How to identify malfunctioning your drivers with Windows Device Manager on Windows 11/10/7
![](/images/site-logo.png)
How to identify missing or malfunctioning drivers with Windows Device Manager
To see which of your devices have a missing or malfunctioning driver:
- Step1: On your keyboard, press the
Windows logo key
andR
at the same time to invoke the Run box. - Step2: Type
devmgmt.msc
and clickOK
.
(There are other ways to open Device Manager; it changes depending on your version of Windows. But the above method works for all versions of Windows, including Windows 11, 10 and 7.)
- Step3: Expand a category (e.g. Display Adapters) to see the devices in that category. If you see a yellow triangle or question mark next to a device, Windows has detected that it has a missing or malfunctioning driver.
- Step4: If you see this yellow mark, you can try to
update
orreinstall
the driver.
What are drivers?
Drivers are like interpreters between Windows and your devices. For example, when Windows needs to display something on your monitor, it sends a command to your graphics card, and your graphics card then displays what Windows wants on your monitor.
But Windows and your graphics card don’t actually speak the same language. To understand each other, they need a translator. That translator is called a driver. It takes the Windows command and translates it into something your graphics card can understand. Your graphics card can then do as it’s told, and display the right thing on your monitor.
Similarly, if your graphics card needs to send some sort of response back to Windows, the driver translates the response into something Windows can understand.
In this example, what we’re talking about is a video driver, but your computer has many other drivers on it too – one for each device. Your speakers, your printer, your mouse, your USB hard drives, your network card, your keyboard and so on – they each have an associated driver.
And without all these drivers, none of your devices will work.
Why you can’t rely on Windows to keep your drivers up-to-date
Windows comes with an inbuilt tool, called ‘Windows Update’, that’s supposed to automatically keep your drivers up to date. Unfortunately, it doesn’t work very well.
There are two reasons why…
Device manufacturers often take a long time to get their drivers into a Windows Update – It’s a time-consuming and difficult process. Sometimes they just miss the deadline and have to wait ‘til the next Windows Update, and sometimes they just give up altogether. In fact, for older devices, this is the norm.
Windows Update ignores driver updates it considers ‘optional’ – It categorizes driver updates as either ‘critical’, ‘automatic’ or ‘optional’, and it doesn’t usually concern itself with the ‘optional’ ones – even when they’re actually important. You can install them manually by going to the ‘Optional updates’ screen but, even then, as described above, you’re unlikely to get all the latest drivers.
What happens if a driver is missing or outdated?
Every now and then, Microsoft will change the commands Windows sends to one of your devices (e.g. your network card). When this happens, the manufacturer of that device need to change the device driver too. They need to teach it the new Windows commands. Otherwise the drivers won’t be able to translate those commands for your devices, and your devices won’t work properly.
The same thing needs to happen when your device manufacturer changes the way your device talks, or the things it can do. They need to change the driver too. Otherwise Windows won’t be able to talk to the device, or take advantage of its new functionality, and your device won’t work properly.
Now when we say “your device won’t work properly”, sometimes this means simply that you miss out on new functionality or minor bug fixes. But it’s often a lot more serious than that. Your computer may even hang, crash or stop working completely. Remember, there’s a driver that controls your hard drive, for instance. If Windows can’t talk to your hard drive, it can’t access any of the data on your drive. Similarly, if Windows can’t talk to your network card, you won’t be able to access the internet, and if it can’t talk to your graphics card, you won’t be able to see anything on your monitor. These are just a few of the more serious issues outdated drivers can cause.
Try Driver Easy for free
If you want the certainty of knowing your device drivers are always up to date (and not just sometimes up to date, which is all you get from Windows Device Manager), and you don’t have the time, patience or computer skills to continually update them manually, give the free version of Driver Easy a try.
The free version will identify all your outdated drivers, and allow you to download them all. But only one at a time and, once they’re downloaded, you have to manually install them using the standard Windows process. (To automatically update all your drivers with 1 click, you’ll need the Pro version of Driver Easy . Don’t worry, it comes with a 30-day, no-questions-asked, money back satisfaction guarantee.)
Why update your drivers in Windows 11, 10 & Windows 7?
Many computer issues are caused by outdated device drivers. Particularly in Windows 10/11.
So if your computer has slowed down, you should update your drivers. If it’s crashing or hanging, update your drivers. If you can’t connect to the internet, update your drivers. If your mouse, keyboard, monitor or speakers are acting up, update your drivers. In fact, no matter what your issue, there’s a good chance updating your drivers will fix it.
To understand why, you first have to understand what drivers actually are…
Also read:
- How To Restore Missing Contacts Files from Honor Magic 6 Lite.
- How to Restore Deleted Galaxy A15 4G Pictures An Easy Method Explained.
- How To Recover Lost Data from iPhone 7? | Dr.fone
- How to restore wiped videos on Lava Blaze 2 5G
- How to retrieve erased videos from Vivo Y78 5G
- 2 Ways to Transfer Text Messages from Vivo V27e to iPhone 15/14/13/12/11/X/8/ | Dr.fone
- How to Recover Deleted Notes from iPhone 12 Pro Max? | Stellar
- How to Downgrade iPhone 12 without iTunes? | Dr.fone
- How to retrieve lost files from Redmi K70E?
- How to recover deleted photos from Android Gallery after format on Infinix Zero 30 5G
- How to retrieve lost files from Oppo A58 4G?
