Windows is an open operating system, with a large number of options for the user, important customization possibilities for manufacturers… However, its great virtues are, at the same time, its greatest defects. Each manufacturer is different and they often introduce customizations in the sound drivers, screen, touchpad… Today, we will teach you how to update and install the drivers or drivers for Windows 10 in the most optimal and safe way possible.
What is a driver?
The drivers or controllers are the links between the operating system and the hardware of our PC . For example, if we have a sound card in our laptop or computer, it will require a series of instructions on how to act and function in the operating system. This function is fulfilled by the sound driver provided by the card manufacturer (in this case we could cite Realtek as an example).
When you buy a laptop from a manufacturer like ASUS, HP or Lenovo they usually come with the right drivers and you won’t need to do much research. However, it may be that after reinstalling Windows doing a clean installation or with the passage of time some component begins to give problems and you need to check if you have the best drivers installed.
What NOT to do when updating drivers
A very common error when updating or installing drivers is to go to third-party applications such as Driver Booster, Driver Talent, Snappy Driver Installer… In our experience, these types of applications, although they may seem comfortable, can be problematic. This is because they do not always find the most current drivers and, sometimes, they do not take into account the existence of custom drivers by the manufacturer (drivers specifically designed for our device). Therefore, the most recommended ways to install Windows 10 drivers are those that we offer below.
Here is a summary of the best ways to install Windows 10 drivers:
Option 1: update the drivers with Windows Update
Before experimenting, we recommend that you try the easiest and safest option first. If you are having problems with any component of the PC, the first thing you should check is if there are pending updates in Windows Update. This is highly recommended because more and more manufacturers are uploading their drivers to Windows Update.
You just have to type “Check for updates” in the Windows 10 search bar, select the first option and click on the “Check for updates” button. Install pending updates.
Option 2: use device manager
This other option, like the first, is not always effective but it is just as easy, fast and safe when installing drivers. You just have to type “device manager” in the Windows 10 search bar, search for the device that is giving you problems, right click on it and select the option “update driver”.
For example, if the screen of my device were giving problems, I should go to the “Display Adapters” section, unfold it, right click on my graphics (Intel HD Graphics 620) and select “update driver”.
Option 3: go to the manufacturer’s website
To do this, we first need to know the exact model of our PC , which we can do from Windows or, normally more reliably, through the sticker on the front or back of our equipment.
As for the first method, you just have to type “system information” in the Windows 10 search bar. Once there, look at the information that the “System model” section returns. In many cases it will be enough, but in others, like mine, it will only inform you of the model in broad strokes (HP Pavilion) and not of the concrete. Therefore, we recommend the second method.
This other method is based on checking the label that usually comes, in the case of laptops, on the front, next to the touchpad, or on the bottom, next to a barcode. Next, we leave you a series of links where the most important brands explain how to find this information on their devices:
Once we have our model, to update the drivers of our PC we will only have to go to our favorite search engine (usually Google), look for the website of the manufacturer of our computer and go to the software and drivers section. We can also search directly in Google for the drivers section of the manufacturer’s website. In my case, I should search for “HP software and drivers.”
Many times the manufacturer’s own website will automatically recognize your computer and take you to the list of available drivers for your device. Otherwise, we will have to manually enter the model that we have found previously. When we get to the list of drivers, we will only have to look for the one that is giving us problems, download it and start the installation (which will require one or two reboots).
Don’t be obsessed with having the latest drivers installed. You must be guided by the maxim that “what works well does not get touched”, so we only recommend updating the drivers if one of them is giving you real problems.