Are there any tips for installing drivers on Windows computers?
Installing the latest drivers improves system performance and application compatibility. Updated drivers include numerous bug fixes as well as system optimizations. It is recommended for optimal system stability to only use Official drivers and not Beta or prerelease versions. Performance can be affected by differences between driver versions including Beta or Prerelease drivers. The only time Beta or Prerelease drivers should be considered is when a serious application bug is fixed in the Beta or Prerelease version and the component manufacturer has not yet released the Official driver version that includes the bug
fix.
INSTALLING A DEVICE DRIVER
1. Firstly you need to identify the missing driver or decide which driver needs updated. Go to the Device Manager on the system that you are using (on Windows XP this can be found under the hardware tab in the properties of the System, which itself can be found inside the Control Panel window).
2. In the device manager you may see a yellow question mark against the missing driver. In some cases it may not be clear what kind of device this is and you may need to go through a short checklist of the devices on your computer to identify the type of driver required.
3. You may have a driver CD among the installation disks that came with your device, if so insert it. This may run automatically. If so follow the instructions to install the device drivers from CD. This is the easiest method of reloading drivers; you can check the Device Manager again to see if the device has been loaded correctly. If you find that a driver that has not installed, or if you do not have a driver CD, or if your driver CD does not run automatically, follow these steps below.
1. Open the Device Manager; right click on a device that stands out with a yellow question mark and select Properties and then the Driver tab. Then choose to Update Driver.
6. When asked Can Windows Connect to Windows Update to search For Software, choose No, not at this time and press next.
7. If you have downloaded the driver from the Internet (you may have to visit the computer manufacturer’s website for the drivers).Choose Install from a Specific Location and select the folder you where you have the driver files.
8. Follow the instructions to install the drivers and then, as before, go back into Device Manager and check installation has been successful. If in the driver tab the device does not reflect the driver you installed, try again.
Troubleshooting Information for Drivers in Device Manager.
-If there is a problem with a device, it is listed in the hardware tree under Computer. Also,the problem device has a symbol that indicates the type of problem:
– A black exclamation point (!) on a yellow field indicates the device is in a problem state. Note that a device that is in a problem state can be functioning.
– A problem code explaining the problem is displayed for the device.
-A red “X” indicates a disabled device. A disabled device is a device that is physically present in the computer and is consuming resources, but does not have a protectedmode
driver loaded.
-A blue “i” on a white field on a device resource in Computer properties indicates that the Use Automatic Settings feature is not selected for the device and that the resource was manually selected. Note that this does not indicate a problem or disabled state.
– A green question mark “?” in Device Manager means that a compatible driver for this device is installed, indicating the possibility that all of the functionality may not be
available. Note that this applies only to Windows Millennium Edition (Me) .
How to Configure Device Manager to Display Detailed Information To configure Device Manager to show details:
1. Click Start, click Run, type cmd.exe, and then press ENTER.
2. Type set DEVMGR_SHOW_DETAILS=1, and then press ENTER.
3.Type start devmgmt.msc, and then press ENTER. In Device Manager the properties for a device should now provide a Details tab that contains additional information about the
device.
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