- How to recover deleted photos from Android Gallery without backup on Motorola Edge 2023
- How To Reset iPhone 15 Pro Max Without iTunes? | Dr.fone
- How To Repair iPhone 6s System? | Dr.fone
- How To Transfer Data From iPhone 13 Pro Max To Other iPhone 15 devices? | Dr.fone
- How to Rescue Lost Music from Infinix Zero 30 5G
- How to rescue lost call logs from Magic 6 Pro
- How to solve MKV lagging problem in Edge 40 Neo?
- How to Restore Deleted C67 5G Pictures An Easy Method Explained.
- How to insert sign in Excel 2000 files
- How to recover deleted contacts from Spark 20.
- How to Downgrade iPhone 6s Plus to the Previous iOS Version? | Dr.fone
- How to play HEVC H.265 video on Xiaomi 13T?
- How to recover deleted photos from Infinix Note 30 Pro.
- How to Infinix Note 30 Pro Get Deleted Pictures Back with Ease and Safety?
- How to ROG Phone 8 Get Deleted Pictures Back with Ease and Safety?
- How to recover deleted photos from Android Gallery without backup on Huawei Nova Y71
- How to Fix corrupt video files of Vivo Y17s using Video Repair Utility on Windows?
- How to Retrieve deleted photos on OnePlus Open
- How to recover deleted photos on Infinix Hot 40 Pro
- How to recover deleted photos on Galaxy A34 5G
- How to Sign Excel 2007 Online with DigiSigner
- How To Restore Missing Contacts Files from Nubia Red Magic 9 Pro.
- How to Restore Deleted Nubia Z50S Pro Pictures An Easy Method Explained.
- How To Recover iPhone 11 Pro Data From iCloud? | Dr.fone
- How to recover deleted pictures from Google Pixel Fold.
- How to Repair Broken video files of Pixel 8 on Windows??
- How to Recover Deleted Photos from Android Gallery App on Redmi Note 13 Pro 5G
- Ultimate Guide from Asus ROG Phone 8 Pro FRP Bypass
- How to Unlock Vivo V30 Pro Phone without PIN
- How to Update iPhone 14 Plus without Losing Data? | Dr.fone
- What is the best Pokemon for pokemon pvp ranking On Nubia Red Magic 8S Pro? | Dr.fone
- In 2024, Complete Guide For iPhone 7 Plus Lock Screen
- How To Unlock Apple iPhone 13 Pro Max Without Passcode? 4 Easy Methods
- In 2024, Top 10 Best Spy Watches For your Oppo Reno 11 5G | Dr.fone
- In 2024, Is pgsharp legal when you are playing pokemon On Motorola Edge 40? | Dr.fone
- Fix Sony Xperia 10 V Android System Webview Crash 2024 Issue | Dr.fone
- In 2024, Process of Screen Sharing Realme C67 5G to PC- Detailed Steps | Dr.fone
- How To Fix OEM Unlock Missing on Oppo A18?
- In 2024, Full Guide to Unlock Your Vivo Y100i
- New Extracting Audio From Instagram Methods and Tools
- How to Unlock Apple iPhone SE? | Dr.fone
- In 2024, Simple and Effective Ways to Change Your Country on YouTube App Of your Vivo S18e | Dr.fone
- In 2024, Top-Notch Solutions for Disabled Apple ID From iPhone SE Making It Possible
- In 2024, 3 Ways for Android Pokemon Go Spoofing On Oppo K11 5G | Dr.fone
- The way to recover deleted pictures on Samsung Galaxy A14 5G without backup.
- In 2024, How To Change Your Apple ID Password On your iPhone 12 | Dr.fone
- How to Find iSpoofer Pro Activation Key On Apple iPhone 14 Pro? | Dr.fone
- How to get the dragon scale and evolution-enabled pokemon On Vivo T2 Pro 5G? | Dr.fone
- How To Stream Anything From Realme GT Neo 5 to Apple TV | Dr.fone
- 2024 Approved 12 Best Free Animation Programs for PC and Mac Users
- Updated 2024 Approved AVS Video Editor Software Review Pros, Cons, and Verdict
- 2024 Approved The Battle for Your Living Room TiVo vs Comcast DVR
- How To Change Country on App Store for iPhone 11 With 7 Methods | Dr.fone
- In 2024, 9 Mind-Blowing Tricks to Hatch Eggs in Pokemon Go Without Walking On Tecno Spark 20 | Dr.fone
- In 2024, How to Unlock Samsung Galaxy M34 Phone without Any Data Loss
- In 2024, How to Fake Snapchat Location on Oppo A18 | Dr.fone
- In 2024, Can I use iTools gpx file to catch the rare Pokemon On Samsung Galaxy A14 5G | Dr.fone
- Forgot your Oppo A59 5G lock screen pattern, PIN or password? Here’s what to do
- Title: How to identify malfunctioning your drivers with Windows Device Manager on Windows 11/10/7
- Author: Nova
- Created at : 2024-05-19 18:32:12
- Updated at : 2024-05-21 02:34:23
- Link: https://blog-min.techidaily.com/how-to-identify-malfunctioning-your-drivers-with-windows-device-manager-on-windows-11107-by-drivereasy-guide/
- License: This work is licensed under CC BY-NC-SA 4.0.