How To Remove Old Device Drivers From Windows 10
1,290This tutorial will show you how to prevent your computer from being bogged down by old drivers. This video applies for users on Windows 7, Windows 8 and Windows 10.
Command Used In Video:
SET DEVMGR_SHOW_NONPRESENT_DEVICES=1
devmgmt.msc
This tutorial should work for all major computer hardware manufactures that include Windows 7, Windows 8/8.1 and Windows 10 in their products (Dell, HP, Acer, Asus, Toshiba, Lenovo, Samsung, and so forth).
One of the most annoying issues with Windows is when your hardware manufacturer fails to provide a proper driver for the operating system. Even when you do find the proper driver, sometimes the manufacturer releases an updated version which you then need to install on top of the older version. As if that's not enough, every version of Windows from the past 10 years or so, including server versions will retain the older driver binaries even if you upgrade or change hardware.
There is a logic behind this behavior. If, for example, you're using a removable USB disk drive, which has once been plugged in, Windows will install the appropriate driver for it. When you eject that drive, Windows retains the drivers so that they will be ready the next time you connect the drive.
With time, your computer will gather an increasing number of unused drivers that not only take space on your hard disk, having been still installed, they might cause problems if they are somehow enabled. In some cases they can also cause hardware conflicts. And to make things worse, when you do want to use the same device after a long period of inactivity, even if you re-install an updated version of the driver, Windows might still use the older version of it.
This tutorial will apply for computers, laptops, desktops, and tablets running the Windows 10, Windows 8/8.1,Windows 7 operating systems. Works for all major computer manufactures (Dell, HP, Acer, Asus, Toshiba, Lenovo, Samsung).