HP Printer Svchost.exe Error

If you have an HP inkjet printer connected to a Windows computer or network, you may encounter a svchost.exe error message that will appear on your computer screen.  This error usually coincides with the CPU, or processor, being completely occupied at 100%.  When the problem is related to your printer, it is generally caused by the HP Network Devices Support service.  It is important to understand that this error message may appear as a result of Windows updates, which are unrelated to your printer.  You can download a utility called Process Explorer to help you identify the root of the error.

The actual error will read “svchost.exe has encountered a problem and needs to close.” Once you have determined that the issue is related to your HP printer, here are a few steps you can take to resolve the problem:

Printer Driver

Uninstall your current HP printer driver and install the latest driver that is available.  There are a few ways that you can install the printer driver.  You can purchase the most current software CD to load the new driver, download it from the HP website, or attempt to find the latest driver through Windows Update.

HP Network Devices Support

This service is automatically configured when an HP printer is installed, but is only needed when the printer is being shared.  If only one computer is connected to the printer via USB, though, this service is not necessary.  Changing the service to require a manual start-up fix the spiking of the CPU.

1. Go to the Start menu and right-click Computer.
2. Select Manage and double-click Services and Applications.
3. Double-click Services.
4. Find HP Network Devices Support in the list and right-click it.
5. Select All Tasks, which is where you can manually pause, stop, start, restart, or resume the service.
6. Go to Properties, click the General tab, and go to the Startup Type dropdown.
7. Select Manual. (This determines how the service starts when Windows starts.)

Change to a static IP address

In some cases, changing to a static IP address can alleviate the problem. See the video below for a walkthrough of the process:

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=8lO3H3KoTQQ

If none of these processes fix the problem, you may wish to contact Microsoft Support for more in-depth solutions.