Microsoft Is Retiring Old Printer Drivers: What Windows Users Should Know

In the name of security for its ubiquitous OS, Microsoft is ditching support for legacy V3 and V4 printer drivers in Windows 11. Microsoft previously warned this was coming way back in September 2023, but the updates that remove support for the legacy drivers are starting to roll out as of January 2026, and select users are highly displeased. Microsoft notes that "most customers use newer printer drivers or modern printing solutions", but with a large population of users who prefer older printers for various, this news is a definite bummer.

Especially for budget conatrained users or smaller businesses, simply cutting support for perfectly-working hardware seems like a costly, heavy-handed approach to security from Microsoft, although printers have posed security risks in the past. Making updates like this optional would still alert users of the security risks, but allow them to asses for themselves when it needs to be fixed ...