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| How to install and update a laptop driver |
Drivers on CD or Hardisk
Almost all computer and hardware manufacturers include a group of drivers for different hardware devices and often for each of the supported versions of Windows. For example, the driver CD you receive with your printer likely contains the drivers for dozens of different printers and not just the printer you purchased. When installing the drivers, make sure you are installing the drivers for your printer and not another printer model. Also, make sure you are installing it for the version of Windows you are running on your computer.
Below is an example of how a file structure may look on your disk.
CD/FILE Example:
-Driver Laptop/Computer Name
--Win9x
--Win2k
--WinXP
-Driver Laptop/Computer Name
--Win9x
--Win2k
--WinVista
-Driver Laptop/Computer Name
--Win9x
--Win2k
--Win7
If for example you had a Driver Laptop/Computer and were using Windows XP you would find your drivers in the Driver Laptop/Computer Name\WinXP directory.
Downloading drivers
Many drivers you download are going to be a single executable file. If the file is not a single executable file, it is a compressed file that contains all the driver files. To install the driver, you will first need to uncompress the file.
When extracting the drivers, make sure to remember where you place the folder containing the drivers since you need to point to this folder as part of the driver installation process. We recommend extracting the driver files to a folder on the Windows Desktop, as it is an easy place to remember and locate and can be easily removed after driver installation is complete.
Tip: If you downloading drivers to install on another device, you can copy or extract the driver files to a USB flash drive and connect the USB drive to the other device.
Executable
Many computer and hardware manufacturers today are pre-packaging their drivers into executable files or have the drivers installed through the setup file. Double-clicking the executable or setup file should install the drivers to the computer for you.
Note: Many developers may package their drivers in a compressed file, which means before looking for the setup file, you need to uncompress the downloaded file. Information about doing this is explained above. If after uncompressing the file, it still does not contain an executable file, setup file, or does not install your hardware device, continue with the below recommendations.
Finally, if you are successful with installing your drivers, make sure to reboot the computer after the drivers have been installed.
Using the "have disk" option
Often computer manufacturers and hardware manufacturers place the drivers on a CD or diskette, or you can download the driver for Windows to find and use during its hardware detection. Below are steps on how to install drivers for a new device and upgrade a device's driver for this setup.
Installing a new device
Upgrading drivers for pre-existing device
Installing a new device
- Open Windows Device Manager.
- In the Device Manager, make sure the device you are attempting to install is not already listed from past install attempts. If the device is found, highlight and remove it from Device Manager to prevent any conflicts during the install.
- Once Device Manager looks okay, reboot the computer.
- As the computer is rebooting, an Install new hardware wizard should appear if Windows detects the new hardware. Using this wizard, you should be able to point Windows to the folder containing your drivers located on the CD, diskette, USB Flash drive, or the folder containing the files you downloaded.
If Windows does not detect any new hardware, open the Control Panel and double-click the Add hardware icon to run the hardware detection wizard. During the steps, you have the option to tell Windows you have a disk containing the drivers for your new hardware device. Point Windows to the folder containing the drivers for your device.
Note: The "Add hardware" icon is only available on Windows XP and prior versions of Windows.
Once drivers have been installed, reboot the computer.
Upgrading drivers for pre-existing device
- Open Windows Device Manager.
- In the Device Manager, locate the device you want to update.
- Right-click the device and click Properties.
- In the Properties window, click the Driver tab.
- Click the Update Driver button.
- In the Hardware Update Wizard, point Windows to the location of the updated driver files on your hard drive.
- Once drivers have been installed, reboot the computer.
Install through the .inf file
Finally, if the above recommendations do not work, the installation instructions for drivers and hardware devices are always contained in an .inf file that is located with the driver files.
Locate the .inf file for your version of Windows. Right-click that file and choose the option for install. Note Make sure you are installing the correct .inf file and not an .inf file for another device or for a different version of Windows.
Once you have right-clicked and installed the driver, reboot the computer.
One of the above three recommendations should have installed or updated the drivers successfully onto the computer. If you are still having difficulties getting the device to install, it is possible you are not encountering a hardware issue and not an issue with the drivers. Refer to the troubleshooting steps for your hardware device for additional help and information.
