An important problem that any user very often faces is searching for a driver by device code. Yes, nowadays there are many programs for searching for drivers, sites offering these services, good people with gigabyte flash drives for almost all devices. But imagine a situation where there is no help code nearby, but the issue needs to be resolved!
Finding a driver by device instance code
Go to Control Panel\All Control Panel Items\System, on the right side of the screen we find the “Device Manager” link, click on it. In the list we find a device that does not have drivers (a yellow exclamation mark is displayed next to it). Right-click on it and select “Properties”
A window will open in which information with an error code will be provided.
Now we need to go to the “Details” section. In the menu, select “Device Instance Code” and copy the data that will be provided below.
We need to insert this information into the search bar on the website www.devid.info
At the end, all that remains is to download and install.
There is also a similar portal that will help in the search - www.pcidatabase.com. Here you just need to insert the numbers into Vendor Search, which come after Ven_. And in Device Search, those that are after DEV_.
05.04.2017
Finding drivers for various hardware is a common task for every Windows user. At times when the driver disk is lost or the exact model of various, especially rare and specific solutions is unknown, this procedure can cause some difficulties. In this situation, searching for the required driver by hardware identifier often helps.
Despite the somewhat “unusual” nature of the methods described below for the average user, searching for a driver by hardware ID is sometimes the only way to ensure that the operating system and device work together. This is especially true for obsolete hardware solutions and devices designed to perform rarely used functions.
Let's divide the task of finding a driver into two stages: determining the hardware ID and, in fact, finding a suitable solution to the problem, resorting to the use of Global Network resources.
Step 1: Determine Device ID
What is a hardware ID? To simplify the definition of this concept, we can say that an identifier is a certain “code” in the hexadecimal number system, containing information about the manufacturer and model of each device. The ID is stored in the hardware itself, cannot be changed at the user’s request and is determined directly by the OS without a driver.
Step 2: Search for driver
All information about the ID of almost all released devices is stored on the Internet. To access it you do not need any special permissions (almost everything described is in the public domain). Therefore, let's take advantage of the opportunities Google to initially find out the equipment model by ID, and then by searching for a driver (in principle, you can use any other well-known search engine).
And there are services that offer not only identification of the manufacturer and model of equipment, but also provide links to download drivers. Three examples:
As you can see, nothing is impossible, by carefully using ordinary and simple tools, you can find a driver for each, even the rarest device, and then fully use all the functions of the equipment.
A detailed description of how you can quickly determine the device identifier (ID) for further selection and installation of the necessary drivers.
A short introduction
The problem of finding drivers for a variety of devices has already been repeatedly raised in various materials on this resource. The most complete guide on this topic is:.
Within the framework of this article, we will only consider the process of determining the device identifier for subsequent search and installation of the necessary drivers. Unlike the method proposed above, we will not have to download and install additional utilities; we will limit ourselves to the built-in Windows tools. This material is aimed primarily at beginners.
General information about the device ID
For many novice users, the phrase “device identifier” will mean absolutely nothing. Before moving on to the main part of the article, it makes sense to understand what it is and why a certain identifier is needed.
It just so happens that computer equipment consists of a huge number of different chips, devices and other parts. In order for all this to somehow work with Windows, you need to install a small layer - drivers. They are also very different and only work with certain devices. Roughly speaking, if your Wi-Fi does not work, then before installing all the drivers in a row, you need to find out which wireless module you have and what driver is needed for it. And this is where the problems begin. How to find out which module is worth?
It is precisely for this purpose that the device identifier was invented. It contains information about the manufacturer and model of the equipment, which will allow you to avoid a huge pile of problems and install exactly the driver you need.
Technically, this identifier is a set of strings that are stored directly in the device or chip itself. Depending on the type of equipment and connection method, they look like VENxxxx&DEVxxxx, VIDxxxx&PIDxxxx, ACPI... etc.. Instead xxxx Usually there are 4 digits in hexadecimal (0 - 9 and A - F). The first four digits indicate the manufacturer, the second about the device model. Sometimes other lines like SUBSYS that talk about modification. It is along these lines that forum participants in the section of our forum find the necessary drivers.
And so, the question of what an equipment identifier is and why it is needed is more or less cleared up. Let's move directly to its definition.
Determining the Device ID
In operating systems of the Windows family, this process is approximately the same. First you need to open, select the desired device and find this identifier in its properties. Let's look at this in more detail using different systems as an example.
Windows 7
First of all, we need to go to Properties of the system. This is done either through Control Panel - System, or by pressing keys Win+Break, or through Computer properties in the Start menu:
After that, click on Device Manager at the top left:
Find the one you need in the list of devices and go to its properties:
Typically, devices without drivers or with incorrectly installed drivers are marked with yellow icons. They interest us first of all.
