Windows relies on computer drivers to recognize and communicate with hardware devices like your mouse, keyboard, and graphics card. But what are drivers, and how do they work? Let’s find out together.

Whenever your Windows runs smoothly and your hardware devices respond correctly and consistently, it means your device drivers are working fine.

Otherwise, you’ll likely experience various software and hardware problems.

Keep reading to learn all the basics about drivers and why they are the regular culprits for most major Windows problems, from game crashes and lags to blue screens of death (BSODs).

What Are Drivers in Computers?

Device drivers are programs designed to help hardware components understand and execute instructions from users and Windows. First, they carry identification information that allows Windows to recognize devices, then they help interpret instructions to allow Windows and these devices to communicate and work together.

For example, a driver tells your graphics card to display specific pictures on your laptop or monitor screen, depending on what Windows wants it to show. Your CPU, motherboard, and other internal and external devices also require drivers to work.

Drivers don’t have user interfaces like other regular programs. However, some hardware manufacturers install accompanying GUI applications when you install device drivers. AMD Radeon Software and the NVIDIA App (formerly GeForce Experience) are examples.

While drivers are mostly designed by hardware manufacturers, some can be written by Microsoft if the hardware device follows a published standard. Examples are plug-and-play devices like keyboards and mice.

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What Does a Driver Do on a Computer?

Let’s break down what drivers do when installed:

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Device identification

Drivers hold information that helps Windows recognize a device and what it can do. For example, when you connect a new mouse, the driver tells your operating system you just plugged in a pointing device. It also provides other device information, such as the name of the manufacturer, hardware ID, make and model, and driver version.

Drivers hold information that helps Windows recognize a device and what it can do
Windows recognizes mouse device and provides details, thanks to its driver

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Communication between devices and the operating system

Device drivers act as interpreters that tell hardware devices what Windows expects them to do. For instance, when you move or click your mouse, the driver tells your operating system to move the pointer or select something.

Drivers also facilitate communication between third-party applications and hardware components. Graphics card drivers are usually fine-tuned to work with specific types of games.

Third-party applications always go through the operating system to communicate with drivers. But this can still be done in ways programmed to make the app, like a game, work better with specific devices.

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Communication with other drivers and devices

My descriptions of device drivers so far are oversimplified explanations. Other technical driver-to-driver communications happen under the hood to help the operating system and other applications use devices correctly.

Windows typically sends requests to devices through driver stacks. A driver stack is a vertical chain of drivers that passes down I/O requests to devices in different formats. Each driver in the stack translates requests from one format to another until the last driver in the chain provides the final translation for the device.

Windows typically sends requests to devices through driver stacks
Driver stack illustration. The stack begins at the application layer and ends at the device level. Image source: Microsoft

In some cases, requests are transmitted through multiple driver stacks.

For example, when you connect an external storage device to your computer via a USB port, the device’s driver speaks to the USB root hub’s driver stack, which also communicates to the USB host controller. The host controller then transmits requests to the computer’s PCI hub on the motherboard.

The driver that communicates directly with the hardware device in the chain is called the function driver, while others are called filter drivers.

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Feature introduction

Device drivers are used to deploy new features, primarily through updates. When your driver is updated, you’re installing a new driver version, which usually contains upgrades and, in many cases, new hardware features. For example, you may experience better sound quality after new audio drivers are installed and support for new games when you update your graphics card drivers.

Device drivers are used to deploy new features, primarily through updates
AMD driver new game support

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Device management

Drivers manage how devices behave. For example, an audio driver controls how sound is played through your speakers and determines how the audio card consumes power.

What are drivers saved as, and where can I find them?

Most device drivers are stored in the C:\Windows\System32\Drivers or C:\Windows\System32\DriverStore folder. They are mostly saved in these folders with the .sys file extension and are called dynamic link library files.

Most device drivers are stored in the C:WindowsSystem32Drivers or C:WindowsSystem32DriverStore folder

However, other file extensions, such as the following, are also associated with drivers:

  • .inf: Scripts used by Windows (particularly Device Manager) to identify and install drivers. They are usually stored in the C:\Windows\INF folder but can be stored elsewhere by users or the operating system.
  • .dll: Dynamic link library files are designed to allow other programs (including drivers) to call specific drivers and system resources like DirectX.
  • .cat: Files that contain digital certificates and signatures required to verify driver legitimacy and integrity.
Note
It’s challenging to recognize drivers by looking at .sys files. However, you can right-click a file, select Properties, and click Details to see the driver it represents. The Details tab contains information such as File description (name of the driver), File version (driver version), and Product (device) name.
The Details tab contains information such as File description (name of the driver), File version (driver version), and Product (device) name
Avoid tampering with files in the System32 folder, as they are mostly kernel-level programs that can break your operating system.

