Device Drivers Management Tool

There are several areas in Windows 8 from which you can manage devices and their related drivers:

Metro Style Device Apps
Device Manager
Device Stage
The Pnputil tool run from an elevated command prompt

Metro Style Device Apps

Windows 8 introduces Metro style device apps. Metro style device apps build on the plug-and-play experience from Windows 7. Using these apps, device manufacturers can deliver an app that's paired with their device, and automatically downloaded to the user the first time the device is connected. Providing a Metro style device app gives hardware developers a unique opportunity to showcase device functionality.

Device Manager

Device Manager helps you install and update the drivers for hardware devices, change the hardware settings for those devices, and troubleshoot problems. You can perform the following tasks in Device Manager:

View a list of installed devices:
View all devices that are currently installed based on their type, by their connection to the computer, or by the resource they use. This device list is recreated after every system restart or dynamic change.
Uninstall a device:
Uninstall the device driver, and remove the driver software from the computer.
Enable or disable devices:
If you want a device to remain attached to a computer without being enabled, you can disable the device instead of uninstalling it. Disable is different from uninstall because only the drivers are disabled and the hardware configuration is not changed.
Troubleshoot devices:
Determine whether the hardware on your computer is working properly. If a device is not operating correctly, it may be listed as Unknown Device, with a yellow question mark next to it.
Update device drivers:
If you have an updated driver for a device, you can use Device Manager to apply the updated driver.
Roll back drivers:
If you experience system problems after updating a driver, you can roll back to the previous driver by using driver rollback. Using this feature, you can reinstall the last device driver that was functioning before the installation of the current device driver.

You can use Device Manager to manage devices only on a local computer. On a remote computer, Device Manager works in read-only mode. This means that you can view, but not change, that computer's hardware configuration. Device Manager is accessible in the Hardware and Sound category in Control Panel.

View the Status of a Device

The status of device shows whether the device has drivers installed and whether Windows is able to communicate with the device. To view the status of a device, follow these steps in Device Manager:

Right-click the device, and then clock Properties.
On the General tab, the Device status area shows a description of the current status.

Hidden Devices

The most common type of hidden device is for non-Plug and Play devices and network adapters. To view hidden devices in Device Manager, click View, and then click Show hidden devices.

Devices and Printers

The Hardware and Sound category in Control Panel provides an additional place to manage devices, such as Devices and Printers. Wizards guide you through the setup process, which reduces complex configuration tasks. Windows 8 recognizes new devices, and attempts to automatically download and install any drivers required for that device.

After the device is connected, it appears in the Devices and Printers folder. Devices that display in this location are usually external ones that you connect or disconnect from the computer through a port or network connection. These devices include, but are not limited to, the following:

Portable devices, such as mobile phones, music players, and digital cameras.
All devices plugged into a USB port on the computer such as flash drives, webcams, keyboards, and mice.
All printers, whether they are connected by USB cable, the network, or wirelessly.
Bluetooth and Wireless USB devices.
The computer itself.
Network-enabled scanners or media extenders.

Devices and Printers do not include the following:

Devices, such as internal hard drives, disc drives, sound cards, video or graphics cards, memory, processors, and other internal computer components.
Speakers connected to the computer with conventional speaker wires.
Older devices, such as mice and keyboards that connect to the computer through a PS/2 or serial port.

In Devices and Printers, a multifunction printer shows and can be managed as one device instead of individual printer, scanner, or fax device. In Device Manager, each individual component of a multifunction printer is displayed and managed separately.

PC Settings

A new option with Windows 8 is the PC Settings tool on the Start menu. To access this tool, you open the Start menu from the right corner, and then click on More PC Settings. In the left pane of that tool, you can click Devices, and then add devices or remove already installed devices.

Device Stage

Device Stage provides users with a new way to access devices and advanced options for managing them. Devices in use are shown with a photo-realistic icon. This icon can include quick access to common device tasks and status indicators that let users quickly discern battery status, device synchronization status, remaining storage capacity, and other information. Device makers can customize this experience to highlight device capabilities and branding, and can include links to product manuals, additional applications, community information and help, or additional products and services.

The entire Device Stage experience remains current. Graphics, task definitions, status information, and links to websites are distributed to computers by using the Windows Metadata Information Service (WMIS).