After this, in the window that appears, go to the tab Intelligence and select in the window:
The lines we need should appear in the window below. There is no need to copy all of them; one with VEN/VID, DEV/PID and SUBSYS/REV codes is enough. For USB devices like webcams or Bluetooth adapters, these lines look different:
And for touchpads and some system devices, the value of the equipment ID field may be as follows:
On systems with Windows 8, 8.1 and 10, the procedure for determining these strings is generally similar. Let's consider it.
Windows 8, 8.1 and 10
For start Device Manager In addition to the methods mentioned above, you can also use the search built into the system:
After that, select the desired device:
And go to its properties through the context menu. After that, go to the tab Intelligence and select in the window:
As you can see, there is nothing complicated. To complete the picture, let's look at how this is done on Windows XP.
Windows XP
First, go to My Computer Properties:
After that, on the tab Equipment press the button:
After that, select the desired device from the list and open its properties.
Salute, readers.
So let's start from the beginning. When you purchase a computer, along with the kit, you are provided with disks with drivers for your equipment (video card, sound card, etc.).
If you decide to reinstall the system, then naturally all the drivers will be lost and you will need to reinstall them. But what if you don’t have these disks left, or are simply lost? In this case, we need to download the driver from the Internet, but first we need to determine the code of that device.
Procedure
If you are using Windows XP, the Details tab will be Device Instance ID.
- There, in the details, the information we need will appear, namely the equipment ID.
- Now we copy this value and go to the site https://devid.info.
- In the search field we insert the found code (ID) of the device and click “OK”. Within a short period of time you will be provided with a list of drivers that are suitable for your device.
That's all.
See you soon, friends.
And one of the mandatory items was installing drivers. Installing them is easy: just click Next - Next - Finish (as when installing any other program).
The easiest and most reliable way is to find installation drivers at the office. manufacturer's website. Let's say you have a Lenovo laptop.
- Go to the Lenovo website (the easiest way is to write “Lenovo laptop drivers” in Yandex or Google).
- Select the “Laptops” item and indicate its series and model.
- A new page will load. Find the Top Downloads item and click “View all”.
- Select the device for which you want to download the driver and indicate the version of your operating system.
- Click on the arrow in the “Download File” field and download the installation file.
- Repeat this procedure until all the necessary drivers (for sound, Internet, etc.) are loaded.
It is recommended that you save these files somewhere and store them carefully. And when reinstalling Windows, copy it to a USB flash drive in advance. In this case, you will not have to go to the manufacturer’s website every time and download drivers.
What to do if you don’t know the model of your video card, motherboard and other devices?
And you don’t even know which drivers are installed and which are not? As a rule, beginners find out about this only when they discover that there is no Internet on the computer, or an error pops up when starting the game. In this case, you need to go to the device manager. This is where you can determine which drivers need to be installed.
To open it, go to Start - Control Panel - Device Manager.
You can try updating it using Windows. The fact is that the Windows 7, 8 and 10 operating systems have a built-in driver database. And in some cases, they can find and install it themselves. True, they need to be pushed, otherwise they won’t figure it out on their own.
To do this, double-click the left mouse button on the device with the yellow exclamation mark, go to the “Driver” tab and click the “Update” button.
The Windows operating system will try to find and install it on its own, although there is no guarantee that it will succeed.
Search for drivers by hardware ID
If the attempt is unsuccessful, you can find it by the equipment ID. ID is a unique device code that can be used to identify it.
In the screenshot above, Google suggests that this device is responsible for sound, and even provided a link to download the driver for it. Pretty good, right?
Using a similar method, you can find drivers for an unknown device. That is, even if you don’t know what it’s called exactly. For example, you can use the same method.
You can also search for drivers on the DevID website. Just paste the device code you copied earlier and download the file.
How to find drivers using utilities
In this case, you can use the AIDA64 program (it is free, there is a 30-day trial period).
Launch it, select the desired device (for example, HD Audio) and look at the very bottom for the link to download the driver for it. Very simple and convenient.
Automatic search and installation of drivers
Best suited for beginners, as well as users who do not want to go to the manufacturer’s website and manually download them.
There are different programs for automatically searching and installing drivers on a computer or laptop. One of the most popular is the free DriverPack Solution (office site https://drp.su/).
There are 2 installers to choose from – Online and Offline. The first takes about 300 KB (after all, everything will be downloaded from the Internet), and the second – 11.3 GB (the program is periodically updated, so the size may increase).
In the second case, an ISO file will be downloaded, so if you don’t know how to open it, I recommend reading – ?
Which option is better to choose? If Windows is already installed and you have Internet access, then you can download the online installer. If you are just going to reinstall the operating system, then it is better to download the offline version and write it to a flash drive (in case there is no Internet).
After this, follow the following instructions:
- Launch the program.
- Wait for it to scan the system and identify installed and missing drivers.
- Click the “Update” button.
- A new window will appear where you can uncheck items that you do not need (browsers, archivers, etc.).
- You wait for the program to do its job.
- A window will appear asking you to restart your computer (or laptop). You agree.
Ready. After a reboot everything should work like clockwork.
P.S. If all this is too difficult for you, then I recommend reading -.