Keeping your drivers up to date is essential to ensure the proper performance of devices connected to your Windows computer. While most people rely on graphical interfaces to update drivers, the Command Prompt (CMD) offers a quick and efficient way to accomplish this task. In this article, we’ll explore how you can use CMD commands to update drivers in Windows.

1. Updating Drivers Using Windows Update

Windows Update is the simplest and safest way to update drivers, as it automatically checks for available updates for your hardware.

Steps:

1. Open Command Prompt as Administrator:
   • Right-click the Start menu and select "Command Prompt (Admin)" or "Windows PowerShell (Admin)".
2. Type the following command and press Enter:

   wuauclt.exe /detectnow

3. Wait while Windows Update checks for available driver updates.
4. If updates are found, Windows Update will download and install them automatically.

2. Updating Drivers Using DISM (Deployment Image Servicing and Management)

DISM is a powerful tool that allows you to manage drivers directly via CMD. It’s useful for adding drivers manually or checking installed drivers.

Check Installed Drivers:

1. Open Command Prompt as Administrator.
2. To list all installed drivers on the system, use the command:

   dism /online /get-drivers

   This will display a list of drivers with details such as name, provider, and publish date.

Add a Specific Driver:

1. If you have the driver file (.inf), use the following command to install it:

   dism /online /add-driver /driver:c:\path\to\driver.inf

   Replace c:\path\to\driver.inf with the full path to the driver file.

2. To add all drivers in a directory, use:

   dism /online /add-driver /driver:c:\directory\with\drivers /recurse

   This will install all valid drivers in the specified directory.

Verify if the Driver Was Installed Correctly:

1. After installing the driver, verify if it was added correctly with the command:

   dism /online /get-drivers | findstr "driver_name"

   Replace driver_name with the name of the driver you installed.

3. Updating Drivers Using PnPUtil

PnPUtil is a built-in Windows tool that allows you to install, remove, and list drivers via CMD.

Install a Driver:

1. Open Command Prompt as Administrator.
2. Use the following command to install a driver:

   pnputil /add-driver c:\path\to\driver.inf

   Replace c:\path\to\driver.inf with the path to the driver file.

List Installed Drivers:

1. To view all installed drivers, use:

   pnputil /enum-drivers

Remove a Driver:

1. To remove a driver, first list the installed drivers with pnputil /enum-drivers and note the driver name.
2. Use the following command to remove it:

   pnputil /delete-driver DRIVER_NAME.inf

   Replace DRIVER_NAME.inf with the name of the driver you want to remove.

4. Checking Drivers with Driverquery

The driverquery command allows you to list all installed drivers on the system, which is useful for identifying outdated or problematic drivers.

Steps:

1. Open Command Prompt as Administrator.
2. Type the following command:

   driverquery

3. To export the list of drivers to a text file, use:

   driverquery > c:\path\to\driver_list.txt

5. Important Tips

• Trusted Sources: Always download drivers from trusted sources, such as the hardware manufacturer’s official website.
• Compatibility: Ensure the drivers are compatible with your version of Windows and hardware.
• Backup: Before updating or installing drivers, create a system backup to avoid potential issues.

Conclusion

Updating drivers in Windows is a crucial task to ensure the proper functioning of devices connected to your computer. While there are several ways to accomplish this, using CMD can be a quick and efficient option. In this article, we’ve provided examples of commands to update drivers using Windows Update, DISM, PnPUtil, and Driverquery. Try these methods and keep your drivers up to date for optimal computer performance.