!! Printing Problems With List & Label Since Microsoft Security Update !!

Dear Customers,

unfortunately there seem the possibility of massive problems when printing with List & Label since one of the recent Microsoft Security Updates. We already have escalated this topic to Microsoft.

As follows we have compiled all information currently known to us. We will add all new information here, too, therefore we recommend to select “Subscribe to post”.

Symptom:
Printing on a network printer works 1-2 times, afterwards printing is not possible anymore. An application restart seems to help.

Affected List & Label versions:
We have reports about versions 19 to 22 (Alpha), both 32bit and 64bit

Affected Windows versions:
It seems all Windows versions since Windows Vista are affected

Probable cause:
KB3177725 - Windows 7
KB3177725 - Windows Server 2008 to 2012R2 and Windows Vista to Win 8.1
KB3176492 - Windows 10 - Release
KB3176493 - Windows 10 - 1511
KB3176495 - Windows 10 - 1607 and Windows Server 2016 Preview

The Microsoft Security Bulletin is located here: [url=https://technet.microsoft.com/library/security/MS16-098]Microsoft Learn: Build skills that open doors in your career
Details to the changed files are located here: [url=https://support.microsoft.com/en-us/kb/3177725]https://support.microsoft.com/en-us/kb/3177725[/url]

(Amongst others the Microsoft SPOOLER has been replaced.)

Workaround:
Uninstall the above security updates (potential problem: the update might be reinstalled again without being asked. If you are using Microsoft Windows Server Update Services (WSUS) the approval for this update should be deactivated at the moment.)

Directly printing on the network printer instead via the spooler seems to help as well according to customer reports.

Further actions:
Reports about negative effects of these security updates on other software programs are already occuring on the internet.

We deeply regret if you or your customers are also affected by this problem. We are trying to get a definitive and permanent solution from Microsoft as soon as possible. Currently it does not look like we, as a software vendor, can practically do anything about it. But we are considering it as our task to keep you informed and keep pressure on Microsoft on this matter.

Thank you very much for your understanding. We are also happy about every relevant information that is not already mentioned above.

Best regards,

Bjoern Eggstein
Managing Director
combit GmbH

UPDATE 12.08.2016 11:30 – THE ISSUE HAS BEEN OFFICIALLY CONFIRMED BY MICROSOFT

UPDATE 12.08.2016 14:40 – Microsoft Developers are already working on a fix, but we didn’t get any information about the schedule. We’ll post an update when we get any new relevant information. Microsoft’s officially recommended workaround is uninstalling the patches mentioned above.

Dear Customers,

the last 60 hours were a bit nerve-racking, as we had to discuss with Microsoft formalities regarding the incident-priority instead of solutions.

Microsoft announces a bugfix available on 13/09/2016:

[quote]From: Xxxxx Xxxxxx (Xxxxxxxx Corporation) [mailto:…]
Sent: Tuesday, 16. August 2016 10:42
To: …
Cc: MSSolve Case Email
Subject: RE: [REG:XXXXXXXXXXXXXXX] Probleme beim Drucken durch Microsoft Security Update MS16-098 Initial Response

(…)


[b]Problem:

After installing KB 3177725, users may experience the following symptoms when trying to print

  1. Print jobs may silently fail to print. No on-screen error or related event is generated
  2. The print job fails but displays one or more errors including but not limited to:

Error queuing print job
Error spooling print job

Resolution:

Fehler im Code ( BUG)

  1. There is no known resolution or mitigation at this time. The engineering team is working on a solution.
    Fix is targeting a release of September 13th for all platforms. [/b] (…)

  2. Status Bug


(…)

Xxxxx Xxxxxx
Microsoft Customer Service and Support
Xxxxxxxx on behalf of Microsoft Customer Service and Support
E-Mail: …

Support for business: http://smallbusiness.support.microsoft.com
MPN Support: https://mspartner.microsoft.com/
Safety & Security Center:: http://www.microsoft.com/security [/quote]

Now we know, that the problems Microsoft faces thanks to the Anniversary Update are massive*. This has left marks on the Microsoft Support, too.

Best regards

Bjoern Eggstein
Managing Director
combit GmbH

*) Here are some examples:

Stability issues:
[url=http://www.zdnet.com/article/windows-10-anniversary-update-freezing-microsoft-offers-temporary-fix/]http://www.zdnet.com/article/windows-10-anniversary-update-freezing-microsoft-offers-temporary-fix/[/url]

Security issues:
[url=https://support.microsoft.com/de-de/kb/3179577]https://support.microsoft.com/de-de/kb/3179577[/url]

WebCam issues:
[url=http://stackoverflow.com/questions/38786309/webcam-mjpg-capture-streams-are-unavailable-on-windows-10]Webcam MJPG capture streams are unavailable on Windows 10 - Stack Overflow

Printing issues:
[url=http://h30434.www3.hp.com/t5/Printer-Software-and-Drivers/MFP-M177FW-Cannot-print-from-any-MS-Office-application/td-p/5722258]http://h30434.www3.hp.com/t5/Printer-Software-and-Drivers/MFP-M177FW-Cannot-print-from-any-MS-Office-application/td-p/5722258[/url]
[url=http://bigcomputer.net/windows-7/267762-KB3177725-MS16-098-may-cause-printer-problems]BigComputer.net - A New World of Technology
[url=http://bigcomputer.net/windows-10/264774-Word-2003-on-Windows-10-printer-issue-since-latest-W10-updates]BigComputer.net - A New World of Technology

Dear customers,

according to Dan Mattson (Microsoft) a bugfix is available (earlier than expected), at least “for some platforms”. (As it seems, Windows 10 Anniversary Update is not covered by this fix.)

[url=https://support.microsoft.com/en-us/kb/3186987]https://support.microsoft.com/en-us/kb/3186987[/url]
[url=https://support.microsoft.com/en-us/kb/3187022]https://support.microsoft.com/en-us/kb/3187022[/url]

Best regards

Bjoern Eggstein
Managing Director
combit GmbH

Dear Customers,

enclosed the link to the hotfixes for Windows 10 Anniversary Update…
[url=https://support.microsoft.com/en-us/kb/3176938]https://support.microsoft.com/en-us/kb/3176938[/url]

…and Windows 10 1511:
[url=https://support.microsoft.com/en-us/kb/3186988]https://support.microsoft.com/en-us/kb/3186988[/url]

Best regards

Bjoern Eggstein
Managing Director
combit GmbH