How to fix "The credentials supplied are not sufficient" printer error in Windows?

"The credentials supplied are not sufficient to access this printer" means the PC or print server that shares the printer did not accept the account your PC offered. It is a sign-in problem, not a broken printer. Open \\HostName in File Explorer, sign in with an account of that PC and its password, save it, then add the printer again.

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

What "The credentials supplied are not sufficient" means for a printer

To print to a printer that another PC shares, your PC must sign in to that PC over the network, just like opening a shared folder. Windows asks for a user name and password, or sends one it has saved. When the sharing PC rejects that account, Windows shows "The credentials supplied are not sufficient to access this printer."

The word "credentials" means the user name and password. "Not sufficient" does not mean the account needs more rights in most home cases. It usually means the host did not accept the account at all, so the printer connection never starts.

• It is not the printer. The message comes from Windows during the sign-in between two computers. Ink, paper, cables and printer firmware are not involved.
• It is about the other PC's accounts. The user name and password you type must belong to the PC or server that shares the printer, not to your own PC, unless both use the same account.
• The conflict message is a sibling. "The credentials supplied conflict with an existing set of credentials" appears when your PC already holds a connection to that host under a different user name. Fix 3 clears it.
• The same text on a Mac comes from the same Windows host refusing the sign-in. The host side fixes on this page (Fix 4 and Fix 6) apply there too.

Why Windows 11 says the credentials supplied are not sufficient: causes, ranked

Microsoft does not publish a page for this message. The ranking below follows Microsoft's shared printer steps, a university IT help article about the same message on Windows 11, and what users report on Microsoft Q&A.

How to fix "The credentials supplied are not sufficient": eight fixes in order

Fix 1 to Fix 4 give your PC a sign-in the sharing PC accepts, which solves most cases. Fix 5 is for work and school print servers. Fix 6 to Fix 8 repair the sharing settings, the printer entry and the Windows 11 print connection.

Fix 1. Sign in to the sharing PC in File Explorer first, then add the printer

5 minutesLow riskFor everyone, and first on a new PC, a new user account or a PC that has never printed to this share.

The printer connection reuses the sign-in your PC already has with the host. Opening the host in File Explorer creates that sign-in with an account the host knows, so the printer connection no longer sends one it rejects.

1. On the PC that shares the printer, press Win + R, type sysdm.cpl and press Enter. Note the Computer name.
2. On your PC, open File Explorer, type \\HostName in the address bar and press Enter, using the name you noted.
3. When Windows asks for network credentials, type a user name of the host PC as HostName\UserName, or the email address of its Microsoft account, and that account's password.
4. Tick Remember my credentials and select OK. The host's shared folders and printers appear.
5. Double-click the printer there, or add it in Printers & scanners with Select a shared printer by name and \\HostName\ShareName.

Microsoft's shared printer guide gives the same advice: use the same Microsoft account or local account on both PCs, or enter the user name and password of the host PC when Windows asks.

Fix 2. Add or replace the host's sign-in in Credential Manager

5 minutesLow riskNo sign-in box appears, the host's password changed, or you used another account with this host before.

Windows sends the credential saved for a host name without asking. An old or wrong entry makes the host reject every printer connection, and a new correct entry replaces it. A university IT help desk gives this as the fix for the same message on Windows 11.

1. Press Win + S, type credential manager and open Credential Manager in Control Panel.
2. Select Windows Credentials.
3. Look for an entry with the host's name or IP address. Expand it and select Remove if it is old or uses another account.
4. Select Add a Windows credential.
5. In Internet or network address type the host name, for example HostName. In User name type HostName\UserName or the Microsoft account email, then the Password, and select OK.
6. Restart your PC and add the printer again by \\HostName\ShareName.

The same in Terminal: list saved entries, delete the old one, add a new one (you are asked for the password)

cmdkey /list
cmdkey /delete:HostName
cmdkey /add:HostName /user:HostName\UserName /pass

Fix 3. Clear old connections when the credentials conflict with an existing set

5 minutesLow riskYou see "The credentials supplied conflict with an existing set of credentials", or you opened a share on the host with another account earlier today.

Windows keeps one user name per host for open network connections. If a mapped drive or an open folder already uses account A, a printer connection with account B is refused. Closing those connections lets the printer sign in with the account you want.

1. Close every File Explorer window that shows a folder on the host.
2. Press Win + X and select Terminal.
3. Type net use and press Enter. Every open connection is listed with its remote path.
4. Delete each connection to the host with the command below, or all of them with net use * /delete.
5. Remove the old entry for the host in Credential Manager as in Fix 2.
6. Sign in to \\HostName again with one account only, then add the printer.

