Solved Microsoft drivers I don't need

Over the years I have found that the Microsoft Drivers are designed to get you up and running quickly after installing your Operating System. This means that these drivers are more basic versions of those supplied by the manufacturers, ( not providing all options that the hardware is capable of providing).

Others are sometimes packaged into a generic driver that provides basic functionality for different hardware versions these are good in the short term but not as efficient or useful as the full versions supplied direct from the manufacturer. Of course it's also the case that should there be a fault discovered with the original Hardware or driver, then the Direct Manufacturers driver updates will be available sooner than the Microsoft ones.

It's always a good idea to check the issue date of any drivers from Microsoft or the manufacturers you have access to so you can make a decision on which will give the best support to the hardware. An older full function Manufacturer driver could be better than a newer limited or Generic driver from Microsoft

@glasskuter, you're liking barman58's post #21 has me confused. Does that mean you do or do not agree with what I've been saying about the drivers supplied by Windows Update not always the best?

Winuser said:

Does that mean you do or do not agree with what I've been saying about the drivers supplied by Windows Update not always the best?

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@barman58 stated "An older full function Manufacturer driver could be better than a newer limited or Generic driver from Microsoft."
You stated, "drivers supplied by Windows Update not always the best."

I partially agreed with you in post #11,
"That is true in some cases......... As long as a computer is not very old, the ones on the manufacturer site would be the way to go,"

All 3 of us agree. We're just stating it differently. But I also added "but we all know that most people never go there to look unless they have a problem. They sit fat and happy running outdated drivers that may be several years old. Most of us here know enough about drivers that we want to manage them ourselves, but most users don't have a clue. I think that's why MS took over responsibility for keeping Windows Home users up to date."

Then @Dch48 stated "Windows Update drivers have many times overwritten newer ones that people have installed from OEM sites. To avoid this, Microsoft has recently started backdating the drivers they offer to make them appear older than they really are so that these issues do not occur."
He is entirely correct. That says that any driver update WU offers is newer though it may not be OEM packaged.

So my stance here concerns the Joe Blows out there who DO NOT understand and who never manually update a driver in their entire life. The Joe Blows never look at "optional updates" That's why Microsoft now downloads hardware drivers by default to Home users and I feel these users SHOULD NOT turn this option off. As @Bree said they now even include "most recently the latest BIOS firmware update".

This entire subject is subjective for people that understand what drivers are, what they do, which ones are packaged OEM specific, and how Windows works. Those that do understand should handle their drivers in such a way that works for them. However, the Joe Blows should let Windows update handle it. There are more of them than there are of us.

Updating drivers has been a subject of contention for as long as I've messed with computers and folks have always had their own opinions of it, just as we here have differences of opinion. We all make valid points. For me, I try to base my decisions for what I do on what I know and understand and hope I make the right choices. I guess it comes down to I do what works for me and you do what works for you. Just because we do it differently does not make either of us wrong.

glasskuter said:

Joe Blows out there who DO NOT understand and who never manually update a driver in their entire life.

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Lol, imagine hearing that @ a Microsoft meeting on pushing drivers. Love the phrase.

When I install for a client, I never turn it off. Anywho, I can override drivers when i repair the machine and install updates. I can always remove a problematic driver but Joe Blow always has the recommended and latest or close to latest driver which is always best (in my opinion) for Joe Blow.

Like I have been saying, the supplied drivers from MS are OK but they may not be the best drivers for the way the user wants to use their computer. The driver updates supplied in Windows Update can be good or bad. It does help the average user by keeping their computers up to date. At the same time, it can cause a user to lose performance or added features they need. It can also cause the average user to experience problems that they don't know how to fix.

Zardoc said:

Lol, imagine hearing that @ a Microsoft meeting on pushing drivers. Love the phrase.

When I install for a client, I never turn it off. Anywho, I can override drivers when i repair the machine and install updates. I can always remove a problematic driver but Joe Blow always has the recommended and latest or close to latest driver which is always best (in my opinion) for Joe Blow.

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Even if the updated driver is causing the average user a problem and they have no clue how to solve it?

Winuser said:

Even if the updated driver is causing the average user a problem and they have no clue how to solve it?

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They all do the same. They call me (my clients) or they bring it to the store or they stop using it. And I have seen the latter. It's not supposed to happen and has happened only a few times with my clients in so many years. You know it's a Win bug because they all call you. Besides, if it doesn't happen with Windows it happens with Office. If not Office, then the printer and so on. I've gotten more calls with Office issues than Windows issues.

