How to figure out what drivers to download

Right-click the unknown device and select Properties to view more information. Click the Details tab, click the Property box, and select Hardware Ids in the list.

Windows displays a lot of other information about the device here, but the Hardware Ids will help you identify the device. Perform a web search for the hardware ID using your favorite search engine. You should find the name of the piece of hardware associated with the unknown device, and that will give you the information you need to hunt down the driver. You can now hunt down the driver for the hardware device and install it normally.

Windows attempts to automatically install drivers , searching for appropriate drivers and downloading them from Windows Update. To check whether this feature is enabled or disabled, open the Control Panel and click View devices and printers under Hardware and Sound. Right-click the device that represents your computer itself and select Device installation settings. These are the default settings, and allow Windows to download drivers and automatically configure new hardware.

Unknown devices are often a problem after reinstalling Windows on a PC. Browse All iPhone Articles Browse All Mac Articles Do I need one?

Browse All Android Articles Browse All Smart Home Articles Customize the Taskbar in Windows Browse All Microsoft Office Articles What Is svchost. Device Manager allows you to search for Microsoft-approved drivers online, but you should only use Device Manager after using Windows Update to search for driver software. The reason for this is that Windows Update is more likely to find the correct drivers the first time.

Open Device Manager. Type device manager into the Start search box, then click Device Manager at the top of the Start window. If you right-clicked the Start icon, click Device Manager in the resulting pop-up menu. Find the heading for the hardware item you need to update.

Scroll through the Device Manager window until you find the hardware category to which your item belongs. For example, if you're attempting to update the drivers for a Bluetooth item, you would find the "Bluetooth" heading. Double-click the heading. Doing so expands it to show any connected or previously connected items in an indented list below the heading.

If the heading already has an indented list of items below it, skip this step. Select your hardware item. Click once the name of the hardware item for which you want to update the drivers. If you don't see the item here, it isn't installed on your computer. Close Device Manager, plug in or pair the item with your computer, follow any on-screen prompts, and then re-open the item's category in Device Manager before proceeding. Click the Action tab.

It's at the top of the Device Manager window. Doing so prompts a drop-down menu. Click Update driver. This is at the top of the drop-down menu. A new window will open. Click Search automatically for updated driver software. It's in the middle of the new window.

Windows will begin searching for drivers for your selected item. Follow any installation prompts. If drivers are available, you'll be prompted to install them; depending on the hardware item, you may have to click through a few prompts before the installation will begin.

You may be asked to restart your computer after completing the update process. If you receive a message that says "The best drivers for your device are already installed", Windows can't find the correct driver files to use. You can still try installing a driver from the manufacturer's website if you're certain that your hardware item's drivers are outdated. Method 4. Determine the hardware you want to update.

When installing drivers manually, you'll be downloading the driver files directly from the manufacturer. You'll need to know the manufacturer and the model of the hardware you're trying to update. For example, if you own a Razer keyboard, you'll find the drivers on the Razer website. If you have a laptop, you can usually find all of the drivers you need from your laptop manufacturer's page.

You can find the model information in the documentation that came with your hardware. You can also find the model information in Device Manager if Windows was able to recognize it. Visit the manufacturer's website. Once you've determined what you want to update, you'll need to visit the manufacturer's support site. Below are some of the most common ones.

If your manufacturer is not listed here, you can find it with a quick web search: Motherboards Gigabyte — gigabyte. Find the "Downloads" or "Drivers" section. Digital Cameras. Question 17inch laptop screensize question - confused Started by someoneelseisbetter Yesterday at PM Replies: 4. Laptop General Discussion. Laptop Tech Support. Question Does a docking station that bridges peripheries and monitors to a laptop and computer exist? Started by hodzic Oct 24, Replies: 4. Apps General Discussion.

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My laptop shuts down when I install gpu drivers. All your computer hardware, from the motherboard to the webcam, needs drivers to function properly. When you install Windows on a computer or connect a peripheral to your PC, Windows automatically downloads and installs the appropriate drivers.

Device manufacturers upload these official drivers to Windows Update so Windows can install them automatically. Any important updates are delivered via Windows Update, too.

This is the safest way to update your drivers on Windows , because they go through fairly extensive testing by Microsoft. Windows Update has more drivers on Windows 10, so this works better on Windows 10 systems. These tools allow you to optimize your games , record and stream your gameplay , take screenshots , and easily update your graphics drivers in the future.

You can also download the free version of Speccy , which can show you this information about many of your devices. If you purchased a desktop computer or laptop, you just need to know which manufacturer and model number of computer you have. The model name and number is often printed on a label somewhere on the PC itself, and should also be on any box or receipt you have.

You can use the Device Manager to view hardware devices connected to your PC. Look through the list of devices in the Device Manager window to find the names of hardware devices connected to your PC. Those names will help you find their drivers. You can often identify an unknown device by looking at its hardware ID.

Brother offers a variety of drivers for its printers, fax machines, and scanners. Corsair makes hardware utilities available for its gaming mice, keyboard, and headsets. Creative provides downloads for its Sound Blaster hardware and other peripherals. Dell makes drivers for its Inspiron, Latitude, XPS, and other PC hardware products available online, as well as drivers for any other Dell products you might have.

Epson offers downloads for its printers, scanners, projects, and other hardware devices. Intel offers driver downloads for everything from its Intel integrated graphics to its Wi-Fi hardware, Ethernet controllers, motherboards with Intel chipsets, and Intel solid-state drives. You may need to jump through some hoops to install the latest Intel graphics drivers if your PC manufacturer tries to stop you. Microsoft offers driver downloads for products like Microsoft mice and keyboards.

For Surface devices, Microsoft normally distributes drivers only through Windows Update.