What components require drivers?

[soberllama]

Hey everyone,

Quick question, after a complete fresh install of windows 7 (the computer will be completely blank excluding the OS) what components (GPU, CPU, Motherboard, etc.) will require drivers to function properly and where would I acquire these drivers?

Also are there any tips or things I should be aware about when restoring my PC?

Specs…
OS: Windows 7 64 bit OEM
Processor: Intel i7-2600K Stock 3.40 GHz
RAM: 8GB Kingston HyperX
Graphics card: Radeon HD 6970 2GB ×1 Stock
Hard drive: 500GB 7200Rpm
SSD: 120GB
Motherboard: Gigabyte GA-Z68A-D3H-B3

 

[scout_03]

after the os install the motherboard one and check if the network one are install so you could use windows update for the others also use amd for the latest driver for the gpu card.

 

[ashiataka]

Windows obviously includes a core set of drivers so that it will function.

However you'll most likely want to get graphics drivers from the AMD website here http://support.amd.com/us/gpudownload/windows/Pages/radeonaiw_vista64.aspx

I think you can also get drivers for motherboards as well.

 

[EzioAs]

Motherboard and video cards require drivers which you can easily get from the manufacturer's website. For video cards, go to the nvidia or AMD website depending on which cards you have and the same thing for motherboards (Asus, Gigabyte, MSI, Asrock, Intel). In your case, you'll have to go to the AMD website and find the drivers based on your specific card and OS version. For your motherboards, go to the gigabyte website, find your specific model and search for downloads or supports there. Find the necessary drivers: chipset, sound, USB, network, etc and install it. Afterwards do a windows update and install anything necessary (you might have to reboot). You can tell which components you have not installed drivers yet by opening device manager in control panel

 

[soberllama]

So most drivers will install automatically?

 

[soberllama]

Best answer selected by soberllama.

 

[EzioAs]

So most drivers will install automatically?

Yes

 

[JKatwyopc]

When you install Windows, it automatically installs all of the drivers necessary for most devices. However, there are a few exceptions. I don't see any of those exceptions in your build. The only one you might run into a problem with is the USB 3.0 driver for the motherboard. You can get that from the Gigabyte website: GA-Z68A-D3H-B3 (rev. 1.3). Also, if you have a Wireless USB Network adaptor, windows may not include a compatible driver for that so you will have to download and install it after windows is installed (or use the Driver CD that comes with it).