I just would still be leery of Windows Update drivers and not let them install automatically. You can configure your system so they download as optional updates and then you can pick and choose among them. That is what I would recommend to everyone, Joe Blow included.

I had one of my devices get totally borked by an Intel System driver that came from Windows Update. I tried everything to fix it and the only solution that finally worked was a wipe and reinstall of Windows, followed by Intel chipset driver installation, RCA proprietary driver installation, and finally, Intel Graphics driver installation. That is a hassle on that device because some of it's drivers are proprietary and can only be received from the manufacturer. They also have to be 32 bit because there are no 64 bit versions. The device therefore can only run 32 bit Windows 10. There are no updates for the proprietary drivers either. On that particular system, updating drivers after everything is working is a big no.

I still would disagree that the drivers offered by Windows are always the newest ones. I know for a fact that that's not true. I also know that sometimes the newest ones are not the best ones.

Dch48 said:

I had one of my devices get totally borked by an Intel System driver that came from Windows Update. I tried everything to fix it and the only solution that finally worked was a wipe and reinstall of Windows, followed by Intel chipset driver installation, RCA proprietary driver installation, and finally, Intel Graphics driver installation. That is a hassle on that device because some of it's drivers are proprietary and can only be received from the manufacturer. They also have to be 32 bit because there are no 64 bit versions. The device therefore can only run 32 bit Windows 10. There are no updates for the proprietary drivers either. On that particular system, updating drivers after everything is working is a big no.

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A question to the pros here who service computers. What 'officy' type of computers are the best when it comes to preventing disasters like in the above quote? (not just with regard to drivers) What 'officy' type of computers are the most reliable?

Edit: Come to think of it, my question is OT, I shall start a new thread, my apologies.

Zardoc said:

They all do the same. They call me (my clients) or they bring it to the store or they stop using it. And I have seen the latter. It's not supposed to happen and has happened only a few times with my clients in so many years. You know it's a Win bug because they all call you. Besides, if it doesn't happen with Windows it happens with Office. If not Office, then the printer and so on. I've gotten more calls with Office issues than Windows issues.

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Like I said, Windows updating drivers can be a good or bad. Because of automatic driver updates your customers had no control over they have to spend money to correct the problem. It may even have been a driver update they didn't need.

Dch48 said:

I just would still be leery of Windows Update drivers and not let them install automatically. You can configure your system so they download as optional updates and then you can pick and choose among them. That is what I would recommend to everyone, Joe Blow included.

I had one of my devices get totally borked by an Intel System driver that came from Windows Update. I tried everything to fix it and the only solution that finally worked was a wipe and reinstall of Windows, followed by Intel chipset driver installation, RCA proprietary driver installation, and finally, Intel Graphics driver installation. That is a hassle on that device because some of it's drivers are proprietary and can only be received from the manufacturer. They also have to be 32 bit because there are no 64 bit versions. The device therefore can only run 32 bit Windows 10. There are no updates for the proprietary drivers either. On that particular system, updating drivers after everything is working is a big no.

I still would disagree that the drivers offered by Windows are always the newest ones. I know for a fact that that's not true. I also know that sometimes the newest ones are not the best ones.

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Sadly, the average Joe Blow wouldn't have a clue how to do that.

@Dch48, for a device like that it definitely would pay to have up to date backup images. Backing up the drivers would also be a good thing to do.

barman58 said:

Over the years I have found that the Microsoft Drivers are designed to get you up and running quickly after installing your Operating System. This means that these drivers are more basic versions of those supplied by the manufacturers, ( not providing all options that the hardware is capable of providing).

Others are sometimes packaged into a generic driver that provides basic functionality for different hardware versions these are good in the short term but not as efficient or useful as the full versions supplied direct from the manufacturer. Of course it's also the case that should there be a fault discovered with the original Hardware or driver, then the Direct Manufacturers driver updates will be available sooner than the Microsoft ones.

It's always a good idea to check the issue date of any drivers from Microsoft or the manufacturers you have access to so you can make a decision on which will give the best support to the hardware. An older full function Manufacturer driver could be better than a newer limited or Generic driver from Microsoft

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There's also the false notion Microsoft installs all drivers for all hardware. This is simply not true, and especially for custom system builders where motherboards are concerned.

I'll bet some would be surprised to see what their Device Manager looks like as it should be clean and free of any yellow exclamation points or question marks. If you have any of those its 99 percent driver related 10 percent hardware (my number guess).

