Drivers are software programs for computers that enable interaction between a computer and computer hardware and devices. You can use Windows Update to locate and install the missing drivers required for the hardware or device connected to your computer to function properly. If Windows Update does not find the drivers you need, you may use a third-party program to locate the missing drivers. Driver Detective, Driver Genius and DriverFinder are third-party programs designed to find the drivers missing from your computer.
Windows Update
Use Microsoft's Windows Update to find the drivers missing from your computer before attempting to find the drivers using third-party software. Open the Windows "Start" menu, select "All Programs" and open "Windows Update" or visit the Windows Update website to open Windows Update. Click "Check For Updates" from the left-side pane in Windows Update and select "View Available Updates" to perform a search for all available driver updates for the devices installed on your computer. If the search returned with a driver that you are missing, select the driver and click "Install."
Driver Detective
Driver Detective is a program designed by PC Drivers Headquarters to maintain your computer with the most recent available driver updates. Driver Detective searches for missing drivers and driver updates specific to your computer's hardware. Driver Detective can also be used to create backup copies of your drivers for safe storage on an external storage device. According to PC Drivers Headquarters' website, Driver Detective is compatible with Microsoft Windows 7, Vista, XP and 32-bit or 64-bit versions of the Microsoft Windows 2000 Operating System (OS). Driver Detective requires that your computer have at least 256 MB of RAM, 22 MB of available hard drive space and a 300 MHz processor.
Driver Genius
Driver Soft's Driver Genius is a program designed to optimize your computer's performance by finding missing drivers and driver updates specific to your computer. Driver Genius can be synchronized with Driver Soft's LiveUpdate driver database to provide convenient access to the most recent software driver updates available. According to Driver Soft's website, a large number of drivers are added to Driver Soft's LiveUpdate driver database every day. Driver Genius Professional Edition version 10 is compatible with versions of Microsoft Windows 98 and later and requires at least 64 MB of RAM, 10 MB of free hard drive space and a Pentium-class processor.
DriverFinder
DriverFinder is a driver update tool that finds software drivers missing from your computer and installs them automatically. DriverFinder first scans your computer to detect information about your computer's hardware and device drivers, then compare the drivers currently installed on your computer with the drivers in DriverFinder's Driver Database (DDD) to determine which drivers your computer needs. DriverFinder then automatically downloads and installs the appropriate drivers required for your computer's hardware and devices. DriverFinder is compatible with versions of Windows 2000 and later and requires a computer with at least 256 MB of RAM, 8 MB of free hard disk space, a 300 MHz processor and an active Internet connection.
Tags: your computer, Windows Update, Driver Detective, Driver Genius, driver updates, computer hardware