Microsoft is finally *officially* investigating an interesting bug that accidentally renames all printers and related devices or services to the HP LaserJet M101-M106 model. In a statement and updated documentation, Microsoft confirmed that it knows the reports but does not believe HP is to be blamed.
In our earlier article, we noticed that updated metadata or an update pushed via Windows Update renamed some printers, including Microsoft’s Print to PDF or XLS Document Viewer, to HP LaserJet M101-M106. As a result, Microsoft Store also installed an “HP Smart app” on all devices regardless of the manufacturer.
Microsoft’s documentation and statement to Windows Latest states that the tech giant is investigating the reports and working with partners on a possible workaround. While it’s unclear how an incorrect metadata was rolled out via Windows Update, Microsoft has confirmed that it does believe it was HP’s fault.
“Our investigations indicate that this issue is not caused by an HP update,” Microsoft officials said.
This suggests that Microsoft rolled out an update with incorrect metadata or a similar bug via Windows Update, which caused the labelling mixup.
If your device received the buggy update from Microsoft’s servers, your printer will be renamed HP LaserJet M101-M106. The above screenshot shows that the model and manufacturer name are changed to “HP”, and the icon also shows an HP Laser product.
This is a particular model, confirming earlier observations that the labelling issue has something to do with metadata or how Windows retrieves hardware information.
Your device could be affected whether or not you use a printer. For example, on one of my devices, I noticed that Microsoft renamed its “Print to PDF” as “HP LaserJet M101-M106”. It also changed the icon to HP.
When you click on one of these renamed printers, you might see a “No tasks are available for this page” error.
As Windows Latest confirmed previously, the Windows 11 or 10 printer rename bug does not break the functionality of the printer or features like Print to PDF and XLS Document Viewer.
While the printer renaming bug does not affect your printer’s scanning or fax capabilities, it may cause issues with the manufacturer-supplied printer apps. The printer manufacturer’s app may not be able to detect the printer as it will appear as an HP device to the app.
“If this is the case, some or all of those extended functions might not work,” Microsoft warned.
Microsoft plans to publish a hotfix for the printer renaming bug on Windows 11 soon, and we’ll likely learn more about the mess in the coming days.
