Update drivers in Windows 10

Before you begin

Driver updates for Windows 10, along with many devices, such as network adapters, monitors, printers, and video cards, are automatically downloaded and installed through Windows Update. You probably already have the most recent drivers, but if you’d like to manually update or reinstall a driver, here’s how:

Update the device driver

In the search box on the taskbar, enter device manager, then select Device Manager.

Select a category to see names of devices, then right-click (or press and hold) the one you’d like to update.

Select Search automatically for updated driver software.

Select Update Driver.

If Windows doesn’t find a new driver, you can try looking for one on the device manufacturer’s website and follow their instructions.

Reinstall the device driver

In the search box on the taskbar, enter device manager, then select Device Manager.

Right-click (or press and hold) the name of the device, and select Uninstall.

Restart your PC.

Windows will attempt to reinstall the driver.

More help

If you can’t see the desktop and instead see a blue, black, or blank screen, see Troubleshoot blue screen errors or Troubleshoot black or blank screen errors.

How to properly update device drivers on Windows 10

Source: Windows Central

On Windows 10, a device driver is an essential piece of code, which allows the system to interact with a specific hardware (such as graphics card, storage driver, network adapter, Bluetooth, etc.), as well as peripherals, including mice, keyboards, printers, monitors, and many others.

Usually, the detection and installation of device drivers happen automatically using the built-in driver library and the Windows Update service. However, sometimes, you may still need to update some devices manually for a number of reasons. For example, when Windows 10 cannot recognize a component. The device stops working after an upgrade. Windows Update installs a generic package, or you have to apply a critical fix or access a new feature quickly.

Whatever the reason it might be, Windows 10 comes with several options to manually update a device driver, including using Windows Update, Device Manager, and auto-update assistants from device manufacturers.

In this Windows 10 guide, we’ll walk you through three different methods to properly update hardware drivers on your computer. Also, we outline the steps to determine if the driver was updated successfully.

How to update drivers on Windows 10 using Windows Update

Usually, it takes time for manufacturers to make newer drivers available through Windows Update. However, it’s still the best option to download and install drivers manually. The reason is that only the packages compatible with your system configuration will be listed on this page, minimizing the chances of adding the wrong update. Also, the drivers in this channel have been tested, verified, and signed by Microsoft.

To quickly update device drivers using Windows Update, use these steps:

1. Open Settings.
2. Click on Update & Security.
3. Click on Windows Update.
4. Click the Check for updates button (if applicable).

Click the View optional updates option.

Source: Windows Central

Select the driver you want to update.

Source: Windows Central

Click the Download and install button.

Once you complete the steps, the newer driver will download and install automatically on your device.

If the «View optional updates» link is not available after checking for updates, then Windows Update doesn’t have any new drivers or any update for other products at that particular time.

How to update drivers on Windows 10 using Device Manager

Alternatively, you can also update drivers for a printer, wireless adapter, monitor, and other components using Device Manager.

If the driver isn’t available on Windows Update because it’s too recent or available only in beta, you will have to download and install the package from the manufacturer’s support website manually.

Usually, when downloading an update from the manufacturer, you should always use their instructions first. If the support website doesn’t offer any assistance, then double-click the installer and continue with the on-screen directions to complete the update.

In the case that you’re dealing with a self-extracting package, double-click the file to extract its content. Or use this guide to extract the content of the «.zip» compressed file, and then continue with these steps:

1. Open Start.
2. Search for Device Manager and click the top result to open the tool.
3. Double-click the branch with the hardware you want to update.

Right-click the hardware and select the Update driver option.

Source: Windows Central

Click the Browse my computer for driver software option.

Source: Windows Central

Click the Browse button.

Source: Windows Central

Select the folder with the extracted driver files.

Click the OK button.

Check the Include subfolders option to allow the wizard to find the correct «.inf» file that includes the instructions to update the driver.

Click the Next button.

After you complete the steps, the wizard will scan, detect, and install the newer driver on your device to improve the overall experience and support with fixes and new features.

While you can manually update a component using this method, typically, you would use these steps to update the controllers for an older piece of hardware. In the case that you want to install an old printer, you can use these steps.

Historically, you could also use Device Manager to download drivers directly from the Windows Update service. However, it’s no longer possible since Microsoft has removed the option from Device Manager during a quality update released for the Windows 10 May 2020 Update. As a result, moving forward, when a new driver update is detected on your computer, it’ll appear automatically in the Windows Update settings, more specifically, inside the optional updates page.

How to update graphics drivers on Windows 10

Typically, if the graphics card is working, it’s never a good idea to update its driver. However, graphics card manufacturers are known to rollout updates periodically to improve the experience, support, fix bugs, and add more functionalities, especially for games.

