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Drivers are a necessary element in an optimal computing system and OS environment. Although the latest OS may have generic drivers to easily recognize hardware and establish basic functionality it is considered good practice to install the latest drivers from the manufactures site. Drivers can include internal and external components while not being limited to your peripherals.
Here is a list of drivers you may need to look for prior to downloading them:
1. Motherboard Chipset
2. USB and third party controllers
3. Management Engine Interface (Intel)
4. Audio
5. Networking adapter (Wired and/or Wireless)
6. Graphics card (onboard or dedicated)
7. Storage (native and/or third party)
8. Keyboard and/or mouse
9. Gamepads and game controllers
10. Displays and/or monitors
You could also include drivers for coolers, lighting modules and fan controllers in the list above but it's a good idea to maintain order and integrity while installing them the say way as ranked above. Keep essentials at the top while add-on components can be last. That being said, this tutorial will help you identify, download and install drivers meant for Microsoft's Windows platform.
Here is a list of drivers you may need to look for prior to downloading them:
1. Motherboard Chipset
2. USB and third party controllers
3. Management Engine Interface (Intel)
4. Audio
5. Networking adapter (Wired and/or Wireless)
6. Graphics card (onboard or dedicated)
7. Storage (native and/or third party)
8. Keyboard and/or mouse
9. Gamepads and game controllers
10. Displays and/or monitors
You could also include drivers for coolers, lighting modules and fan controllers in the list above but it's a good idea to maintain order and integrity while installing them the say way as ranked above. Keep essentials at the top while add-on components can be last. That being said, this tutorial will help you identify, download and install drivers meant for Microsoft's Windows platform.
- ■Components that come with the motherboard will have the drivers available and listed for download from motherboard manufacturer's support site e.g: ASRock's download site for FM2A85X-ITX
but you will need to determine the OS off which you're intending to operate off of.
■Download and save on a location on your storage device.
■Locate your drivers executable and run in an elevated command, i.e; Right click installer>Run as Administrator
If the drivers found are not listed for your intended OS e.g: You want to work off of Windows 7 or Windows 10 but have drivers available for Windows Vista or Windows XP. You can take advantage of compatibility mode in both Windows 7 and in Windows 10.
Right click installer>Properties>Compatibility Tab>Windows X [depending on the OS your drivers are meant for]
■If you're making progress after a fresh installation of OS, install your drivers in the following order:
a| Motherboard Chipset
b| MEI(if applicable)
c| USB
d| SATA Controller (if applicable)
e| Video and Display
f| Audio
g| Network
h| Peripherals
■Click on Next to continue with installation while some will warrant acceptance of their end user licence agreement before proceeding.
■Click on Exit, Finish or close to close the installation window.
If you've reached this point then you've successfully installed all the necessary drivers meant for your system's optimal performance.
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