[German]Brief information for people who use Windows and were used to the fact that printer drivers from the manufacturers were also updated by Microsoft via Windows Update. In the future, Microsoft will increasingly rely on the Mopria standard for printers/scanners. Now Microsoft has announced that the distribution of older printer drivers via Windows Update is to be phased out. This will probably only take effect for new printer driver from 2025 and probably only for Windows 11 and successors, since Windows 10 will reacht end of support in October 2025.
Advertising
Mopria-Unterstützung seit Windows 10 21H2
Since Windows 10 21H2, the operating system (also in the successor versions) offers support through Microsoft IPP Class Driver for Mopria-compliant printer devices that are connected via network and USB interfaces. This requires manufacturers to provide a Microsoft IPP Class Driver, which is then provided by Microsoft for Windows to install. This saves printing device (and scanner) manufacturers from having to provide their own installers, drivers, utilities, etc. This simplifies reinstallation and driver updates.
Mopria is a standard designed to provide an easy and seamless way to print or scan to any Mopria certified printer. This does not only apply to Windows but also to Android or Chromebooks. The standard is defined by the Mopria Alliance, which is an association of printer and scanner manufacturers as well as producers of associated software that develops "universal standards and solutions for scanning and printing". The alliance was founded in September 2013 by Canon, HP, Samsung and Xerox.
Legacy Windows printer driver support (v3/v4) ends
According to Microsoft, support for the new Mopria standard is now available via the Print Support Apps. These are distributed via the Windows Store and installed automatically. However, this means Microsoft is discontinuing support for older (legacy) v3 and v4 printer drivers on Windows. In the support article End of servicing plan for third-party printer drivers on Windows, dated September 6, 2023, there is a roadmap for the end of support for new old v3/v4 printer drivers.
- September 2023:The announcement was made that older third-party printer drivers for Windows will soon no longer be supported in terms of updates.
- 2025:The discontinuation starts to take effect – I assume that this will be the case in October with the end of support for Windows 10. At that point, new printer drivers will no longer be released via Windows Update. However, existing printer drivers can still be updated via Windows Update.
- 2026: Microsoft intends to change the ranking of printer drivers so that the Windows IPP driver of the Inbox class is always preferred.
- 2026:No third-party printer driver updates (except for security-related fixes) will be allowed via Windows Update.
Microsoft has published a FAQ on the topic, which answers more details. For users, not much changes in my eyes. Existing third-party printer drivers can still be installed via Windows Update. In addition, users still have the possibility to install printer drivers with the installation programs of the printer manufacturers. In the long term, however, new printers will only be supported under Windows via the Microsoft IPP Class Driver. Whether an app from the Store will then be required for printer management remains to be seen. The question of how Linux and macOS support for new printers/scanners will look will be exciting. (via)
Advertising
