Having trouble updating drivers

Esanders323 · 30 Nov 2011

Hi,

I have a custom built desktop PC and I have been trying to find drivers online to see wether I have the up-to-date drivers. So far it has been a nightmare! I have a few questions that I can't seem to figure out the answer to. Any assistance would be greatly appreciated!

Here are my PC specs (let me know if I miss something)

Mainboard : MSI P67A-C43 (MS-7673)
Chipset : Intel Sandy Bridge
Processor : Intel Core i5 2500K @ 3300MHz
Physical Memory : 4096MB (2 x 2048 DDR3-SDRAM )
Video Card : AMD Radeon HD 6700 Series
Hard Disk : Seagate ST31000524AS ATA Device (1000GB)
DVD-Rom Drive : ASUS DRW-24B1ST a
Network Card : Realtek Semiconductor RTL8168/8111 PCIe Gigabit Ethernet Adapter
Operating System : Windows 7 Home Premium Home Edition Media Center 6.01.7601 Service Pack 1 (64-bit)

1. What hardware do I check for?

I believe this is what I check online for for the drivers

Processor
Graphics Card
Motherboard
Hard drive
Sound Card
Hard drive

I'm sure I am missing a few

2. I have an extremely hard time trying to find the drivers.
For instance, my processer is an Intel Core i5 2500k (3.30Ghz)
I went to the Intel website (I tried the update utility, but I'm not sure if that works for the processor or not) and I got to here (I select Windows 7 Home Premium 64-bit version in the "Select an Operating System" window). I believe that is the location I look for an updated driver for my processor at. However, in the description all of the drivers say "Installs graphics driver version 15.22.52.64.2559 (8.15.10.2559) for Intel® integrated graphics." I wanted to instal a processor driver not a graphics driver. I have these kinds of troubles where I get confused and don't know what to do all the time when trying to update my drivers.

3. Should I ever use a driver updating software?
I would love to use one, but I heard that they aren't a good idea.

4. Intel(R) 6 Series/C200 Series Chipset Family 2 port Serial ATA Storage Controller - 1C08
I can't seem to find that anywhere. I wanted to check and see if it was up to date.

5. Is device manager/windows update a sufficient way to update?
I know that you can update through device manager or windows update, but it seems like sometimes they are late to catch up on a new driver.

Thank you!

theog · 30 Nov 2011

You can install all the needed drivers from the MSI P67A-C43 Driver & App CD.There is also a Update Driver App.
or
Download from here:
MSI Global ? Mainboard - P67A-C43

stormy13 · 30 Nov 2011

1.

Processor - you will never find an update for this as it is included in Windows.
Graphics Card - Get it directly from AMD.
Motherboard - better to get the chipset updates from Intel (or AMD if an AMD motherboard) as the motherboard manufacturers rarely ever put up updated chipset drivers.
Hard drive - again part of Windows, so nothing to update
Sound Card - same as the chipset, get it from Realtek, Creative, etc
Hard drive - again part of Windows.

2. See #1

3. Only if you like using comfortware and or snake oil and like paying for things that are free (driver updates).

4. Get it from Intel.

5. Never, despite what some may claim. It can be OK for some things, but I wouldn't rely on it for major component drivers (video, audio, chipset).

Esanders323 · 30 Nov 2011

Thank you for the replies.
The Intel(R) 6 Series/C200 Series Chipset Family 2 port Serial ATA Storage Controller - 1C08 comes with the chipset correct?

Is this the correct download for that then? If it is, the link that theog provided showed an even newer version... which doesn't really make sense. Since that would imply that MSI has an intel driver update before intel??? I probably have something wrong there because that wouldn't make any sense.

Also, my processor driver says it is from 2006. Is that most likely out dated then? Here is a pic

Lastly, to figure out if a driver is included in windows (ie my processor like you said) can you go to device manager>properties>driver
and then under drive provider if it says windows, that means it is included in windows?

Thank you for the assistance! I really appreciate it!

stormy13 · 01 Dec 2011

Also, my processor driver says it is from 2006

So does absolutely everyone else's. Stop worrying about it as it isn't outdated or need to be updated.

And yes the Intel Update Utility is all you need for updating Intel chipsets. Intel graphics would be a separate download, but seeing as you're not using it not needed.

Lastly, to figure out if a driver is included in windows (ie my processor like you said) can you go to device manager>properties>driver
and then under drive provider if it says windows, that means it is included in windows?

You're making it harder than it is. Stop going through every device listed in Device Manager. Not counting external peripherals (mouse, keyboard, printers, etc) which can be updated with the manufacturers drivers if available (or needed), the only drivers you should be looking at updating on a properly working system are the video and sound drivers.

Esanders323 · 01 Dec 2011

Thanks a lot. Your help has helped me a lot!

My last question. I think there is a possibility that before your advice I could have installed an incorrect driver. There was once that the driver installer told me my computer didn't meet the requirements so I am assuming that it was the incorrect driver. If I happened to have installed an incorrect driver, is there any concern? Is there any way to detect if I installed an incorrect driver, other than my computer acting strange (which I have not yet noticed)? I don't think I would make that mistake with your advice now.

Once again thanks for your advice!

stormy13 · 01 Dec 2011

When you get that error message when installing (or trying to install) a driver, the install auto cancels and nothing gets installed.