Options for Updating Drivers

A newer version of a device driver often adds functionality and fixes problems that were discovered in earlier versions, and you can resolve many hardware problems by installing updated device drivers. Also, device driver updates often help to resolve security problems and improve performance.

Dynamic Update is a feature that works with Windows Update to download any critical fixes and device drivers that are required during the setup process. Dynamic Update downloads new drivers for devices that are connected to the computer and are required to run Setup. This feature updates the required Setup files and improves the process so that you can get started successfully with Windows 8.

Dynamic Update downloads the following types of files:

Critical Updates:
Dynamic Update replaces files from the Windows 8 operating system DVD that require critical fixes or updates. Dynamic Update also replaces DLLs that setup required. The only files that are downloaded are those that replace existing files. No new files are downloaded.
Device drivers:
Dynamic Update only downloads drivers that are not included on the operating system CD or DVD. Dynamic Update does not update existing drivers, but you can obtain these by connecting to Windows Update after setup is compete.

When updated device drivers are required, Microsoft is working to ensure that you can get them directly from Windows Update or from device manufacturer Web sites. Look up Windows Update first to update drivers after they are installed. If the updated device driver is not available through Windows Update, find the latest version of the device driver by any of the following method:

Visit the computer manufacturer's website for an updated driver.
Visit the hardware manufacturer's website.
Search the Internet by using the device name.

You can perform manual device updates in Device Manager. To manually update the driver used for a device, follow these steps in Device Manager:

Double-click the type of device you want to update.
Right-click the device and then click Update Driver Software.
Follow the instructions in the Update Driver Software Wizard.

Windows 8 also includes several enhancements to the upgrade experience, including a load driver feature. If an upgrade is blocked due to incompatible or missing drivers that are required for the system to boot, you can use this feature to load a new or updated driver from the Compatibility Report, and continue with the upgrade.

Managing Signed Drivers

Because device drivers run with system-level privileges and can access anything on the computer, it is critical to trust device drivers that are installed. Trust, in this context, includes two main principles:

Authenticity: a guarantee that the package came from its claimed source.
Integrity: an assurance that the package is completely intact and has not been modified after its released.

Administrators and end users who are installing Windows-based software can use digital signature to verify that a legitimate publisher has provided the software package. It is an electronic security marks that indicates the publisher of the software and if someone has changed the driver package's original contents. If a publisher signs a driver, you can be confident that the driver comes from that publisher and has not been altered.

A digital signature uses the organization's digital certificate to encrypt specific details about the package. The encrypted information in a digital signature includes a thumbprint for each file included with the package. A special cryptographic algorithm referred to as a hashing algorithm generates this thumbprint. The algorithm generates a code that only that file's contents can create. Changing a single bit in the file changed the thumbprint. After the thumbprints are generated, they are combined together into a catalog, and then encrypted.

Note:
64-bit Windows 8 versions require that all drivers be signed.

If you organization has a Software Publishing Certificate, you can use that to add your own digital signature to drivers that you have tested and that you trust. If you experience stability problems after you install a new hardware device, an unsigned device driver might be cause.

Signature Verification Tool

You can use Sigverif.exe to check if unsigned device drivers are in the system area of a computer. Sigverif.exe writes the results of the scan to a log file that includes the system file, the signature file, and the signature file's publisher. The log file shows any unsigned device drivers as unsigned. You then can choose whether to remove the unsigned drivers.

To remove an unsigned device driver, follow these steps:

Run Sigverif to scan for unsigned drivers and then review the resulting log file.
Create a temporary folder for the storage of unsigned drivers.
Manually move an unsigned drivers from systemroot\System32\Drivers into the temporary folder.
Disable or uninstall the associated hardware devices.
Restart the computer.

If This resolves the problem, try to obtain a signed driver from the hardware vendor or replace the hardware with a device that is Windows 8-capable.

You can obtain a basic list of signed and unsigned device drivers from a command prompt by running the driverquery command with the /si switch.

Note:
Some hardware vendors use their own digital signatures so that drivers can have a valid digital signature, even if Microsoft has not tested them. The Sigverif report lists the vendors for each signed driver. This can help you identify problem drivers issued by particular vendors.

