XP Tip: Cant Delete Print Jobs in XP

I was having this print spooler problem on multiple machines and finally found a solution when I Google'd it. XP was choking on a print job to a network printer. This is a common problem related to XP. I tried deleting the spooled file (The spooler is a XP software that allows printing in the background) via the printer icon, but still it wouldn't go away.

Apparantly, the solution listed below is similar for NT, Windows 2000, and Vista. Make sure you have explorer set to show all hidden files.

Here's the solution that worked for me to clear this problem:

This solution worked:

1. On the taskbar, click Start, and then click Run.

2. Enter the following:

net stop spooler (and hit enter)

3. Delete all files in the following folder (all *.SHD and *SPL files):

C:\Windows\System32\Spool\Printers ----> (in XP)

%Winroot%\System32\SpoolPrinters directory ----> (Windows NT and Windows 2000)

4. Once the spool files are deleted, start the spooler again:

net start spooler

Hope you find this tip Useful.