When you install a hardware or plug in a new device Windows 7 / Vista automatically selects the best driver. But sometimes you get a CD with your device that includes a driver with more features and a software too. You can also find the latest driver from the Company’s website that made the external device or hardware that you bought. If you don’t know how to update your device or hardware driver, then here is the easy way to do it.
Note: This tutorial also indirectly helps in answering the following question “How To Update Your Graphic Card or Display Adapter ?”.
Go to Start and right-click on Computers and select Manage. This will bring the Computer Management window, now on the left sidebar select Device Manager as shown in the screenshot below.
Now, simply select the device who’s driver you want to update. Suppose you want to update your Graphic card’s driver, then go to Display Adapters and right click on your card’s name(In my case it is Nvidia Geforce 9600GT) and finally click Update Driver Software as shown in the screenshot below.
Once you are done. It will open a windows like the one shown below.
You have two options here, if you want to install a driver that came with your device or hardware, then select Browse my computer for driver software.
It will then open a window similar like the one shown below,
Click Browse and locate your driver, once it’s done simply click Next and Windows 7 / Vista will start installing the driver.
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7 Comments
I realize that this tutorial is a few months old but I am going to ask for help anyways. I am trying to install the drivers for a video capture device in Vista. I have the most up to date drivers on my computer. Every time I plug the device in via USB, Windows automatically “installs” the drivers. But it doesn’t install anything. It states that the device doesn’t need drivers and it remains an “unknown device”. Every time I try to manually install the drivers, I browse to their location on my computer, Vista says this “The best driver software for your device is already installed.” But they lie! I have had this device working before and now Windows is driving me crazy. Please help.
This is a common problem that everybody faces in Windows Vista and it is the same reason why we have written a detailed post to install the drivers manually above. By following the steps above, you will be able to install the drivers smoothly.
I really appreciate your response. However, the steps above are exactly what I was doing before I started to look for help online. Every time I browse to the driver location and click next, Vista simply states that the device has the most up-to-date drivers (which it claims to be no drivers). This forces the device to continually be listed as an unknown device and it won’t work. The device worked around a week and a half ago on my Vista computer and it worked today on my XP enabled computer using the same drivers. But I would really like to use it on my Vista machine, again. Any other ideas?
The best way would be to first disable automatic driver update, then uninstall the current driver by right-clicking the selected device and then clicking Uninstall. Now plug in the USB device again, right-click the computer name on top and select Scan for hardware changes. It will detect new hardware changes and you can then manually update your driver. If this process does not work, then the alternative way would be to first let the Windows install the default driver and then go to Windows Update and install all updates. There is high probability that Windows may find an update to your current driver(specially if it is out-of-date).
Unfortunately, disabling the automatic driver update doesn’t work in Vista.
I’m still trying to work around it but it means that whenever you uninstall the driver, it will reinstall it itself (I’ve even tried disabling it in the Registry).
can u give me a same suggestion for xp(sp2).(
http://www.addictivetips.com/windows-tips/how-to-install-hardware-or-device-drivers-manually-in-windows-vista/?) here for vista only. I want that u give suggestion for (uaa and aodio ) also. In this mention for vedio dr whose r install in “display adapter”, so give me a suggstion for (uaa,audio,coprocessor,modem,hdaudio soft data fax modem with smart cp,nvidia getforce series video dr).
thanking you
regards
jitesh kumar barnawal
I have toshiba windows vista home premiun U305.
it indicate no audio output device installed.
I updated the realtek drivers but still there is a yellow tag on the realtek High Definition Audio speaker icon in the device manager box. the sound is still not coming so kindly help me out.
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