Benefits of Signing and Staging Driver Packages

Because device driver software runs as a part of the operating system, it is critical that only known and authorized device drivers are permitted to run. Signing and staging device driver packages on client computers provide the following benefits:

Improved security:
You can allow standard users to install approved device drivers without compromising computer security or requiring help-desk assistance.
Reduced support costs:
Users can only install devices that your organization has tested and is prepared to support. Therefore, you will maintain the security of the computer as you simultaneously reduce the demands on the help desk.
Better user experience:
A driver package that is staged in the driver store works automatically when the user plugs in the device. Alternatively, driver packages placed on a shared network folder can be discovered whenever the operating system detects a new hardware device. In both cases, the user is not prompted before installation.

Configuring the Certificate Store to Support an Unknown Certificate Authority

On each computer, Windows maintains a store for digital certificates. As the computer administrator, you can add certificates from trusted publishers. If a package is received for which a matching certificate cannot be found, Windows requires confirmation that the publisher is trusted. By placing a certificate in the certificate store, you inform Windows that packages signed by that certificate are trusted.

Options for Recovering from a Driver Issue

You can use driver rollback to recover from a device problem if your computer can start successfully, using Sage Mode if necessary. This is most useful in cases when a device driver update has created a problem. Driver rollback reconfigures a device to use a previously installed driver, overwriting a more recent driver.

To roll back a driver, restart the computer, if necessary, in Safe Mode. You can start the computer in Safe Mode by pressing F8 during boot sequence, which accesses the Advanced Boot Options menu. You then select Safe Mode from the list. After you have started the computer successfully, as an administrative user, follow these steps to roll back a device driver:

Open Device Manager.
Right-click the device to rollback, and then click Properties.
In the Properties dialog box, click the Drivers tab, and then click Roll Back Driver.
In the Driver Package rollback dialog box, click Yes.

Note:
Rolling back a driver can cause the loss of new functionality, and can reintroduce problems that the newer version addressed.

Note:
The Roll Back Driver button is available only if a previous version of the driver was installed. If the current driver for the device is the only one that was ever installed on the computer, then the Roll Back Driver button is not available.

System Restore

In rare cases, after you install a device or update a driver for a device, the computer may not start. This problem may occur in the following situations:

The new device or the driver causes conflicts with other drivers that are installed on the computer.
A hardware-specific issue occurs.
The driver that is installed is damaged.

Sometimes, performing a driver rollback is not sufficient to recover from a computer problem. If you are unable to recover the computer by using driver rollback, consider using System Restore.

System Restore can be used when you want to retain all new data and changes to existing files, but still perform a restore of the system from when it was running well. Windows 8 lets you return your computer to the way that it was at a previous point in time, without deleting any personal files. System Restore is reversible, because an undo restore point is created before the restore operations are completed. During the restoration, a list of files appears showing applications that will be removed or added. To restore a computer to a previous configuration by using System Restore, you can use:

Safe Mode.
Windows Recovery Environment (RE).

Last Known Good Configuration

Even the earliest versions of the Microsoft Windows NT operating system provided the Last Known Good Configuration option as a way of rolling the system back to a previous configuration. In Windows 8, some startup-related configuration and device-related configuration information is stored in the registry database, specifically, the HKLM\SYSTEM hive. A series of Control Sets are stored beneath this registry hive, most notably CurrentControlSet and LastKnownGood. The latter is located in the HKLM\SYSTEM\Select node.

When you make a device configuration change to the computer, the change is stored in the CurrentControlSet key, in the appropriate registry folder and value. After you restart the computer, and successfully log on, Windows synchronizes the CurrentControlSet key and the LastKnownGood key.

However, if, after a device configuration change, you experience a startup problem, but do not log on, the two control sets are out of sync, and the LastKnownGood key contains the previous configuration set.

To use Last Known Good Configuration, restart the computer without logging on, and press F8 during the boot sequence to access the Advanced Boot Options menu. Select Last Known Good Configuration (advanced) from the list.

If you have a hardware problem, the cause could be hardware or a device driver. Fortunately, the process to update device drivers to a newer version is straightforward. Alternatively, you can roll back device drivers to an older version or reinstall them. Troubleshooting hardware problems often starts by troubleshooting device drivers. To identify a device driver problem, answer the following questions:

Did you recently upgrade the device driver or other software related to the hardware? If so, roll back the device driver to the previous version.
Are you experiencing occasional problems, or is the device not compatible with the current version of Windows? If so, upgrade the device driver.
Did the hardware suddenly stop working? If so, upgrade the device driver. If that does not solve the problem, reinstall the device driver. If the problem continues, try troubleshooting the hardware problem.

[Previous] [Contents]