Encountering a print job stuck in the queue can be a frustrating hiccup in your workflow. Whether you’ve accidentally sent a large document to print or simply changed your mind, knowing how to effectively cancel a printer queue is a valuable skill. This guide provides you with clear steps to cancel print jobs directly from Excel or through your Windows operating system, ensuring you regain control over your printing process efficiently.
Canceling Print Jobs Directly from Excel
When you initiate a print command in Microsoft Excel, a print dialog box momentarily appears on your screen. This fleeting window offers a direct opportunity to halt the print job before it fully engages the printer.
If you react quickly upon seeing the dialog box, simply clicking the Cancel button is often sufficient to stop the printing process. However, this dialog box can disappear rapidly, especially with smaller print jobs or faster systems. If you miss this initial window, don’t worry; Windows itself provides robust tools to manage and cancel print queues.
Canceling Print Jobs via Windows
For situations where the Excel cancel option is no longer available, or if you need to manage print jobs from other applications, Windows offers a comprehensive method to cancel print jobs directly through the operating system.
Accessing the Printer Queue
The first step involves accessing the printer queue, which is a list of documents waiting to be printed. This is easily done via the system tray in Windows.
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Look at the bottom-right corner of your screen on the Windows taskbar. You should find a Printer icon. If you don’t see it immediately, click the upward-pointing arrow, often labeled as “Show hidden icons,” to reveal any icons not currently displayed.
Quick Tips:
- If the taskbar is not visible, simply move your mouse cursor to the very bottom edge of your screen to make it appear.
- Windows 8 users should first press the Windows key to navigate to the desktop to ensure the taskbar is accessible.
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Once you’ve located the Printer icon, right-click on it. From the context menu that appears, select Open All Active Printers. This action will open the “Devices and Printers” window, displaying all printers currently active on your system.
Canceling a Specific Print Job
With the “Devices and Printers” window open, you can now target the specific printer and print job you wish to cancel.
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In the Devices and Printers window, identify and double-click on the printer that is currently processing the print job you want to stop. This will open a new window displaying the print queue for that specific printer, listing all pending print jobs.
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Within the printer’s dialog box, you will see a list of print jobs. Select the specific print job that you intend to cancel. If you are using Windows 10, you might first need to single-click on your printer to enter its queue management area before you can select individual jobs.
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After selecting the print job, navigate to the menu bar at the top of the print queue window. Click on Document, and then choose Cancel from the dropdown menu.
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A confirmation dialog box will appear, asking “Are you sure you want to cancel this document?”. Click Yes to confirm your decision to cancel the selected print job.
Confirmation dialog to cancel the print job -
Observe the print job queue. The job you canceled should disappear from the list as Windows processes your cancellation request. Once it’s gone, you can close the printer’s dialog box.
What to Do If You Can’t Cancel in Windows
If the print job disappears from the queue almost instantly, or if you initially couldn’t find the Printer icon in the taskbar, it’s likely that the print job has already been fully transmitted to the printer’s internal memory. In such cases, canceling via Windows might be too late.
Your next course of action is to attempt to cancel the print job directly at the printer itself. Most modern printers come equipped with a cancel button or an interface that allows you to stop ongoing print jobs. Refer to your printer’s manual for specific instructions on how to cancel printing directly on the device.
See Also
For further information on managing print operations in Excel and Windows, you might find the following resource helpful:
