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.

Get help with Windows 10 upgrade and installation errors

There are many reasons why you might receive an error message when upgrading or installing Windows 10, but common errors can be fixed with a few steps that you can do on your own. Note: An upgrade takes your device from an older version of Windows, such as Windows 7 or Windows 8.1, to Windows 10.

Before searching for a specific error code, try the tips listed in General fixes. If those don’t fix your upgrade or installation problem, check the table of error codes at the bottom of this article.

General fixes

Here are some things you can try to fix upgrade and installation errors:

Unplug any nonessential hardware devices. These could include headphones, printers, scanners speakers, USB flash drives, and external hard drives.

If you’re using a laptop and it’s plugged in to a docking station, undock it.

It’s a good idea to make sure that all important updates are installed before trying to upgrade Windows. This includes updates to hardware drivers on your device.

For information and to make sure you’re up-to-date, see Windows Update: FAQ.

Use Windows Defender to protect your device during the upgrade—non-Microsoft antivirus software can sometimes cause upgrade problems. As long as you have installation media and all required activation information, you can always reinstall the software after you upgrade.

To remove an antivirus application, go to Control Panel\Programs\Programs and Features. Select the program, and then select Uninstall. Select Yes to confirm.

Outdated software can cause problems with a Windows upgrade, so removing old or nonessential applications can help.

If you plan to reinstall the application later, make sure you have the installation media and all required activation information before removing it.

To uninstall software, go to Control Panel\Programs\Programs and Features. Select the program, and then select Uninstall. Select Yes to confirm.

To upgrade to Windows 10, you need enough space on your hard drive for the installation to take place.

To view how much hard drive space is available on your computer, select the Start button, then in the search box on the taskbar, type File Explorer (known as Windows Explorer in Windows 7).

Then select Computer or This PC and look under Hard Disk Drives or under Devices and drives. If there are multiple drives listed, the system drive is the drive that includes a Microsoft Windows logo above the drive icon. You’ll see the amount of available space under the drive.

If it looks like your drive is running low on space, see Tips to free up drive space on your PC.

0xC1900101 Errors

An error that begins with 0xC1900101 is usually a driver error. If you see any of these error codes, try the following steps first to fix the problem. If these steps don’t work, see Resolve Windows 10 upgrade errors for more detailed technical info.

Make sure that your device has enough space. Your device requires at least 16 GB of free space to upgrade a 32-bit OS, or 20 GB for a 64-bit OS. For more info, see Free up drive space in Windows 10.

Run Windows Update a few times. Download and install any available updates in Windows Update, including software updates, hardware updates, and some third-party drivers. Use the troubleshooter for Windows 10 to fix Windows Update errors.

Check third-party drivers and download any updates. You can find third-party drivers and installation instructions for any hardware you’ve added to your device on the manufacturer’s website.

Unplug extra hardware. Remove all external storage devices and drives, docks, and other hardware you might have plugged into your device that isn’t needed for basic functionality.

Check Device Manager for errors. Select the Start button, then in the search box on the taskbar, type device manager. Choose Device Manager from the results. In the window that pops up, look for any device with a yellow exclamation mark beside it (you may have to select each category to switch to the list of devices). Press and hold (or right-click) the device name and select either Update Driver Software or Uninstall to correct the errors.

Remove third-party security software. Make sure you know how to reinstall your programs and that any necessary product keys are on hand. Windows Defender will help protect your device in the meantime.

Repair hard-drive errors. Select the Start button, then in the search box on the taskbar, type command prompt. Choose Command Prompt from the list of results. In the window that pops up, type chkdsk/f C: and press the Enter key. Repairs automatically start on your hard drive, and you’ll be asked to restart your device.

Note: You must have administrator permissions on your device to do this.

Do a clean restart into Windows. Learn how.

Restore and repair system files. Select the Start button, then in the search box on the taskbar, type command prompt. Choose Command Prompt from the list of results. In the window that pops up, type DISM.exe /Online /Cleanup-image /Restorehealth and press the Enter key. (Learn to repair a Windows image)

Note: You must have administrator permissions on your device to do this.

Other Common Errors

The following table lists the most common upgrade and installation errors and some things you can try to fix them. If you continue having problems upgrading or installing Windows 10, contact Microsoft support.

What it means and how to fix it

This indicates that there was a problem downloading and installing the selected update. Windows Update will try again later and there is nothing you need to do at this time.

This could indicate that an incompatible app installed on your PC is blocking the upgrade process from completing. Check to make sure that any incompatible apps are uninstalled and then try upgrading again.

A cleanup operation from a previous installation attempt is still pending, and a system restart is required to continue the upgrade. Restart the device and run setup again. If restarting device does not resolve the issue, then use the Disk Cleanup utility and clean up the temporary files and the System files. For more information, see Disk cleanup in Windows 10.

