Microsoft’s Modern Print Platform: Why Businesses Need to Rethink Printing Now

Colourworks helps you transition to Microsoft MMP smoothly, ensuring security, control, and future-ready solutions.

Microsoft is fundamentally changing how printing works in Windows — and for many organisations, this shift could either strengthen operations or quietly break them.

With the rollout of Microsoft’s Modern Print Platform and the gradual retirement of legacy print drivers, the traditional print model businesses have relied on for decades is coming to an end. This isn’t a future problem — it’s already underway, and organisations that don’t prepare risk serious disruption.

What’s Changing in Microsoft Printing?

For years, printing in Windows has relied on traditional V3 print drivers. While functional, these drivers have also been a major security weak point — most notably exposed during the PrintNightmare vulnerabilities.

Microsoft’s response is a complete overhaul of print driver management. The new model replaces legacy drivers with:

IPP class drivers
Virtual Printer Applications
Universal Print
Windows Protected Print (WPP) enforcement

These modern drivers are simpler, sandboxed for security, cloud-ready, and updated through Windows Update — not vendor-specific installs. When Windows Protected Print is enabled or enforced, legacy drivers can be blocked entirely at the operating system level.

Why This Matters to Your Business

If your organisation relies on older print infrastructure, this change can have immediate consequences:

Printers may stop working without warning
Print workflows could break across departments
Security risks may increase if legacy systems remain in place
Downtime and productivity loss become real threats

In short, printing can quietly become a single point of failure.

A Chance to Modernise Print, Not Just Patch It

Microsoft’s Modern Print Platform isn’t just about locking things down — it’s about enabling a more scalable, secure and manageable approach to print.

Modern, cloud-based print environments offer:

Improved security and compliance
Reduced driver management and support overhead
Centralised visibility across devices and users
Better support for hybrid and remote workforces

For organisations already modernising their IT stack, print is no longer something to “set and forget”.

How Colourworks Helps Businesses Prepare

At Colourworks, we help organisations assess their print environments and transition safely to modern, cloud-ready solutions that align with Microsoft’s new print architecture.

This includes:

Reviewing existing print infrastructure and identifying risk
Ensuring compatibility with IPP-based drivers and modern Windows environments
Designing print solutions that support security, scalability and hybrid work
Minimising disruption during transition

Whether your business relies heavily on print or simply needs it to work reliably in the background, preparing early is critical.

Don’t Wait Until Your Print Stops Working!

Microsoft has made its direction clear. Legacy print drivers are being phased out, and Windows Protected Print gives Microsoft the ability to enforce that change.

Organisations that act now can modernise with confidence. Those that wait may find themselves reacting to outages instead of planning for progress.

If you’re unsure whether your current print setup is ready for Microsoft’s Modern Print Platform, now is the time to find out.

Check If Your Print Environment Is Ready

Key Dates Released by Microsoft