How to Update Drivers in Windows 10

Drivers are essential for computer hardware to work correctly. A Driver is a set of files that enables the computer hardware to communicate with the operating system.

Outdated or corrupted drivers can make computer hardware malfunction. Without drivers, computers won’t send and receive data from computer hardware like a mouse, printers, and keyboards.

Here is a guide on how you can make sure that all of your drivers are updated.

Method 1: Update Drivers using Windows Update

The easiest way to ensure all drivers are updated is by using windows update. Windows update automatically checks for the latest version of drivers from the computer manufacturers.

Step 1: Press the Windows key + I

Step 2: Select Update & Security from the menu

Step 3: Select Windows Update from the side menu

Step 4: Click on Check for updates

Step 5: Wait for the update to finish downloading and Reboot your computer

After rebooting your computer, windows will automatically install the update. Depending on the update size, this can take about 10–20 minutes.

Sometimes, Windows Update doesn’t work correctly. Maybe you’re getting an 0x80004005 error code. If that’s the case, move on to method 2.

Method 2: Update Drivers Using Device Manager

Another way of updating your computer drivers is by using the device manager. Follow the steps on how you can update drivers manually.

Step 1: Press the Windows key + S and search for “Device Manager”

Step 2: Open Device Manager

Step 3: Select the hardware you want to update

Step 4: Right-click on the device you want to update and select Update Driver

Step 5: A window will appear; select Search Automatically for updated Driver Software

Step 6: The tool will search online for the latest version of the driver and install it automatically.

Step 7: Wait for the process to finish (usually 3-8 minutes) and reboot your computer

Method 3: Checking if the driver installation was successful

To check if your drivers were correctly installed, follow these steps:

Step 1: Press the Windows key + S and search for “Device Manager”

Step 2: Open Device Manager

Step 3: Right-click on the driver you recently installed and select Properties

Step 4: Click on the Driver tab

Step 5: See the Driver Date. It should match the date when you installed the updated driver

If the driver did not update correctly, try reinstalling the driver again.

Method 4: Updating Graphics Card Drivers

If your computer has a discrete graphics card, it will have regular updates to enhance its performance. It is essential for your graphics card to run the latest drivers for it to perform at its peak. Without the proper drivers installed, you may have issues such as GeForce Experience error code 0x0003.

Follow these steps to update your graphics driver:

Step 1: Press the Windows key + S and search for “dxdiag”

Step 2: Click on the Display tab

Step 3: Take note of the name and manufacturer of your graphics card

Step 4: Graphics card manufacturers release driver updates on their websites. Here is a list of the websites of graphics card manufacturers:

AMD – https://www.amd.com/en/support

NVIDIA – https://www.nvidia.com/en-us/geforce/drivers/

Intel – https://www.intel.com/content/www/us/en/support/detect.html

Step 5:  Download the driver assistant

Each manufacturer has its driver assistant, which automatically detects your graphics card and installs the proper drivers.

Step 6: Install the driver assistant and run it

Step 7: After installing the graphics driver, reboot your computer

Most of the time, Windows Update automatically installs these drivers for you, so you don’t have to worry about it.

We recommend enabling automatic Windows updates to ensure that your computer runs the latest drivers and security patches.

But, if you have errors or performance issues on your computer, it may be due to an outdated driver or a corrupted driver. Make sure to follow the guide above on how you can update your drivers manually.

If updating your drivers doesn’t fix your computer issues, check out our handy guides on How to Reformat a Windows 10 PC, or How to Fix iTunes Error Code 9006.