A file needed by Windows Update is likely damaged or missing. Try repairing your system files: Select the Start button and type command prompt in the search box on the taskbar. Choose Command Prompt from the list of results. In the window that appears, type DISM.exe /Online /Cleanup-image /Restorehealth and press the Enter key.

This may signify that your PC doesn’t meet the minimum requirements to download or install the upgrade to Windows 10. Learn more about the minimum requirements for Windows 10

This might indicate that a driver or other software on your PC isn’t compatible with the upgrade to Windows 10. For info about how to fix this problem, contact Microsoft support.

This could mean that the upgrade process was interrupted because you accidentally restarted your PC or signed out of your PC. Try upgrading again and make sure your PC is plugged in and stays turned on.

This error might mean that your PC couldn’t connect to the Windows Update servers. If you’re using a VPN connection to connect to a work network, disconnect from the network and turn off the VPN software (if applicable) and try upgrading again.

The error could also mean there isn’t enough free space in the System Reserved partition. You might be able to fix this problem by using third-party software to increase the size of the System Reserved partition.

Error: We couldn’t complete the updates. Undoing changes. Don’t turn off your computer.

Error: Failure configuring Windows Updates. Reverting changes.

These are generic errors that might appear any time a Windows update fails. You’ll need to determine the specific error code to investigate how to best resolve this problem.

You can find the error code for the failed update by viewing your update history. Look for the update that wasn’t installed, note the error code, and then contact Microsoft support.

To view your update history in Windows 8.1:

Open Windows Update by swiping in from the right edge of the screen (or, if you’re using a mouse, pointing to the lower-right corner of the screen and moving the mouse pointer up), select Settings > Change PC settings > Update and recovery > View your update history.

To view your update history in Windows 7:

Select the Start button. In the search box, type Update, and then, in the list of results, Select Windows Update > View update history.

Error: The update isn’t applicable to your computer.

This error might mean that your PC doesn’t have the required updates installed.

Check to make sure that all important updates are installed on your PC before you try upgrading.

This likely indicates that your PC doesn’t have enough space available to install the upgrade.

Free some space on the drive and try again. Get tips for freeing up drive space

The specified disk operation is not supported by the target disk, partition, or volume.

Make sure your machine meets the minimum requirements to install Windows 10.

The system cannot find the file specified.

If you have a disk or disks where you are not installing Windows 10 on, remove those disks.

A driver has caused a problem.

Disable or remove all 3rd party antivirus or antispyware from your system. Disconnect all peripheral devices that are connected to the system, except for the mouse, keyboard and display.

Contact your hardware vendor to obtain updated device drivers.

Windows Setup terminated unexpectedly due to another process running in the background.

When you start Windows by using a normal startup, several applications and services start automatically, and then run in the background. These programs include basic system processes, antivirus software, system utility applications, and other software that has been previously installed. These applications and services can cause interference when you attempt to upgrade to the latest version of Windows 10.

To help you determine whether a background program is interfering with the upgrade, a «clean boot» may be needed. See How to perform a clean boot in Windows.​

Windows Setup terminated unexpectedly due to another process running in the background.

Uninstall any antivirus or antispyware software and update again.

How to temporarily prevent a driver update from reinstalling in Windows 10

In Windows 10, your device is always kept up-to-date with the latest features and fixes. Drivers are installed automatically so that you don’t have to select which updates are needed. In rare cases, a specific driver might temporarily cause issues that affect your device. In this situation, you can prevent the problematic driver from reinstalling automatically the next time Windows Updates are installed.

Rolling back a device driver

If a driver that you are offered is causing system crashes or instability, and if Windows was operating correctly before that change, you can use this method to roll back the driver to the previous version.

The appropriate steps to roll back a driver installation depend on the version of Windows 10 that you have installed. We recommend that you update to the latest version of Windows 10 before you try to uninstall any drivers because this may resolve the issue. You can use Windows Update to check for the latest update by selecting the Start button, then selecting Settings > Update & security > Windows Update , and then Check for updates. Or you can install the latest version of Windows by going to Download Windows 10, and then selecting Update Now.

If you aren’t sure which version of Windows 10 you have, select the Start button, and then select Settings > System > About.

Start Device Manager. To do this, in the search box on the task bar type device manager, and then select Device Manager.

Locate and right-click the device that has the problem driver installed, and then select Properties.

Select the Driver tab, and then select Roll Back Driver.

Important If you don’t have the latest version of Windows 10, we recommend that you update now. To update to the latest version, go to Download Windows 10, and select Update Now.

Start Device Manager. To do this, in the search box on the task bar type device manager, and then select Device Manager.

Locate the category of device and right-click the device that has the problem driver installed, select Properties, and then choose the Driver tab.

In the Confirm Device Uninstall dialog box, select the Delete the driver software for this device check box.

Choose your automatic updates

To prevent the driver from being reinstalled by Windows Update, use the “Show or Hide Updates” troubleshooter to hide the driver. Window Update won’t install hidden drivers or updates.

Download the troubleshooter from the Microsoft Download Center: