[Solved] Devices And Printers Hangs On Windows

The Devices and Printer setting in the Control Panel can sometimes hang or become unresponsive. It can hinder you from adding new devices and printers or configuring the settings of an already added device.

This issue usually occurs due to corrupted system files, blocked services, interfering processes, or even bugs in your OS. It usually happens due to problems with the printer devices, but other connected devices can also sometimes cause this error.

If you want to learn how you can restore your Devices and Printers panel in the Control Panel and add new devices, we have included all the methods to fix it.

Table of Contents

How to Fix Devices and Printers Hanging on Windows?

Before you begin, make sure to unplug all the external devices connected to your computer except the necessary ones (Mouse and Keyboard). After doing so, restart your computer before applying the fixes below.

Run Printer Troubleshooter

As this issue is usually caused by printer devices facing problems in your Windows computer, you can try troubleshooting it using the built-in Windows Printer troubleshooter. It automatically checks for and fixes any issues it finds in your printer devices.

Press Windows + I shortcut key to launch Settings.
Go to System > Troubleshoot > Other troubleshooters.
Click Run on the Printer troubleshooter to run it.

In some cases, it may be other external devices that may be causing your Device and Printers panel to hang. You can also try running the Bluetooth troubleshooter inside the Other troubleshooter window to see if it helps fix the issue.

Perform Clean Boot

Sometimes, your Devices and Printer panel may hang if some other process interrupts its standard process. If this is the case, you can pinpoint the offending application using a troubleshooting method called clean boot.

Follow the steps below to perform a clean boot:

Access the Run dialog box using Windows + R shortcut key.
Enter msconfig.exe to open System Configuration.
Click on the Services tab and check Hide all Microsoft services.
Then select Disable all and Apply.
Go to Startup tab and click on Open Task Manager.
Select a process and click on Disable.
Do the same for all other startup processes in the Startup tab.
Restart your PC.
If your Devices and Printers panel start working, the issue is likely caused by an interfering process.
You can then enable and disable all the processes in smaller and smaller groups to see which triggers the error.
Repeat it until you find the offending process.

You can then use an appropriate fix to solve this issue. If the processes or software which caused the problem is unimportant, you can remove or uninstall the app.

Note: Antiviruses are notorious for interfering with other processes and causing issues. If you have an active antivirus, make sure to temporarily disable it.

Run SFC and DISM Scan

A system file checker scan, also known as an SFC scan, will check all your system files and help fix them if they have any issues. If your Devices and Printer panel is hanging due to corrupted system files, running an SFC scan will help you solve the problem. On the other hand, the DISM command will also repair the source system file.

Launch Run Utility by pressing Windows + R key.
Type cmd and press Shift + Ctrl + Enter to open Elevated Command Prompt.
To properly run an SFC scan, enter the following command in order:
dism /online /cleanup-image /restorehealth
sfc /Scannow
Exit Command Prompt.

Check Bluetooth Support Service and Printer Spooler Service

Another reason for this issue cropping up can be due to your Bluetooth Support services and Printer Spooler services being disabled or if your system wasn’t able to use them. You should check and make sure these two services are set to start automatically during boot and aren’t disabled.

Press Windows + R keys together to open Run box.
Enter services.msc to launch Windows services.
In Windows services, locate and right-click the Print Spooler service.
Select Stop.
After stopping the service, right-click it again and select Properties.
Make sure the Startup type drop-down menu is set to Automatic.
Click Apply and OK.
In Windows services, locate the Bluetooth Support service and do the same as above.
Restart your PC.

Edit Registry

You can enable the PreventDeviceMetadataFromNetwork registry key to see if it helps fix your issue. This setting, when disabled, will allow the computer to retrieve your installed device metadata from the internet.

However, if it gets stuck using broken URLs, it can cause this issue. Enabling this setting will block your computer from retrieving metadata from the internet and help fix the problem.

Before you begin, you should backup your registry, as it can be risky if you unknowingly change the values of other registry entries.

Launch Run box by pressing Windows + R shortcut.
Enter regedit to open Registry Editor.
Navigate to HKEY_LOCAL_MACHINE\SOFTWARE\Microsoft\Windows\CurrentVersion\Device Metadata
Double-click the PreventDeviceMetadataFromNetwork key.
Change the value to 1 and click OK.
Restart your computer.

Windows Update

If you aren’t updated to the latest version of Windows, this issue can be a bug in your specific version of Windows. Some Windows versions like KB5006670 are known to carry this bug. Updating your software to the latest build will solve this issue.