Brother Printer Not Enough Memory – How to Fix It

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If your Brother printer displays “Not Enough Memory”, it means the device is unable to process the current print job due to data size or complexity. This often happens with large files, high-resolution images, or incorrect driver settings. Follow the steps below to resolve the issue.

Reduce the Print Job Size

Simplify the Document
  1. Remove unnecessary images or graphics.
  2. Reduce the number of pages.
  3. Convert complex files (e.g., PDFs with layers) to simpler formats.

Lower the Resolution
  1. Open the print dialog on your computer.
  2. Select Printer Properties or Preferences.
  3. Reduce the print resolution to 300 dpi or 600 dpi instead of 1200 dpi.

Use the Correct Printer Driver
  1. Open Devices and Printers (Windows) or Printers & Scanners (macOS).
  2. Right-click your Brother printer and choose Printer Properties.
  3. Make sure you’re using the Brother PCL or Brother PostScript driver, not a generic driver.
  4. Download the correct driver from the Brother Support website.

Enable or Adjust Page Protection
  1. Go to your Brother printer’s web interface or control panel menu.
  2. Navigate to Print Settings > Page Protection.
  3. Set it to Auto or On to force the printer to allocate more memory to print processing.

Break Down the Print Job
  1. Instead of printing an entire large document, print in small batches (e.g., 10 pages at a time).
  2. This allows the printer to handle data more easily and avoids overloading memory.

Clear the Printer’s Memory

Cancel All Jobs
  1. On the printer’s control panel, press Stop/Cancel.
  2. Navigate to Job Cancel > All Jobs and confirm.

Power Cycle the Printer
  1. Turn off the printer and unplug it for 30 seconds.
  2. Plug it back in and turn it on to clear temporary memory.

Add RAM (If Supported)

Some Brother laser printers allow memory upgrades via RAM expansion.

  1. Check your printer’s manual or Brother’s website to see if RAM expansion is supported.
  2. Install additional memory according to the model’s specification.
  3. After installation, restart the printer and check available memory from the control panel or status page.

Use Brother iPrint&Scan App for Large Files
  1. Download Brother iPrint&Scan for your OS.
  2. Use it to send large or image-heavy documents directly to the printer.
  3. The app can optimize file handling and reduce processing demands.

Check for Firmware Updates
  1. Visit the Brother Support website.
  2. Download and run the Firmware Update Tool for your printer.
  3. Follow on-screen instructions to install the latest firmware, which may improve memory management.

If the “Not Enough Memory” error continues after these steps, the print job may exceed the printer’s design limitations and may need to be simplified or processed on a more capable device.

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