Overview

A recent Windows 11 preview update, KB5050092, rolled out at the end of January 2025, has unexpectedly caused USB-connected dual-mode printers (those supporting both traditional USB printing and Internet Printing Protocol (IPP) over USB) to print out streams of garbled text instead of the intended documents. Instead of your carefully crafted files, affected printers randomly print protocol headers and network commands, often beginning with phrases like INLINECODE0 . This glitch has frustrated users worldwide, raising questions about the stability of modern Windows updates and their interaction with legacy and newer printing technologies.

Background

The KB5050092 update was a non-security preview for Windows 11 versions 23H2 and 22H2, primarily aimed at testing new features and improvements before broader release. However, preview updates sometimes introduce bugs that slip through testing, and this one notably affected the communication between Windows print spooler and USB dual-mode printers.

Dual-mode printers are designed to seamlessly switch between standard USB printing protocols and IPP, primarily used for network printing tasks. The update caused the print spooler to inadvertently send IPP protocol messages directly to the printer. The printers, interpreting these messages literally as print jobs, produce pages filled with technical IPP headers and random characters — essentially printing out what should be invisible network communication.

Technical Details

  • Affected Devices: USB-connected dual-mode printers supporting both USB printing and IPP over USB.
  • Symptoms: Printers output pages starting with INLINECODE1 followed by other IPP-related headers and random data instead of intended printouts.
  • Trigger Conditions: Most commonly occurs when the printer is powered on or reconnected after disconnection.
  • Cause: A miscommunication between the Windows print spooler and printer drivers following the KB5050092 update. The print spooler misdirects IPP messages, meant for network communication, to the printer's USB interface.

Implications and Impact

  • User Experience: Users face frustration as their printers print unintelligible data wasting paper and ink/toner.
  • Enterprise Concerns: For businesses with multiple printers, this bug can disrupt workflow and cause operational inefficiencies due to unexpected printing behavior.
  • IT Management Challenges: IT administrators must identify affected systems, apply mitigation steps, and communicate workarounds to end-users while awaiting a permanent fix.

Mitigation and Fixes

Microsoft has acknowledged the problem and provided a temporary workaround called the Known Issue Rollback (KIR). IT administrators and users can apply this rollback to revert the problematic changes introduced by KB5050092.

Steps for mitigation include:

  1. Use Group Policy: IT administrators can deploy a group policy configuration to disable the problematic update segment.
  2. Known Issue Rollback: This rollback feature is built into Windows and temporarily disables the changes causing the printer misbehavior.
  3. Monitor for Updates: Microsoft has released a definitive fix in update KB5053657, rolled out on March 25, 2025. Installing this update resolves the issue permanently.

Conclusion

The KB5050092 update incident underscores the delicate balance between advancing Windows capabilities and ensuring peripheral compatibility. Even non-security preview updates can introduce significant disruptions due to the complex interactions between software and hardware drivers. Users should remain vigilant about update impacts and leverage interim mitigations while applying official patches promptly. For enterprise IT, this event serves as a reminder to test preview updates carefully in controlled environments before widespread deployment.

References:

These linked discussions provide detailed user experiences and official guidance on troubleshooting and resolving the KB5050092 printer issue.