Going through the System Information window is another way to identify drivers in the System32 folder. Here’s how:

  • Open the Start menu, type system information, and select the relevant search result.
Open the Start menu, type system information, and select the relevant search result
  • Go to the left navigation pane, expand Software Environment, and click System Drivers.
  • The right side of the window will display the drivers in the C:\Windows\System32\Drivers folder alongside their descriptions and other details like Start Mode, State , and Status.
The right side of the window will display the drivers in the C:WindowsSystem32Drivers folder alongside their descriptions

Checking the Device Manager window

Device Manager is Microsoft’s built-in tool for viewing and managing installed devices and driver details. Here’s how you can use it to check whether a computer driver is installed and the details of any device software:

  • Right-click Start and select Device Manager.
Right-click Start and select Device Manager
  • Expand the category for the device whose driver you want to check.
  • Right-click the device and select Properties. 
  • Go to the Driver tab.
  • You can now view the driver’s details.
You can now view the driver’s details
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Types of Drivers

While our focus is on hardware drivers, any explanation for drivers will be incomplete without acknowledging software drivers. So we’ll start with a brief overview of both to help you distinguish between the two main categories.

Aspect Software driver Hardware driver
Interacts with Software applications, virtual devices, Windows APIs, and filter drivers Physical hardware components
Purpose Allows Windows to interact with emulated or virtual components

Provides interpretation for user actions at the GUI level

 

Provides device management and communication capabilities
Examples Virtual printer, VPN network adapter, file system drivers Graphics card, printer, and SSD drivers
Impact Supports software features Directly affects hardware performance

Software drivers

Software drivers are not associated with hardware components. They are the parts of software applications that access Windows’ kernel (the core of the operating system) or APIs to enable user interfaces to work with the operating system. See them as components that explain user commands to the OS.

Specific drivers that help your computer interact with emulated or virtual hardware are also classified as software drivers.

Note on virtual device drivers:
A virtual driver works as its name suggests: it helps users to interact with emulated or remote devices, not physical ones. For example, you can mount an ISO file as a DVD to access its contents, and your computer will treat the file like a physical disc.

Hardware drivers

Hardware drivers are primarily created to help Windows and physical devices communicate.

Microsoft primarily categorizes device drivers according to how deeply they interact with Windows. These are called user-mode and kernel-mode drivers. However, other drivers are grouped by source (developers), function, and data management.

Let’s start with user-mode and kernel-mode drivers.

User-mode drivers

User-mode drivers operate in a protected Windows environment where apps and other processes run without accessing core system resources. That means these programs cannot bring down the operating system when errors or glitches occur . Examples of user-mode drivers include printer and mouse drivers.

If your printer’s driver encounters an issue, you will get the “Driver Is Unavailable” error, but your system continues to work.

On the other hand, the kernel-mode drivers have full access to critical operating system resources since they run at the kernel level.

Kernel meaning and how kernel-mode drivers work

The kernel is the operating system’s codebase and is often called the heart of Windows. Apps with kernel access run unrestricted and can crash the entire system when they encounter issues.

Not all kernel drivers can crash the operating system. Going through the System Information window, as shown earlier, you should see how Windows responds to each driver’s error.

They are classified as Ignore (nothing happens), Normal (Windows logs the error and continues normal operations), Severe (Windows reboots to Safe Mode), and Critical (Windows displays a blue screen and restarts).

Microsoft further breaks down kernel-mode drivers into highest-level, intermediate, and lowest-level drivers.

Here’s a snapshot of the differences between user-mode and kernel-mode drivers:

Feature User-mode drivers Kernel-mode drivers
Access to core system resources Limited access Full system access
Driver examples Printer and external USB device (like mouse and keyboard) drivers Graphics, hard drive, and network card drivers
Hardware access Access hardware indirectly through Windows APIs Direct hardware access
Performance Slower due to limited access Faster since they have direct access to the kernel
Stability risk Crash affects only the driver and the device’s functionality Driver glitches can crash the entire system
Security Relatively safe due to isolation from the system’s kernel Higher risk if drivers are compromised

Other types of hardware drivers

Now, let’s go through other types of device drivers:

  • OEM (original equipment manufacturer) drivers: Device manufacturers often collaborate with OEMs (laptop and desktop manufacturers) to design some custom drivers that can communicate with specific software designed by OEMs. For example, custom NVIDIA drivers designed for ASUS laptops will be tweaked to communicate better with the MyASUS app.