List open connections, delete the hidden connection to one host, or delete all connections

net use
net use \\HostName\IPC$ /delete
net use * /delete

Fix 4. Give the sharing PC an account with a real password for printing

10 minutesLow riskThe PC that shares the printer has no password, signs in with a PIN only, or you do not want to share its main account.

A network sign-in needs an account with a password on the host. Users on Microsoft Q&A report that creating a local account with a password on the host and saving it on the client fixed this exact message on Windows 11 Home.

1. On the sharing PC, open Settings > Accounts > Other users and select Add account.
2. Select I don't have this person's sign-in information, then Add a user without a Microsoft account.
3. Type a short user name, for example printuser, and a password. Select Next.
4. Full steps with screenshots: Create a new user account to test a problem. A standard account is enough; it does not need administrator rights.
5. On your PC, open \\HostName, sign in as HostName\printuser with that password and tick Remember my credentials.
6. Add the printer by \\HostName\ShareName.

Fix 5. Work or school printer: save the print server sign-in in DOMAIN\user format

10 minutesLow riskYou add a work or school printer from a print server to a personal PC that is not joined to the organisation's domain.

A personal PC has no domain account, so it offers its own local account to the print server, which refuses it. Saving the organisation's account for the server's full name first gives the connection a sign-in the server accepts.

1. Ask IT for the print server's full name, for example printserver.example.edu, and the domain name.
2. Open Control Panel > User Accounts > Credential Manager and select Windows Credentials.
3. Select Add a Windows credential.
4. In Internet or network address type the full server name. In User name type DOMAIN\username, then your password, and select OK.
5. Add the printer again by \\printserver.example.edu\PrinterName, as your IT department describes.

Fix 6. Set the network to Private and turn on file and printer sharing

5 minutesLow riskThe sharing PC does not appear under Network, or \\HostName does not open from your PC.

On a Public network profile Windows hides the PC and blocks sharing, so the sign-in cannot reach the host. Microsoft lists Network discovery and File and printer sharing as required settings for shared printers.

1. On both PCs, open Settings > Network & internet and select Wi-Fi or Ethernet, then the connected network.
2. Under Network profile type, select Private network. Do this only on a home or office network you trust.
3. Open Settings > Network & internet > Advanced network settings > Advanced sharing settings.
4. Turn on Network discovery and File and printer sharing. On Windows 10: Settings > Network & internet > Status > Network and sharing center > Change advanced sharing settings, under Private.
5. Check that both PCs are on the same local network, then open \\HostName again.

Fix 7. Remove the printer, restart Print Spooler and add it again by its share name

10 minutesLow riskThe printer worked before and then stopped, or an old entry of the printer is still on your PC.

An old printer entry keeps the connection details and the account it was made with. Microsoft's last step for shared printers is to remove it, restart and add it again by the exact share path, which makes Windows sign in fresh.

1. On the sharing PC, open the printer's Printer properties, then the Sharing tab. Check Share this printer and note the Share name.
2. On your PC, open Settings > Bluetooth & devices > Printers & scanners, select the shared printer and select Remove. On Windows 10: Settings > Devices > Printers & scanners, then Remove device.
3. Restart Print Spooler on both PCs, or simply restart both PCs.
4. On your PC, select Add device, then Add manually, and choose Select a shared printer by name. On Windows 10 select Add a printer or scanner, then The printer that I want isn't listed.
5. Type \\HostName\ShareName and follow the steps on the screen.

The same restart in Terminal (Admin): Restart-Service -Name Spooler. More on services: Check and restart Windows services.

Fix 8. Windows 11 client and an older host: match the print connection settings

15 minutesRead the warningShared folders on the host open fine, the printer still fails, and your PC runs Windows 11 while the host runs Windows 10 or older. Needs an administrator.

Windows 11 22H2 and later connect to shared printers with RPC over TCP by default. An older host or a firewall that does not answer that way breaks the printer connection, and Windows can report it as a sign-in failure while files still work.

1. On the sharing PC, check that no third-party firewall blocks incoming connections from your local network.
2. Try the printer again. If it works, stop here.
3. On your Windows 11 PC, open Terminal (Admin) and run the command below.
4. Restart your PC and add the printer again by \\HostName\ShareName.

Client: connect to shared printers with RPC over named pipes (1 = named pipes, 0 or not set = RPC over TCP)

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

Our guide to printer error 0x00000520 covers the same Windows 10 host and Windows 11 client case, and the guide to error 0x00000709 explains every combination of these settings.

