I uninstalled printer but it still says memory integrity and kernel-mode hardware-enforced stack protection are off

Question

I uninstalled printer but it still says memory integrity and kernel-mode hardware-enforced stack protection are off

Marty Smith 0

I have a brother mfc-6490CW printer that is incompatible with my printer. I tried to uninstall the printer but it still says the memory integrity is off. How can I find that?

Marty

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2 answers

Your answer

Answer 1

Ivan B 125.3K Independent Advisor

Hi,

Does it give an incompatible driver error when you try to activate it? If possible, take a screenshot and post it here.

Thanks.

Marty Smith 0 Reputation points

2026-08-12T19:59:33.98+00:00

Hello, I tried to activate it. That didn't work. So I went to https://thegeekpage.com/how-to-fix-core-isolation-incompatible-driver-issue-in-windows-11-10/

and did Fix 1, Fix 2, and Fix 3. Fix 1 and 2 didn't work, (but maybe one has to have those two first?), and then Fix 3 (Uninstall the Driver Using Autoruns) did work.

Thanks!
Ivan B 125.3K Reputation points Independent Advisor

2026-08-12T20:33:34.84+00:00

Hi,

I understand you used the autorun method; I'm glad it worked, and thank you for explaining it here.

I wanted to look into it first to be sure about the issue. You can always count on the Microsoft Q&A community. Have a great week.

Thanks.

Answer 2

If the printer was removed but Memory integrity and Kernel-mode hardware-enforced stack protection are still off, the incompatible item is usually a driver or service that remained installed after the printer was removed.

Try this:

Open Windows Security.
Go to Device security > Core isolation > Core isolation details.
Check whether Windows shows incompatible drivers and select Review incompatible drivers if that option appears.
- This shows the drivers blocking Kernel-mode hardware-enforced stack protection.

Important points:

Memory integrity can fail to turn on if an incompatible device driver is still installed.
Kernel-mode hardware-enforced stack protection also cannot be enabled until incompatible drivers are resolved.
For stack protection, if a blocked driver is already installed, the feature fails to enable until that driver is removed or updated.
Some apps install a service first and only load the driver when the app starts, so removing the printer alone may not remove the software component causing the block.

What to do next:

If the incompatible driver name is shown, check Windows Update or the printer/app manufacturer for an updated compatible driver.
If no compatible update is available, remove the device or app that installed that driver.
After removing the related software or updated driver, restart the PC.
Go back to Windows Security > Device security > Core isolation details and try turning on:
- Memory integrity
- Kernel-mode hardware-enforced stack protection

If Windows shows “A driver can’t load on this device”, that means the security setting is blocking that driver from loading. In that case, the recommended fix is still to get an updated compatible driver from Windows Update or the manufacturer.

If needed, the printer can also be removed again from:

Start > Settings > Bluetooth & devices > Printers & scanners > select the printer > Remove

Turning these protections off is possible, but it reduces device security. Turning off Memory integrity also requires a restart, and on a Secured-core PC it takes the device out of a Secured-core state.