Business Printer Health Checklist

Recurring printer problems rarely come from the printer alone. They come from the wider print environment — network configuration, driver management, deployment and scanning. Use this checklist to identify gaps before investing in new hardware or repeatedly fixing the same fault. Work through each section — any gap is worth addressing before concluding that the printer itself is the problem.

Hardware

• Are printers reliable, with a low rate of recurring hardware faults?
• Are consumables (toner, ink, drums) readily available from multiple suppliers?
• Is the printer firmware currently supported and maintained by the manufacturer?
• Are paper trays and handling mechanisms in good working order?

Network

• Do printers use a predictable, stable IP address — either a static assignment or a DHCP reservation?
• Are printers connected via Ethernet where practical, rather than Wi-Fi?
• Is the network connection reliable — no intermittent offline behaviour?
• If printers are on a separate VLAN or network segment, are firewall rules permitting print traffic from user devices?
• Are printer hostnames (if used instead of IP addresses) correctly registered in DNS?

Deployment

• Are printer names standardised and consistent across all computers?
• Are printers deployed automatically to user devices — through Group Policy, Microsoft Intune or a print server — rather than manually installed on each computer?
• Do new computers receive the correct printers without user or IT intervention?
• Is the correct default printer set automatically during deployment?
• Is the deployment configuration documented so it can be restored after changes?

Windows and Drivers

• Are printer drivers consistent across all computers — same version, same source?
• Have any Windows updates recently caused driver or queue problems?
• Are printers Mopria-compatible? (Check the Mopria Alliance website or the printer's specification sheet)
• Has Windows Protected Print Mode compatibility been assessed for existing hardware?
• Are there any duplicate printer definitions on user computers that could cause confusion?

Microsoft is moving Windows towards standards-based printing using IPP and Mopria. Windows Protected Print Mode blocks traditional third-party drivers and requires Mopria-compatible hardware. Assess compatibility before enabling it across the organisation.

Scanning

• Does scan-to-email work reliably using a supported authentication method? (Note: Microsoft 365 has restrictions on basic SMTP authentication — check whether scan-to-email uses a supported method such as OAuth or SMTP AUTH via a dedicated connector)
• Does scan-to-folder use a supported SMB protocol version? (SMBv1 is disabled on modern Windows Server by default)
• Are scanning workflows documented so they can be restored after hardware or network changes?
• Have scanning functions been explicitly tested after any recent network or printer configuration change?

Security

• Have default administrator passwords been changed on all printers?
• Is printer firmware kept up to date?
• Are web-based management interfaces restricted to authorised network addresses or administrative accounts?
• Are unnecessary protocols disabled (such as FTP, Telnet or SMBv1 if not required)?
• Are printers not directly accessible from the internet?
• Are scan-to-email credentials using purpose-specific accounts with appropriate restrictions?
• Are stored address books on multifunction printers reviewed periodically?
• Is there a process for wiping or physically destroying printer storage on device disposal?

Printers are networked computers. Default credentials and unpatched firmware are common findings in Cyber Essentials assessments. Include printers in the organisation's security baseline.

Support and Lifecycle

• Is somebody responsible for the printer estate as a whole — not just for fixing individual faults as they arise?
• Are recurring printer faults tracked? If the same fault has been resolved multiple times, the root cause has not been fixed.
• Is there a documented replacement policy based on firmware support status, reliability and business need?
• Are printer models standardised where practical to reduce driver complexity and consumable variety?

When to Consider Replacement

Consider replacing a printer where any of the following apply:

• Manufacturer firmware support has ended
• Recurring hardware faults are consuming significant support time
• The device does not support Mopria or modern IPP printing
• Consumables are becoming difficult or expensive to obtain
• Scanning is unreliable or incompatible with current network security requirements
• Security controls cannot be adequately configured