Programs such as firmware (more on that below), keyboard, and touchpad drivers developed by manufacturers can also be classed as OEM drivers.

⇢ Category: User-mode and kernel-mode

  • BIOS drivers: These are low-level drivers stored in your computer’s firmware ( BIOS /UEFI). They allow basic communication between your motherboard and operating system, allowing your computer to initialize critical hardware like your RAM and hard drive before Windows boots.

⇢ Category: Kernel-mode

  • Motherboard: These are drivers developed for your motherboard’s built-in devices like USB ports, PCIe slots, chipsets, network ports, and audio. Examples include Intel chipset drivers available through Windows Update and the Intel Driver and Support Assistant.

⇢ Category: Kernel-mode

  • Open-source: Open-source device software components are community-developed and free-to-access drivers. They are mostly created to provide additional functionality not included by device manufacturers. Great examples are drivers designed by the Mesa Project, especially for graphics tasks.

⇢ Category: Kernel-mode and user-mode

Only use open-source drivers if you know what they are and how they work. Refrain from installing third-party drivers, especially those with kernel access, as you may be exposing yourself to significant security and device-related risks.
  • Character drivers: Drivers designed for sequential (one-byte-at-a-time) data transfers. Most character drivers are developed for devices like mice and keyboards.

⇢ Category: Mostly user-mode

What Are Driver Updates, and Why Are They Important?

Driver updates are new device driver versions released by manufacturers to improve functionality, fix bugs, and introduce new features. These updates are usually delivered through manufacturer websites, the Windows Update client, and driver management or support applications.

These updates are usually delivered through manufacturer websites
The NVIDIA App. A manufacturer-provided driver management program

Updates are seen as critical software components because they ensure your operating system can maintain its communication with devices whenever your computer experiences changes in the form of hardware, system, and app upgrades or updates.

Driver updates are also important for the following reasons:

  • Resolving driver-related blue screens and other critical Windows errors
  • Ensuring ongoing compatibility when users upgrade to new versions of Windows, games, and other programs
  • Shoring up security defenses in the face of new malware and virus capabilities

⏲ When to update drivers

The Device Manager window is one of the places you can check to know when to update drivers . It usually displays yellow triangles or exclamation marks beside devices without drivers.

However, the following situations also necessitate installing or updating device drivers:

Note
The following are also problems you will likely encounter when your drivers are corrupt or old.
  • Windows cannot recognize a hardware device: This usually happens after upgrading to or installing a new version of Windows, connecting a new device, or resetting the operating system.
  • Performance problems: Games, applications, or Windows itself begin to lag uncharacteristically.
  • Errors: You keep seeing blue screens and other errors like “No signed device drivers were found.”
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How to install and update device drivers

You can update and install drivers manually and automatically using these methods:

  • Automatic updates:

Allowing the Windows Update tool to automatically download and install driver updates.

  • Allowing the Windows Update tool to automatically download and install driver updates

Using the automatic update option in driver management programs, such as the NVIDIA App and third-party utilities.

  • Manual updates:
    • Using Device Manager to find and install updates.
    • Downloading and installing updates from the manufacturer websites and the Microsoft Update Catalog platform.
Downloading and installing updates from the manufacturer websites and the Microsoft Update Catalog platform
Microsoft Update Catalog website
    • Using driver management programs where users can choose when to install available updates.
Using driver management programs where users can choose when to install available updates

While automatic updates are more convenient, the manual option is better in some cases. Let’s go through each method’s pros and cons:

Automatic updates Manual updates
Pros:
  • Convenient and time-saving
  • Always keeps drivers updated
  • Reduces the risk of missing security patches
  • Allows users to receive the latest features and fixes in time
Cons:
  • Less control for users over what driver versions are installed
  • The potential to install buggy updates is higher
  • Rollbacks can be tricky, given that Windows automatically deletes backups after some time
Pros:
  • Users have full control over which version to install and when to install updates
  • Useful for troubleshooting driver-related problems
  • Rollbacks are more realistic
  • Buggy driver versions can be avoided
Cons:
  • Time-consuming
  • May require technical knowledge in some cases
  • Higher risk of installing incompatible drivers
PRO TIP
Auslogics Driver Updater gives you the best of both worlds. It can automatically notify you when drivers are available and allows you to sanction the update. You can choose to install the driver now or at a later date. It also automatically backs up previous drivers so that you can roll back anytime.

