How to Check If Drivers Are Up To Date

In case you find your computer is slow, screen is flickering, or certain programs are not working, there is a possibility that you have an outdated driver installed in your computer. You can easily check if your drivers are up to date or not using the Device Manager in your computer. 

But checking each and every driver is a time consuming and tiring process. Also, even if you are able to find the outdated driver, finding the latest update from the original manufacturer is not easy. You will have to go to the official website, download the update, install it, and restart your computer.

Therefore, most computer users prefer using a reliable driver management tool. You can also use WinZip Driver Updater to automatically scan your computer and update the outdated drivers within minutes.

Let us check the methods to check if drivers are up to date or not.

How to Check If Windows Drivers Are Up To Date?

Windows 10 provides an option to check the drivers for the network card, motherboard, or graphics card using Windows Update. You will find this tool in the ‘Settings’ app, present under the Update & Security option. In case the system is not up-to-date, you will find a button to check for updates. Click that button to check the updates including security patches and drivers. Thereafter, download and install it.

Windows 10 Steps

• Press the Windows key and type Settings.
• Go to Update & Security. 
• Select Windows Update.

• Click on Check for Updates. This will update your computer automatically.
• Optional: Click on Advanced options. Here you can configure the settings on how updates are installed.

Windows 8.1 Steps

• Swipe right from the edge of the screen to open Windows Update. If you have a mouse, start pointing towards the bottom-right corner of your screen and move the pointer upwards. Select Settings.
• Go to Change PC Settings.
• Select Update & Recovery.
• Choose Windows Update. Click the button Check Now to install updates manually.
• Optional: You can configure automatic updates by using Install updates automatically. Click on Apply.

Windows 7 Steps

• Go to Start button and type Update in the search box.
• Select Windows Update from the list of options shown on the screen.
• Choose Change settings -> Important Updates -> Install Updates automatically.
• Click the checkbox and select OK button.
• Optional: You can update your computer manually by going to Control Panel -> System and Security -> Windows Update.

Note: You can check the official Microsoft page for detailed FAQ on Microsoft updates.

Use Device Manager to check if Drivers are up to date

You also have the option to check the driver updates manually to find out if the drivers are up to date through Control Panel’s ‘Device Manager’ tool. It will list all PC hardware and its expandable categories. If you wish to update a driver, right-click on it and choose ‘Update driver’ to find the option that will search for new updates. Windows will let you know if it found an update and will install the new one in case it is available.

Here are the steps to check if drivers are up to date using Device Manager.

• Press Windows and R key simultaneously. 
• Type devmgmt.msc and press the Enter key.

• It will open Device Manager. Check your computer drivers list and see if there is a Yellow exclamation mark beside any of the drivers.

• Now right click on that driver and choose the option Update Driver.

• WIndows will try to update the driver and show you the result if it is successfully updated or not.

Note: You can also check with the manufacturers to see if the drivers are up to date or not. For instance, the video card that you are using might have a utility installed. You can open this and find the option to check the driver updates. In case you cannot find one, look for the updates or help section on the website of the manufacturer to find out if it posted a recent upgrade to download and install. 

In case you are looking for a driver update because of a technical problem that you are facing, you can contact the manufacturer by calling them or through email for additional help.

Use WinZip Driver Updater to Check if Drivers are Up to Date

You can save time by keeping the drivers updated automatically. WinZip Driver Updater helps you by scanning your computer and finding the outdated drivers automatically. You can then easily update all the outdated drivers with a single click.

Not only will it update the outdated drivers quickly, it will also replace the corrupt and incorrect drivers with the latest versions from original manufacturers.

Here are the steps to use WinZip driver updater.

• Download WinZip driver updater for free and install it on your computer.
• Choose the option Start Scan Now to start the scanning process for outdated drivers.
• As soon as the scan gets completed, you will see all the outdated drivers listed on the screen. 
• Select the option Update All and it will automatically update all the outdated drivers.
• Finally click on Install button so that all the updates are installed and you will see a summary of all the updated drivers.

Reasons to Check If the Drivers Are Up To Date

Device drivers play a crucial role. Updating drivers often solves many common PC issues. Several PC problems look scarier than they actually are. Let’s take a look at some of the problems you might encounter if the drivers are not up to date. 

• Monitor Displaying Problems: There is nothing more irritating than a PC monitor that goes black for no probable reason. One of the reasons for this problem is that the driver is outdated.
• USB Mouse Not Detected: In case the USB Mouse doesn’t get detected, an error might appear when you are using a wired mouse. This might be because of an outdated driver. If certain drivers are outdated, it might impede important functions on the computer like recognizing the same mouse which you have been using for several years. 
• Webcam Issues: Webcam issues particularly on Windows 10 operating system might be caused by outdated device drivers. This is an essential feature of the computer which can facilitate an exciting experience through Facebook video chat, Skype, etc. Hence, you need to keep it updated.

Conclusion

If the drivers are up to date, you have the peace of mind that your machine is secure. Outdated drivers might lead to security risk. It will make your system vulnerable to malicious software and hackers. These represent serious weaknesses that a hacker can easily exploit. Therefore, you can use WinZip Driver Updater to update all the outdated drivers and maximize your system’s performance and improve the stability of the PC.