Any person who owns a personal computer will be familiar with the term driver. You may also have been asked to update them on occasion. What does it mean? Why are drivers important? What purpose do they serve? and What happens if I don’t keep my drivers up to date?
What exactly are drivers?
In very simplistic words, drivers are small programs that permit Windows and other software to communicate with the hardware devices attached to your computer. Your computer doesn’t automatically understand how to manage all the characteristics of a video card. It requires a driver to help do just that. Like other computer programs should be updated and need occasional service packs designed to fix problems. And add new features, drivers need these tool.
When is the correct time to update the device drivers?
If you’ve noticed a difficulty running a device, you should consider updating the drivers. On occasion, an older device will operate at a faster speed with better and more up to date drivers. This may negate any need to upgrade an old PC for a short while, at least. Any time you do update to a new driver, they will most likely contain some bug fixes as well as other important updates.
One important thing to note is that PCs perform at their best with the latest version of Drivers and software installed. You should always try to ensure that the devices you regularly use, such as your video card, are kept up to date whenever possible. The Drivers for your networking card, chipset, and sound cards are equally as important.
One sure-fire way to make a PC work better is to ensure you are running the correct drivers. If you installed a high-grade video card installed and are running this with the standard driver that comes with Windows. Then you need to switch to the more compatible drivers. One way to ensure this happens is to use a driver pack solution free download. This will help you keep all your drivers up to date.
Essentially, if you have an AMD/ATI or NVidia type video card, and you’re running the built-in Windows driver. that’s the right time to change drivers.
How do you know which drivers need to be updated?
Anytime you install new hardware on a computer, purchase a new device or reload windows on to an older device. It is best that you check that you are applying the correct drivers. You don’t need to keep all drivers up to date all of the time. It’s more important when you are using a custom made driver rather than a generic one that thinks it can do the job.
Under this circumstance, you will need to upgrade these drivers:
Video Card: There will be a noticeable variation in speeds between the universal Windows drivers and the official drivers for the card you have installed always ensure you have the correct drivers.
Motherboard/Chipset: Always ensure that you have the correct and up to date drivers for these. In general running, the downloaded driver should be all you need to do.
Sound Card: The drivers that are native to Windows will certainly not include all the added features that are attached to the new sound card. If you have bought a new motherboard, you will be forced to visit the manufacturer’s website in order to get the correct drivers.
Network Card: Most people are using a built-in card that is part of your motherboard. The drivers for that card are probably readily installed. Most gamers will either need to have a specialized video card installed or keep the drivers up to date.
How to check your drivers’ version
If you are experiencing issues with an installed device, it is always a good idea to see if the driver for that device is up to date and running properly. Before you look for help or post on a forum. Check the appropriate provider to ensure that the software you have installed is the latest available edition.
In most cases, if you have installed a device that needs software or drivers that run independently of Windows. They will generally have their own custom installation wizard that comes with the download. All you will have to do is run the wizard, and it will install the latest available drivers for the device.
