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Do I need *all* drivers or is it enough to just install the most essential ones?

You need all.

Your laptop needs drivers to work properly. While Windows is able to install and update some drivers automatically, it is not able to fully install your system without your help.

If you have bought your laptop with Windows pre-installed, you already have all drivers installed and can pretty much start working immediately. But if you install Windows from scratch, you need to install all drivers. Related article: How to do a clean Windows reinstallation

Some drivers may seem obscure or unknown to you. That does not mean that they are not important. We strongly recommend installing all drivers, without any exception.

Exception: RAID and RST. You only need those if you use RAID to bundle multiple SSDs into one logical drive. If you don’t know what RAID or VMD is, then you are not using it. Skip RAID.

In what order should drivers be installed?

Install the drivers of the CPU manufacturer (Intel or AMD) first – starting with the chipset driver. Otherwise, the order of driver installation won’t too much matter.

Do I need to reboot after every driver install?

No. It may be customary to reboot after the chipset driver. Otherwise, reboot when everything is done.

How can I install drivers more efficiently?

You will have most drivers available as individual ZIP files. Install 7-Zip on WinRAR first. Then you can unzip all ZIP archives into individual folders with one single-click.
 

Right-click → Extract all files into individual folders.

Screenshot: Right-click → Extract all files into individual folders.

 

  • Select all ZIP files
  • Right-click
  • Select “Show more options”
  • In the 7-Zip sub-menu: select Extract to “*\”

The “*” in this option is a so-called wildcard that represents all the sub-folders that will be created. Each subfolder will bear the name of the originating ZIP file.

What is the purpose of some of the more obscure drivers?

Aside from the most obvious drivers (Graphics, Wi-Fi, LAN, Card Reader, Audio), this table will explain some of the more obscure or cryptic driver names.

Driver name Purpose
Chipset Covers most of the CPU platform's basic features. Install this first.
VGA Graphics card.
Platform Innovation Framework (with DTT) CPU power management and performance.
Platform Performance Package CPU power management and performance.
SpeedShift CPU power management and performance.
Management Engine CPU power management, platform management and other system-level functions.
Silicon Security Engine Interface (SSEI) Platform management and security.
Platform Monitoring Technology (PMT) Provides platform telemetry and diagnostic data for compatible system and service software.
Connectivity Performance Suite (ICPS) Network traffic prioritization, Wi-Fi optimization and connection management.
Total Storage Encryption (TSE) Hardware-assisted NVMe storage encryption and BitLocker integration.
DRTM, TXT Dynamic Root of Trust for Measurement; Trusted Execution Technology: Enables hardware-assisted Windows security features such as System Guard Secure Launch and firmware protection.
HIDfilter HID = Human Interface Device, includes support for hotkeys and even for the power button on some systems.
Serial IO Input/Output, required for touchpad support.
Soundblaster, Nahimic, THX, Senary Audio interface to improve speaker sound.
GNA, NPU Gaussian & Neural Accelerator, Neural Processing Unit; components integrated into CPUs to accelerate specific AI functions (such as noise reduction).
Hotkey Name for older versions of Control Center.
OEM_ORIGINAL Older driver that is offered as alternative to the latest official drivers from Intel, AMD or NVIDIA. Usually used for graphics.
RAID / RST Only needed if you use RAID to bundle multiple SSDs into one logical drive.

Should I update drivers via Windows Update?

Generally, it is safe to allow Windows Update to update certain drivers. In some cases it can happen that Windows Update pushes drivers that are not fully compatible with your system yet. This can be prevented by disabling automatic driver updates. Related article: How can I prevent Windows Update from automatically updating my drivers?

Which NVIDIA driver should I choose?

In addition to the update function in the NVIDIA App, NVIDIA driver updates can also be downloaded manually from the NVIDIA website.

You can choose between "Game Ready" and "Studio" drivers. In general, Game Ready drivers are the most up-to-date releases. If you ever experience graphics-related issues, you can try the Studio driver instead, which is usually updated somewhat less frequently.

Should I install the NVIDIA App?

Yes, we explicitly recommend installing the NVIDIA App. While the graphics driver itself will generally work without it, NVIDIA now uses the app to provide a wide range of driver, display and RTX features.

If you do not want to actively use the app, you can simply leave it installed and ignore any features you do not need. For more background on our recommendation, see this article: Should I *unselect* the NVIDIA App when I install or update an NVIDIA graphics driver?

How often do I need to update my NVIDIA driver?

As a rule of thumb:

  • If your CPU and GPU generation is very new, check for updates regularly during the first few months of ownership. Late platform-related bugs may still be identified and fixed after launch.
  • If you want to play a brand-new, graphically demanding game shortly after release, driver updates may also be worthwhile. In particular, check for updates if you experience performance or stability issues with very new games. Relevant driver updates are often still released during the first few weeks after the launch of a new AAA title.
  • If you have recently installed a major Windows update such as "25H2", it is also worth checking for NVIDIA updates shortly afterwards, as major Windows releases can sometimes benefit from optimisations in newer drivers.

If you are already using relatively old hardware with relatively old software or older games, there is no need to keep updating your drivers constantly. We recommend disabling the corresponding notifications in the NVIDIA App and instead checking for updates yourself when there is a specific reason to do so.