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PC Advice
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How To Fix Driver Errors |
Is your printer or other peripheral suddenly giving you problems? Have you been advised to update or replace a driver?
How to Use Device Manager
If you are getting device driver errors, you can use the Device Manager in Windows to do some basic troubleshooting.
- Go to the Start Button.
- Choose the Control Panel.
- Choose System (in some cases, you must first open Performance and Maintenance).
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The System Properties box opens.
- Choose the Hardware tab.
- Click Device Manager.
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A list of all your hardware is populated.
- Expand the list by clicking the plus sign. For example, if your hardware is a disk drive, click the plus sign to the left of Disk Drives to see a list of all disk drives on the system. Right-click on the hardware that is giving you a driver error and choose Properties.
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The General Tab gives you an option to troubleshoot the device.
- The Driver tab gives you specific steps to take to fix your problems.
- Driver Details will let you view the details about the particular driver for this device such as the related files and DLLs as well as their locations.
- Update Driver allows you to update the driver by either providing a CD or letting the Wizard search your hard drive and the Windows Update web site for updated drivers.
- The Roll Back Driver button lets you roll back the driver to its previous state if the update fails.
- Choosing uninstall will let you uninstall the driver. You might want to do this if you no longer will be using the particular hardware device.
How to Disable a Driver
In some cases, you might want to disable a driver when you know you won't be using a particular piece of hardware for a while in order to free up resources that the driver would normally use. Perhaps you have a scanner that you use once a year. You can leave the scanner attached to your system but disable the driver. When you're ready to use the scanner, you simply enable the device again.
- Go to the Start Button
- Choose Control Panel
- Choose System (or Performance and Maintenance then System if your PC is set up this way)
- The System Properties box opens
- Choose Device Manager
- Find the item you want to disable in the list
- Choose Disable from the Action menu found at the top of the screen
When you want to re-enable the device, go back into the Device Manager and choose Enable from the Action menu.
If you are getting numerous driver errors or if you wish to keep your hardware current with the latest drivers, you might consider a software utility designed to automate troubleshooting and updating drivers. A program such as Version Tracker Pro scans your system and your software programs and then determines which updated drivers are most appropriate for your system. Alternatively, using a repair utility such as RegCure can also help eliminate driver errors and keep your PC running smoothly.
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