Strange Chrome OS 97 bug keeps some users from connecting to their HP printers

First reported by Kevin Tofel of About Chromebooks, some Chromebook owners simply can’t print from their HP printers right now and are instead receiving a “filter error” issue. After bringing attention to this bug, many others have chimed in, stating that factory resetting their printers, Chromebooks, and routers did not resolve it, so now the support ticket for the issue is a level 1 priority.

This means that Google is prioritizing it above many other lower-level issues, and has all but confirmed its existence by bumping the problem up the chain to take a look at it. Initially, there was no pattern to the mishap, but after feedback filtered in on the bug report, it looks like the majority of problems surround ARM devices and not Intel-based Chromebooks.

Additionally, the only version anyone is having legitimate issues with is Chrome OS 97. Since automatic updates take over on Google’s laptops, this means that troves of people with this trifecta setup (ARM Chromebook running OS 97 paired to an HP printer) were left out in the cold as of late.

If the problem is not solved, I will have to switch to Windows, printing is important! I think Google is the problem, update to Chrome version 97

Chromium Bug Tracker

Some of the devices affected are the AOpen Chromebox Mini, several Acer Spin models, the Lenovo 100e 2nd Gen MTK model in schools, the Lenovo Duet 5, and more, meaning that many organizations with educational devices may be locked out of using the hardware they have to print reports and more.

Until Google issues an update to address this, one user states that a great workaround is to install the HP Print Service Plugin from the Google Play Store, print your document to PDF so it’s saved in your local Files app, and then to highlight it there and share it to the HP plugin directly.

If this is inconvenient, you can also go the traditional route and plug one end of a USB type-A to USB type-B cable (a printer cable!) into your printer and the other end into your Chromebook. Most Chromebooks print with no issues via a wired connection nowadays, and HP has always been the only one to work this way while its competitors have scrambled to offer compatibility with Chrome OS.

If you’re having a similar issue, please let us know in the comments. Many people have stated the issue cropped up almost a week ago, while others have said it only recently reared its ugly head. We’re hoping that Google issues a hotfix sooner rather than later as printing is still very important to millions of people with this setup.