How to find drivers for windows

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Drivers can sometimes be hard to find for devices. Without the original box, or driver CD that came with the device, it can be hard even telling what the device is.

This guide will show users how to find their own drivers on the internet, even if the company who makes the driver has gone out of business, or no longer provides the driver on their website.

Identify your device

Drivers are specific to the device they control, and the operating system they are programmed for. The first step in finding the driver for any device is finding out what the device is, its brand and model number. The following steps are methods you can use to identify the devices information that you want to find the drivers for.

  1. RTFM - read the manual
    1. check the box it came in
    2. check the documentation the device came in
  2. Check the device itself
    1. most devices have writing printed on them, or stickers. Check the device for the most visible writing on it (stickers/printed/beveled), this is likely the model number of the device. Model numbers are usually not longer than 10 characters long, and can contain letters, numbers, dashes, etc.