Why Computer Hardware Devices Should Regularly Have Drivers Updated?

By Author: Sally Vaughan
Total Articles: 8
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Here are a few reasons why computer hardware devices should regularly have drivers updated or why updated versions of drivers may need to be installed.

Enable the device to function with a computer.
Compatibility with a new or different operating system.
To correct issues that may exist with older versions of drivers.
Updated reliability for the hardware device.
Work around hardware issues that may exist with the hardware device.

Improve the overall stability of a computer

Although it is emphasized to always have your drivers updated, it is important to note that different driver versions can introduce stability problems, so if you’re not facing serious consequences, you may just not need to update your drivers to avoid any problems.

An example of when you would need a driver update is when your printer doesn't print properly. In this case, you would need to update the driver, as it could address concerns you are facing.

The steps for installing or updating a driver are simple. Typically, when ...
... you first plug a device, Windows will install its own generic version of the driver itself. An advantage would be to go on the company’s website will give you many extra features.
Different ways to update your drivers:

From the manufacturer's web site: They are the ones who created the hardware. When it comes to laptop, visit your laptop manufacturer's site.

From Windows: These generic drivers are usually the answer to many people’s problems. It helps a great deal in the case of printers. Regular printing and scanning is already built right into Windows, and you don't need photo editors, cloud services, and other junk bloating up your machine. So instead of getting drivers from the manufacturer, just get them right from Windows as described below.

From the CD that came with your device: You'll almost never want to do this. These drivers are probably outdated by the time you get the computer up and running, so you should download the drivers from one of the above sources instead. The only exception: Ethernet drivers, if Windows doesn't have them built-in. obviously if you start up your computer and can't access the internet, you can't download drivers. So install the Ethernet drivers from the CD, connect to the internet, and download all your other drivers online.

How to Update Your Drivers in Windows?

1. Right-click on My Computer and choose Manage.
2. Click Device Manager in the list on the left of the Computer Management window.
3. Click the plus sign next to the device type in the list on the right.
4. Right-click on the device and choose Properties.
5. Take note of the name of the device:
Also take note of the Device type and manufacturer.
The next thing to do is downloading and installing the latest driver for your device from the manufacturer's website.
6. Now go to the web page for the manufacturer. In our case, we are updating the drivers for an NVIDIA video card, so we would go to www.nvidia.com.
7. At the manufacturers website look for a link for "drivers", "downloads", or something similar. If you don't see such a link, look for a support link, click that link, and look for a drivers link on the support page.
8. If there is a list of devices for which drivers are available, choose your device from the list. If there is a search field for devices, enter the name of your device in that field to look for drivers.
9. Once you have found the correct driver for your particular device, download it.
10. Locate where the downloaded file went (by default it is on your desktop), and double-click it.
11. Proceed through the installer to install the driver.