If you have to be on the most recent version of the graphics driver, instead of waiting for it to arrive through Windows Update, you can use the graphics control panel available from Nvidia, AMD, or Intel to download and install the latest updates.

You can use the links below to download the software for the brand you’re using:

After you download the app, installing it should be as easy as double-clicking the installers and going through the usual next, next, next wizard. Once you’re in the control panel, you can click the check for updates button from the driver’s section to download and install the latest driver.

Source: Windows Central

Download graphics driver manually

In the case that you don’t want to install another piece of software, you should be able to download the latest graphics driver directly from the manufacturer’s support website.

The list below includes the links to download the latest update for your graphics card directly from your manufacturer support website:

Once you downloaded the package, use the manufacturer instructions to complete the update installation. If no instructions are available, usually, you only need to launch the installer, go trough a couple of clicks, and the wizard will remove the old driver and replace it with the new version automatically.

In the case that you’re dealing with .zip or a self-extracting package, you can refer to our previous steps to complete the driver installation using Device Manager.

Download graphics driver automatically

Alternatively, if you don’t know the brand and model of the video card, some manufacturers often provide a tool to detect the driver you need automatically.

You can use the links below to download and run the auto-detect and install driver assistant for your computer:

While on the website, download the assistant, then double-click the executable, and continue with the on-screen directions to complete the driver update.

If you’re using an OEM device (such as Dell, HP, Lenovo, Asus, etc.), consider that many manufacturers (especially Intel) modify their drivers to limit, expand, or optimize the functionalities of the integrated graphics card. This means that if you have a branded device, it’s always recommended to download the latest updates from the computer manufacturer support website instead of Intel. Otherwise, your device might experience unexpected behaviors, missing configurations, or you may not be able to access all the features.

You may also be able to check the device model and brand using Device Manager with these steps:

1. Open Start.
2. Search for Device Manager and click the top result to open the tool.
3. Expand the Display adapters branch.

Confirm the brand and model of the graphics card.

Source: Windows Central

After you complete the steps, you can use the information to download the correct driver update for your computer. If the information isn’t available, then you may have to use one of the available tools from Nvidia, AMD, or Intel to detect the driver you need. Or you could also consult your device manual to determine the hardware configuration to find the correct driver update.

How to determine if a driver updated successfully on Windows 10

Once the update has been applied, you may want to confirm that the latest version was installed correctly using Device Manager.

To see the current driver version details on Windows 10, use these steps:

1. Open Start.
2. Search for Device Manager and click the top result to open the tool.
3. Expand the branch with the hardware you updated.

Right-click the hardware and select the Properties option.

Source: Windows Central

Confirm the «Driver Date» and «Driver Version» information.

Source: Windows Central

Once you complete the steps, if these details match the manufacturer’s support website’s information, then the device has the latest version of the driver on Windows 10.

If the driver didn’t update correctly, repeat the steps one more time. If you continue with the same problem, make sure to ask for help in the Windows Central forums.

More Windows 10 resources

For more helpful articles, coverage, and answers to common questions about Windows 10, visit the following resources:

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How to download updates that include drivers and hotfixes from the Windows Update Catalog

This article discusses how to download updates from the Windows Update Catalog.

Original product version: В Windows Server 2019, Windows Server 2016, Windows Server 2012 R2, Windows 10 — all editions
Original KB number: В 323166

Introduction

The Windows Update Catalog offers updates for all operating systems that we currently support. These updates include the following:

• Device drivers
• Hotfixes
• Updated system files
• New Windows features

We guide you through the steps to search the Windows Update Catalog to find the updates that you want. Then, you can download the updates to install them across your home or corporate network of Microsoft Windows-based computers.

We also discuss how IT Professionals can use Software Update Services, such as Windows Update and Automatic Updates.

This content is designed for an advanced computer user. We recommend that only advanced users and administrators download updates from the Windows Update Catalog. If you are not an advanced user or an administrator, visit the following Microsoft Web site to download updates directly:
Windows Update: FAQ

Steps to download updates from the Windows Update Catalog

To download updates from the Windows Update Catalog, follow these steps:

Step 1: Access the Windows Update Catalog

To access the Windows Update Catalog, visit the following Microsoft Web site:
Windows Update Catalog

To view a list of frequently asked questions about Windows Update Catalog, visit the following Microsoft Web site:
Microsoft Update Catalog Frequently Asked Questions

Step 2: Search for updates from the Windows Update Catalog

To search for updates from the Windows Update Catalog, follow these steps:

1. In the Search text box, type your search terms. For example, you might type Windows Vista Security.
2. Click Search, or press Enter.
3. Browse the list that is displayed to select the updates that you want to download.
4. Click Download to download the updates.
5. To search for additional updates to download, repeat steps 2a through 2d.