Still getting "The credentials supplied are not sufficient"? Where to look

The message does not say which account was refused or why. These checks show it, and they are what an IT team or Microsoft support will ask for.

• What to send to support: both Windows versions and builds, the share path, the account and its format, the cmdkey /list and net use output without passwords, and PrintService errors with their time.
• On a work PC: printers and print policies are usually set by your organisation. Ask your administrator, because a local change can be undone at the next sign-in.
• Is it hardware? No. If the printer prints a test page on the PC it is attached to, the printer is fine and the problem is the account or the connection.
• A way around it: if the printer has Wi-Fi or Ethernet, add it on every PC by its IP address with Add a printer using an IP address or hostname, so no PC has to sign in to another.

How to keep the credentials error from coming back

The message returns when the host password changes, when a new PC or user joins without a saved sign-in, or when someone connects to the host with a second account. A few habits keep it away.

Frequently asked questions

What does "The credentials supplied are not sufficient to access this printer" mean?

It means the PC or print server that shares the printer did not accept the user name and password your PC sent. Your PC must sign in to the sharing computer before it can use its printer, just as with a shared folder. The printer itself is fine. Sign in to \\HostName in File Explorer with an account of that PC and its password (Fix 1), or save that account in Credential Manager (Fix 2).

Why does it happen only on my Windows 11 PC?

Users on Microsoft Q&A report the same pattern: a printer shared by a Windows 10 PC works on other Windows 10 PCs, while a Windows 11 PC gets this message with the same credentials. Windows 11 refuses guest access by default and connects to shared printers differently since 22H2. Give the host an account with a password (Fix 4), save it on the Windows 11 PC (Fix 2), and if files open but the printer still fails, match the print connection settings (Fix 8).

What does "The credentials supplied conflict with an existing set of credentials" mean?

Your PC already has an open connection to the same host under a different user name, for example a mapped drive or a folder you opened with another account. Windows uses one user name per host for those connections, so the new sign-in is refused. Close File Explorer windows on the host, run net use to list connections, delete them with net use \\HostName\IPC$ /delete or net use * /delete, then sign in again with one account (Fix 3).

Is "The account credentials supplied are invalid" the same error?

No. That wording is not a shared printer message, and we could not confirm from a Microsoft source where it appears. Similar messages come up in other sign-in screens, such as account set-up in apps. If your printer connection shows it, the cause is still a user name or password the other side does not accept, so check the format HostName\UserName and the password in Fix 1 and Fix 2. Otherwise, search for the exact app that shows it.

What is "The credentials supplied to the package were not recognized"?

It is a different message that comes from Windows security components used by apps and services, not from adding a shared printer. This page covers only "The credentials supplied are not sufficient to access this printer" and the related conflict message. We could not confirm the cause of the package message from a vendor source in this check, so we do not give steps for it here. Search for it together with the name of the app that shows it.

Should I change Point and Print Restrictions in Group Policy?

No, not on a home PC. Old guides tell you to enable Point and Print Restrictions and pick Do not show warning or elevation prompt. The policy's own help text in the Group Policy Editor says it applies only to non-Print Administrator clients that are members of a domain. On a home PC it changes nothing, and on any PC it hides the warning before a printer driver installs. Fix the sign-in instead (Fix 1 to Fix 4).

Does uninstalling a Windows update fix this error?

Usually not, and it leaves your PC without security fixes. The message is about which account the host accepts. Windows 11 updates did tighten guest access and change how print connections work. The lasting fix is an account with a password on the host (Fix 4) and, where files open but the printer fails, the print connection setting in Fix 8. If you remove an update for a test, install it again afterwards: How to uninstall a Windows update.

Can I fix it without administrator rights?

Often yes. Fix 1, Fix 2 and Fix 3 save or clear sign-ins for your own user and need no administrator rights on your PC. You do need a user name and password of an account on the sharing PC, or your organisation's account for a print server. Creating an account on the host (Fix 4), restarting Print Spooler (Fix 7) and the registry change in Fix 8 need an administrator on the PC concerned.

I searched in Spanish or Indonesian. Does this page apply?

Yes. "Las credenciales proporcionadas no son suficientes para acceder a esta impresora" is the Spanish Windows text of the same message, and searches such as "kenapa" (Indonesian for "why") lead here too. Only the menu names are translated; the cause and the fixes are the same. Start with Fix 1: open \\HostName in File Explorer and sign in with an account of the sharing PC. If it still fails, follow the table above the fixes.