Word printing problems? Microsoft's November Windows updates are the likely cause

Published Nov 13, 2026, 11:42 AM EST Tyler Cross is an author for How-To Geek who reports on a wide range of cybersecurity stories. Before this, he spent 5 years creating cybersecurity articles under the Kape brand, including both short- and long-form blog posts. He also has 2+ years of experience creating news articles, YouTube scripts, and product reviews for a wide range of VPNs, antivirus software, password managers, and more. Outside of work, I am an avid tabletop gamer and enjoy writing my own TTRPG systems and campaign modules. Microsoft sent out a warning to its customers following its recent Tuesday update, explaining that the new update may cause errors when printing complex documents. The error can occur in multiple applications, but Microsoft observed the error when printing documents through the Graphics Device Interface (GDI). According to a Microsoft service alert that Bleeping Computer discovered, "After installing the November 2026 Windows security update (the Originating KBs listed above), or later updates, printing might fail for documents containing images rendered with a height or width value of zero at the selected printing resolution." "These images can be used as part of certain complex document formatting, such as adding "invisible" images intended to serve as a document watermark, layout anchoring, or generation tools that may inserting images objects even when no graphic present." When you attempt to print on Windows, the document can contain these invisible images even when the user hasn't inserted any of their own image. Formatting and document-generation tools may add these elements as you attempt to print; meaning, you can't tell if the document will print properly, even if it looks perfect on your end. The printing error affects devices running Windows 10 or later and Windows Server 2016 or later, meaning the problem affects both personal and business computers. The new bug appeared just as Microsoft patched printer errors that earlier 2025 updates introduced, including a bug that made USB printers produce random text in March, followed by a fix for the broken "Print to PDF" feature introduced in the July update. It also fixed a bug from the October update that prevented users from adding Active Directory printers through Settings, producing error 87. Alongside the regular Tuesday patch, Microsoft also introduced a Windows 11 Insider preview that contained a set of additional smaller features, such as the option to disable the annoying "sticky keys" option forever. The new update is also causing licensing and activation errors Microsoft also disclosed new bugs affecting automated Windows activation and licensing, and users of the Software Licensing Management Tool (SLMGR) command-line tool. These bugs display the error code '0x80041008'. "Affected devices might encounter error 0x80041008, Invalid parameter (SWbemObjectEx), when running commands to activate Windows, configure Key Management Service (KMS), or manage product keys," "Devices that are being configured to use KMS activation might encounter errors when attempting to initiate their activation. KMS-activated devices typically remain activated for up to 180 days following successful activation," Microsoft states in its alert. The issue occurs when running either slmgr.vbs /skms-domain or slmgr.vbs /ipk on Windows 10 versions 21H2 and 22H2, Windows 11 version 23H2, or Windows Server 2019, 2022, and 2025. Microsoft assures customers that the bug won't affect pre-existing users with the KMS client key installed, stating, "Devices that are already activated remain activated. Customers whose devices already have the appropriate KMS client key and KMS configuration, and who do not need to run the affected Slmgr.vbs commands, are not expected to be affected." Microsoft says a fix for the licensing issues should arrive in the coming days. Until then, organizations needing immediate assistance should contact Microsoft Support for business. Finally, as of right now, Microsoft Outlook is on the second day of experiencing widespread outages. Microsoft is expecting to fix the problem soon. Source: Bleeping Computer via Microsoft