Step 3: Download updates

To download updates from the Windows Update Catalog, follow these steps:

Click the Download button under Search box.

Click the updates link on the pop-up page and Save to the default path, or right-click the link and select Save target as to the specified path. You can either type the full path of the folder, or you can click Browse to locate the folder.

Close the Download and the Windows Update Catalog Window.

Find the location that you specified in step 3b.

If you have downloaded device drivers for installation, go to «Installing Drivers.»

Double-click each update, and then follow the instructions to install the update. If the updates are intended for another computer, copy the updates to that computer, and then double-click the updates to install them.

If all the items that you added to the download list are installed successfully, you are finished.

If you want to learn about additional update services, please see the «Software Update Services for IT Professionals» section.

Installing drivers

Open a command prompt from the Start menu.

To extract the driver files, type the following command at the command prompt, and then press Enter:

To stage the driver for plug and play installation or for the Add Printer Wizard, use PnPutil Software Update Services for IT Professionals.

To install a cross-architecture print driver, you must already have installed the local architecture driver, and you will still need the cross-architecture copy of Ntprint.inf from another system.

Software Update Services for IT Professionals

For general information about Software Update Services, visit the following Microsoft Web site:
Overview of Windows as a service

Windows Update

IT Professionals can use the Windows Update service to configure a server on their corporate network to provide updates to corporate servers and clients. This functionality can be useful in environments where some clients and servers do not have access to the Internet. This functionality can also be useful where the environment is highly managed, and the corporate administrator must test the updates before they are deployed.

For information about using Windows Update, visit the following Microsoft Web site:
Windows Update: FAQ

Automatic Updates

IT Professionals can use the Automatic Updates service to keep computers up to date with the latest critical updates from a corporate server that is running Software Update Services.

Automatic Updates works with the following computers:

• Microsoft Windows 2000 Professional
• Windows 2000 Server
• Windows 2000 Advanced Server (Service Pack 2 or later versions)
• Windows XP Professional
• Windows XP Home Edition computer

For more information about how to use Automatic Updates in Windows XP, click the following article number to view the article in the Microsoft Knowledge Base:
306525 How to configure and use Automatic Updates in Windows XP

Troubleshooting

You may experience one or more of the following issues when you use Windows Update or Microsoft Update:

You may receive the following error message:

Software update incomplete, this Windows Update software did not update successfully.

You may receive the following error message:

Administrators Only (-2146828218) To install items from Windows Update, you must be logged on as an administrator or a member of the Administrators group. If your computer is connected to a network, network policy settings may also prevent you from completing this procedure.

For more information about this issue, click the following article number to view the article in the Microsoft Knowledge Base: 316524 You receive an «Administrators only» error message when you try to visit the Windows Update Web site or the Microsoft Update Web site

You may be unable to view the Windows Update site or the Microsoft Update site if you connect to the Web site through an authenticating Web proxy that uses integrated (NTLM) proxy authentication.

Similar problems and solutions

You can visit the Microsoft Web sites in the following sections for more information:
Windows Update troubleshooting

Installing multiple updates with only one restart

The hotfix installer that is included with Windows XP and with Windows 2000 post-Service Pack 3 (SP3) updates includes functionality to support multiple hotfix installations. For earlier versions of Windows 2000, the command-line tool that is named «QChain.exe» is available for download.

For more information about how to install multiple updates or multiple hotfixes without restarting the computer between each installation, click the following article number to view the article in the Microsoft Knowledge Base:
296861 How to install multiple Windows updates or hotfixes with only one reboot

Microsoft security resources

For the latest Microsoft security resources such as security tools, security bulletins, virus alerts, and general security guidance, visit the following Microsoft Web site:
Microsoft Docs

For more information about the Microsoft Baseline Security Analyzer tool (MBSA), visit the following Microsoft Web site:
What is Microsoft Baseline Security Analyzer and its uses?

The Microsoft Download Center

For more information about how to download files from the Microsoft Download Center, click the following article number to view the article in the Microsoft Knowledge Base:
119591 How to obtain Microsoft support files from online services

Product-specific download pages

Internet Explorer

For Internet Explorer downloads, visit the following Microsoft Web site:
Internet Explorer Downloads

Windows Media Player

For Windows Media Player downloads, visit the following Microsoft Web site:
Windows Media Player

Office Updates

For Office updates, visit the following Microsoft Web site:
Install Office updates