Updating and Rolling Back Device Drivers

Outdated or corrupt drivers cause hardware malfunctions, BSODs, and performance issues. Access Device Manager by right-clicking Start > Device Manager. Devices with problems show a yellow warning icon. To update a driver: right-click the device > Update driver. Choose 'Search automatically' for Windows Update drivers, or 'Browse my computer' to install a driver you downloaded directly from the manufacturer's website (preferred for graphics cards, network adapters, and printers — manufacturer drivers are usually better than generic Windows ones). If a problem started after a driver update: right-click the device > Properties > Driver tab > Roll Back Driver. This restores the previous version. If Roll Back is greyed out, the previous driver is no longer available — find the older version on the manufacturer's support site and install manually. After any driver change, reboot to confirm stability.