Situations when it’s best to use automatic or manual updates.

Driver category Recommended method Reasons Examples
Graphics drivers Manual Always best to confirm that new versions are not buggy before updating NVIDIA and AMD graphics drivers are often buggy for specific games and applications
Chipset drivers Automatic These drivers are rarely updated and usually work best when updated by OEMs and Microsoft Intel and AMD chipset driver updates through the Windows Update client
Audio drivers Automatic Updates are generally stable and rarely updated Realtek audio drivers deployed through Windows updates
Printer drivers Manual Certain drivers can be corrupted, and automatic updates are not always available Official HP and Epson printer drivers can be downloaded from manufacturer websites or through third-party apps
Network driver s Manual (when fixing issues) Microsoft deploys generic drivers through Windows Update, but manual drivers can fix specific stability issues and improve performance Intel wireless network drivers installed through the Intel Driver and Support Assistant or Intel’s website
BIOS/firmware drivers Manual While updates can be installed through the Windows Update client, it’s recommended to use manual methods from manufacturer websites, as firmware updates are critical Flashing ASUS motherboard BIOS firmware for CPU compatibility, overclocking settings, and hotfixes
Touchpad/peripheral drivers Manual OEM-provided drivers, which are primarily available through manual methods, may provide support for gestures and features not available through generic drivers Updating drivers for mice and keyboards developed by companies like Logitech
Bluetooth drivers Automatic Bluetooth drivers are known to be stable and provide stability and connection improvements with each update Updates through third-party updaters, Intel’s program, and the Windows Update utility
Using third-party driver updaters

Third-party driver updaters are programs created by independent developers that automatically detect outdated drivers and install official updates. Depending on the tool you choose, you’ll have access to various features, such as automatic driver backups and update schedules.

The current crop of reputable programs, which includes Auslogics Driver Updater , Fortect , and Driver Booster , has proven useful and more convenient in recent years. These apps only fetch verified manufacturer drivers and remove the hassle of checking for problematic drivers individually.

Rolling back drivers

Rolling back a driver involves installing the previous version of a device’s software component that you recently updated. The process helps you reverse issues caused by buggy updates. Generally, Microsoft stores autobackups like these, including older versions of Windows, for 10 days.

Our driver rollback guide will show you the step-by-step process.

Disabling and uninstalling device drivers

Disabling drivers helps stop problematic devices that often cause BSODs (blue screens of death) and other issues during troubleshooting. In some cases, you need to completely remove a driver before installing an update if you want to resolve a serious problem.

You can disable a driver by right-clicking the related device in Device Manager and selecting Disable device.

You can disable a driver by right-clicking the related device in Device Manager and selecting Disable device

To uninstall a computer driver, right-click the device, select Uninstall device , and click Uninstall in the confirmation prompt.

To uninstall a computer driver, right-click the device, select Uninstall device, and click Uninstall in the confirmation prompt
Download Auslogics Driver Updater
Prevent hardware errors and ensure problem-free device operation with this advanced tool that detects outdated drivers and safely gets them updated.

Don’t Overlook Computer Drivers: Always Download Updates from Safe Sources

Device drivers may work behind the scenes, but they are the heartbeat of Windows-device communications. As such, you should always treat your drivers, particularly kernel-mode drivers, with care. That means installing updates through reputable sources and avoiding practices that disrupt driver operations, such as tampering with files in the System32 folder.

Let us know if you recently struggled with a driver issue or if you need more clarity about nuanced Windows driver discussions.

FAQ

How often should I update my computer drivers?
It’s generally recommended to install available updates because they introduce new features, improve performance, and fix problems. However, it is advisable to check what others are saying about updates for components like graphics cards before installing them. Some driver updates often come with more issues than they fix.
Can I update my computer drivers for free?
Yes. Drivers are generally provided free of charge. While some third-party driver updaters offer more features like multiple simultaneous updates for a fee, they have free options for basic services.
How to check if a driver is installed or not?
You can check by opening the Device Manager and finding the related device. If the driver is installed, the device will be listed under the appropriate category. However, not all devices listed in Device Manager have updated drivers.
Is it safe to install drivers?
Yes. Installing new drivers or updates is generally safe. However, ensure you always download the right drivers for your operating system and devices. You should also obtain these drivers from reputable sources.