Error 1068 or 1075 – “The Dependency Service or Group Failed To Start”

Now this is a frustrating printer spooler error that a lot of Windows users have been pulling their hair out over. We are going to attempt to solve your “error 1068” (or the similar “error 1075”) problem right now.

Error 1068 (or 1075) Printer Spool Problem

When you try to start the Print Spooler service (using Windows Services.msc), you receive and error message like one below and the service fails to start:

Could not start the Print Spooler service on Local Computer.
Error 1075: The dependency service does not exist or has been marked for deletion.
Could not start the Print Spooler service on Local Computer.
Error 1068: The dependency service or group failed to start.

If you check your event log files, you might noticed the following messages as well:

Event ID: 7003
Description: The Print Spooler service depends on the following nonexistent service.
Event ID: 7001
Description: The Fax service depends on the Print Spooler service which failed to start because of the following error: The dependency service does not exist or has been marked for deletion.

Solutions For Printer Spool Errors

In order to fix this error, we need to fix the dependency relationship issue so the spooler service can start correctly.

To fix the dependency, follow the steps below:

Solution #1:

  • Click Start > Run
  • Type CMD /K SC CONFIG SPOOLER DEPEND= RPCSS

Solution #2

  • Click Start > Run
  • Type regedit.exe
  • Expand the folders to the following location: HKEY_LOCAL_MACHINE\SYSTEM\ CurrentControlSet\Services\Spooler
  • On the right window pane, double-click on the DependOnService registry value
  • Delete the existing entry and then replace it with RPCSS
  • Close regedit.exe

Conclusion

One of the soultions should work and you should no longer have problems starting the print spooler service. If you still have problems, your registry might be corrupted or you might need to update your printer drivers.

I recommend you use DriverFinder like I do. It keeps all your PC drivers updated and removes the hassle of jumping around the net,  manually looking for updates to all your PC devices.

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