Topic: Video Drivers - Ice Edge Business Solutions

Topic: Video Drivers
What is a video driver?
The video driver is a downloadable computer program that allows your software to interact with your
physical video card. This document will take you through the process of identifying and upgrading your
video driver.
Note: Upgrading your video driver is a significant change to one of the most vital devices on your computer.
Please follow these instructions carefully.
Last Updated: January 2010
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Topic: Video Drivers
Identifying your video driver
Identifying your video
driver
1. Locate the My Computer icon on your computer. This is typically found on your desktop. You can also access My
Computer through the Start menu. Right click on My Computer and go to Properties.
or
2. This will open the System Properties menu. Go to the Hardware tab and select Device Manager.
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Topic: Video Drivers
Identifying your video driver
Identifying your video
driver (cont.)
3. Expand the Display adapters list to reveal your video adapter. In the screen shot below, the video adapter is the
NVIDIA GeForce 8600 GT. Double-click on the video adapter listed.
4. Within the video driver Properties menu, go to the Driver tab. This displays important information about your video
driver and the latest driver software installed. Make note of the driver name, version number and date. In the
screen shot below, this information is NVIDIA GeForce 8600 GT, version 6.14.11.9562, November 2009.
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Topic: Video Drivers
Updating your video driver
Updating your video
driver
1. Go to the manufacturers website and locate the download section. This may be found under “Support”, or “Drivers”
or “Downloads” depending on the manufacturer. Here are some examples of typical driver download areas:
Do you really need to
update?
If the version and date of the driver
offered on the manufacturers website
is the same as the version and date of
your current driver, there is no need to
update.
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Topic: Video Drivers
Updating your video
driver (cont.)
Updating your video driver
In many cases, especially with prebuilt computers from major manufacturers, you can go directly to your
computer’s brand website to find and update your driver. Some video card manufacturers develop partnerships
with computer companies and will build specific cards for certain computer models. Whenever possible, use the
automatic detection option. This makes the process simpler and the choice of driver upgrades more accurate.
No automatic detection?
If your computer manufacturer does not
offer automatic detection for updates,
you may need to identify the model
number (or serial number) of your
computer manually. If you have a laptop,
this is typically found on the bottom of
your machine. For PC’s, it is found on
the back of the machine.
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Topic: Video Drivers
Updating your video driver
Updating your video
driver (cont.)
2. Once you locate the driver you need, follow the instructions on the manufacturer’s website for download. If
presented with the option to “Run” versus “Save” the file, it is always better to Save.
Choose a location to save the file to that will be easy to access again, like your Desktop. Once the file has finished
downloading, make sure all other applications are closed and then double-click the file to run it. You will likely
have the option of using an installation wizard. Follow the instructions in the wizard and keep the default selections
for set-up options. When finished, you will need to restart your computer for the new driver to take effect.
You are now finished updating your video driver.
If you have questions, please contact ICE Support: [email protected]
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