Drivers for Win 7 Unavailable for my...MoBo? Processor?

[Gorgatrounce]

Hi there.
I'm installing a new (non OEM) copy of Windows 7 on a new build.
H310-Pro A from MSI.
Intel Core i5-8400 Coffee Lake
SAMSUNG 860 EVO 500GB SSD

I installed Windows 7 successfully, using a PS2 keyboard. Now I'm in, and I have a forest of Other Devices in my Device Manager that need drivers. Two big ones are the USB controller and the Ethernet Controller. MSI doesn't support Windows 7 for this motherboard (d'oh...I should have read more carefully, I now) and so the disc that came with the motherboard is useless.

In the BIOS screen, all hardware is detected fine, and I can use the USB keyboard and mouse. When Windows boots, I lose everything except my SATA connections (I've got a storage HD connected too, and the SSD, and the optical drive is picked up fine) and the PS2 keyboard.

I figure that if I can just get it online, it can find the drivers that will work (maybe?) Or perhaps not. Maybe I need to get a different...what? Motherboard? I'm not going to change from Windows 7.

The Ethernet Controller Hardware IDs read:
PCI\VEN_8086&DEV_15BC&SUBSYS_7B831462&REV_10
PCI\VEN_8086&DEV_15BC&SUBSYS_7B831462
PCI\VEN_8086&DEV_15BC&CC_0200000
PCI\VEN_8086&DEV_15BC&CC_0200

The USB Controller Hardware IDs read:
PCI\VEN_8086&DEV_A36D&SUBSYS_7B831462&REV_10
PCI\VEN_8086&DEV_A36D&SUBSYS_7B831462
PCI\VEN_8086&DEV_A36D&CC_0C0330
PCI\VEN_8086&DEV_A36D&CC_0C03

Any help would be greatly appreciated. Let me know if I've provided enough or the correct information.

 

[Math Geek]

according to MSI, your mobo has the "Intel® Ethernet Connection I219-V" ethernet chip.
https://www.msi.com/Motherboard/H310-A-PRO/Specification

intel has a legacy win 7 driver that is supposed to work on that chip
https://downloadcenter.intel.com/download/18713/?product=82186

it should get the ethernet working for you so you can see what windows update may have for you. whatever it does not find you will have to seek out individually like i did for the LAN driver. check for the exact part you need and seek out the manufacturer page for possible support.

 

[Gorgatrounce]

Math Geek, thank you so much. Thanks also for not just giving me the download page, but explaining how I missed it. I had a look through MSI's spec sheet and found the LAN controller specs that you pointed out.

Getting online, I've been able to pick up drivers for all of my hardware except for the USB Controller. From some reading, it seems like even the USB 2.0 ports are driven behind the scenes by the USB 3.0 codex (or whatever the right lingo is), and that might be my problem?

Any suggestions where to look or what to try? It seems like I'm so close! Elsewhere on this site I saw Driver Booster and Snappy Driver Installer recommended, and I tried both of them, but they were not able to clear up the USB driver issue.

I'm not sure how to determine what hardware version the actual USB drives are. Looking through the MSI spec sheet you provided didn't seem to lead me there.

 

[Math Geek]

i've had that same missing driver many times doing what you're doing. most of the time the usb ports work fine anyway. check and see if they are working anyway and if so, then just pretend the device manager is wrong and move on. there won't be any negative side effects from it other than the little yellow ! in device manager

figuring out the usb part # is not as easy but the tech/data sheet may have it listed. that however is a much more technical bit of info to read through. right now MSI's site won't let me download it so can't skim it tonight.

took me a long time of messing with/fixing pc's to figure out that sometimes you just have to go part by part looking for drivers. especially when moving backward or forward in OS versions outside official support by the manufacturer. glad i could pass on that trick to you

 

[Gorgatrounce]

Thanks again, sir. Yeah, I've tried all of the USB ports, with the simplest USB devices I can find (old mouse with ball, various keyboards, jump drives, etc) and they definitely aren't functioning. MSI's datasheet had nothing on the USB hardware used, and I'm waiting on tech support who may or may not be looking up the actual part number used on the board. If I get the USB part I suppose I'll just...Google the part number and cross my fingers?

Final question, then I'll stop bugging you: when they say "the chipset does not support Windows 7" does that mean it's conflicting with the motherboard, the processor, or both? That is to say, does that mean any motherboard I try to install that is compatible with my Intel 8400 will have the same problem? Because my motherboard is just $60, and the amount of grief this is giving me, I might just want to swap it out with something else. Talk me down from that ledge?

 

[Math Geek]

the chipset is basically the brain of the mobo. it dictates available features and such the board can have. so saying "not compatible with win 7" should be a red flag if you plan on using win 7.

i did find this a number of places
https://www.techpowerup.com/246647/intel-sneaks-in-windows-7-compatible-h310-chipset-revision

if this is right then you should be able to find a "H310C" or "H310 R2.0." mobo that has the needed drivers you're missing. sorry i did not look that up before but finally thinking fully now. the usb ports are part of the chipset so i shoulda looked that up first :/

but a new mobo with the revision would be the answer to your problem.