The purpose
It’s frustrating when something that used to work fine, like the Print Screen function in Windows 11, suddenly stops.
It might be a temporary glitch, but I’ve found some workarounds, so I’m documenting them here.
Behavior
Print Screen Not Working Under Specific Circumstances in Windows
- None of the Print Screen methods are working: PrintScreen, Alt+PrintScreen, Win+Shift+S, or even the Snipping Tool.
- Normally, Print Screen works without issues (e.g., when only the desktop is displayed or immediately after launching an application).
Conditions Under Which the Problem Occurs
- Taking a Print Screen with the Right-Click Context Menu Displayed in Explorer
- No issues when taking a Print Screen with the right-click context menu displayed in Chrome.
- No issues when taking a Print Screen with the desktop right-click context menu displayed.
Workaround
To take a print screen, navigate to the desired screen and press Win + PrintScreen.
The screen will momentarily invert to black.”
A full-screen capture will be saved to the following folder:
C:\Users\user name\Pictures\ScreenshotsPlease replace user name by your windows user name.
You can also access the save location by opening File Explorer, selecting ‘Pictures’ from the left pane, and then clicking on ‘Screenshots’.
Other
You can also capture a screenshot by selecting the video option from the top menu that appears when you press PrintScreen, recording your actions, saving the video, and then taking a capture from the playing video. However, the method described above (direct screenshot) is simpler.
Result
Although Print Screen was not working under specific conditions, I was able to save it using a workaround.
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