And even if you say they (exclamation/question marks) aren't causing issues, that just means you haven't run into it yet, or a particular strange issue you're having hasn't been connected to that (yet).

My opinion... always keep your Device Manager clean. And always check it after major upgrades.

My two cents.

Winuser said:

Like I said, Windows updating drivers can be a good or bad. Because of automatic driver updates your customers had no control over they have to spend money to correct the problem. It may even have been a driver update they didn't need.

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I get your point and you said it yourself. It an be good or bad. I tried both ways. If a driver gets funky whether I install it or they install it it will get funky and endup costing the customer. I usually stop updating drivers and disable driver updates when we get to a point that it's redundant. For instance, try telling me which driver is best for lets say an RT2070? Usually card makers suggest to update drivers but sometimes an older driver might be better. Or install an RST driver vs no RST driver and so on. Bottom line, if you don't want to learn, you pay.

Mind you, this is a touchy subject. Kind of makes me think of the issue best to shut down PC or let it run continuously.

Winuser said:

Sadly, the average Joe Blow wouldn't have a clue how to do that.

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II can honestly say that only three times have I had customer complaints that were driver issues. Back when Windows update automatically upgraded some customers from 7 to 10, one system blue-screened because the 7 graphics driver was not compatible. The other 2 times was because the sound drivers were missing after the upgrade. So none of these incidents were due to WU downloading a defective driver.

Those Joe Blows I talked about come to sites like this to learn and find solutions. It would be irresponsible for me to tell them they should turn off driver updating thru WU because for the most part, like @Zardoc said, it does a pretty good job.

Winuser said:

It may even have been a driver update they didn't need.

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But you or I are in no position to say whether it's needed or not. Many times driver updates fix security issues, or add features.

Like I said Winuser, it's all subjective. A user should handle drivers however it works for them.

@f23948 After all these posts I looked at your system specs (which I should have done in the first place.) You're running 11 on unsupported hardware. I know, I have an Optiplex 9020. Some of the drivers on Dell support page go all the way back to 2013 with the others 2015-2016-2017. FYI because of the age of that system, unless it involves a security issue, Dell hasn't posted updated drivers in a number of years because it is out of their support cycle.

The one thing I haven't seen in this thread is that it is entirely possible that an OEM will release a driver to Microsoft that is buggy. They don't intend for it to happen, but I'm pretty sure it will happen on occasion. On the other paw, it is entirely possible to get a buggy driver from the OEM's site . . .

Sometimes Microsoft can be a victim too . . .

glasskuter said:

II can honestly say that only three times have I had customer complaints that were driver issues. Back when Windows update automatically upgraded some customers from 7 to 10, one system blue-screened because the 7 graphics driver was not compatible. The other 2 times was because the sound drivers were missing after the upgrade. So none of these incidents were due to WU downloading a defective driver.

Those Joe Blows I talked about come to sites like this to learn and find solutions. It would be irresponsible for me to tell them they should turn off driver updating thru WU because for the most part, like @Zardoc said, it does a pretty good job.

But you or I are in no position to say whether it's needed or not. Many times driver updates fix security issues, or add features.

Like I said Winuser, it's all subjective. A user should handle drivers however it works for them.

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A very small percentage of the Joe Blow users as you call them know enough about computers to even come to forums like this one. If they did our replies would be like talking to them in an unknown language. In the example you gave it may not have been problems caused by Windows Update automatically updating drivers. It was a problem caused by Windows Update updating computers that had incompatible hardware or software. Don't get me wrong. I think that automatic updates can be a good thing. It's just that when they go wrong it can cost the users a lot of money to get their device fixed.

Winuser said:

Sadly, the average Joe Blow wouldn't have a clue how to do that.

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It's not hard and is done just through Windows settings. They just have to do an internet search. I described it in post #16. It doesn't say in settings that the result will be the drivers being downloaded as optional and not installed but that's what happens. I've done it on all of my systems.

Winuser said:

@Dch48, for a device like that it definitely would pay to have up to date backup images. Backing up the drivers would also be a good thing to do.

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Done and done. It also has an eMMC storage drive which the AOMEI Backupper doesn't recognize but Macrium does. The drivers are all stored in my One Drive. It's an RCA 2 in 1 tablet with a detachable keyboard. It has a pretty weak Intel Atom CPU and only 2 gigs of RAM. It runs 32 bit Windows 10 surprisingly well but does lock up when I try to do too many things at once.