connect to it?

Because seeing and connecting use different parts of Windows. The list in File Explorer only needs the SMB connection to the host. Connect then asks the two Print Spoolers to talk by RPC and downloads the driver from the host, which needs administrator rights since August 2021. If either step fails, Windows gives up on the host and reports the error. Installing the driver yourself and adding the printer on a local port, as in Fix 5, avoids both steps.

What can I do about 0x00000040 without an administrator password?

Two fixes are fully yours. Test the name and the path and add the printer by its exact share path or by the host's IP address (Fix 1), and replace a wrong saved password (Fix 4). You can also read the SMB client log described under "If the error is still there". Everything else needs an administrator: the services, the settings on the host, the driver, the RPC policy and the updates. Hand over the results of your tests, and the job takes minutes.