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I want to do clean windows installation on my laptop and install all drivers from laptop manufacturer site. The problem is when I install windows with internet connection windows automatically install all OEM drivers right after the first boot up.

My question is: Is it fine to just download and install laptop manufacturer drivers on top of OEM drivers installed by windows? Or should I install windows offline and right after the first boot up install manufacturer drivers from USB and then connect to the internet?

I'm curious if there will be some left over files if I just install laptop manufacturer drivers on top of windows OEM drivers.

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  • Let Windows install whatever drivers it wants. When you are missing some, get them from the manufacturers website. Same response I gave last time: superuser.com/questions/1715607/…
    – Gantendo
    Commented Apr 11, 2022 at 17:57
  • The drivers installed by Windows Update are the exact same drivers you can find on the manufacturers website. Not all drivers are available via Windows Update, but if that happens you could just go get them from the manufacturers website(s).
    – Gantendo
    Commented Apr 11, 2022 at 18:13
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    You don't need to worry about windows installing drivers, you can install drivers "on top of". There is always left over files here and there, they wont interfere
    – Mark
    Commented Apr 11, 2022 at 18:39
  • @Gantendo what you just said is false. I build workstations in the TV broadcast industry for a living and can promise you the windows drivers are not always the same as the manufacturers ones, and the creative software leaders insist we do not use windows drivers when building our systems. Always go for the manufacturers ones if your personal choice is to not be so relaxed about it.
    – Mastaxx
    Commented Apr 29, 2022 at 14:58
  • The OEM drivers from Windows Update should be used, as they're the most up-to-date drivers available - the only time a driver from an OEM site should be used is if there is an issue with the driver Windows Update is providing (such as it's not providing the correct customized GPU driver, as these are customized by OEMs from the generic driver), for CPU-related drivers [Chipset, thermal, etc.]. Unless a system model is within it's 1 - 2yr support time frame (model itself, not the one owned)_, OEM drivers are no longer updated and would not be the correct ones to use anyways at that point
    – JW0914
    Commented Apr 29, 2022 at 15:15

3 Answers 3

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Microsoft does not create most of its included drivers - it receives them from the manufacturers.

The drivers from Microsoft that come from the manufacturer are sometimes an older version of the one found on the manufacturer's website, but they may equally be newer versions.

You can always download drivers from the manufacturer's website and install them over the Windows drivers. However, if the drivers in Windows are more recent, Windows will reinstall its own drivers on the next boot, thus replacing the ones you just installed.

Installing drivers from the manufacturer's website should only be done if this resolves problems. But if everything works correctly, remember this very important rule: If It Ain’t Broke, Don’t Fix It. It will save you many headaches and much time.

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I set up a new Lenovo Windows 11 Pro ThinkPad in early March this year (2022).

Windows Update installed most of the new Lenovo Drivers at that time. Ordinary drivers were installed. Firmware (IME, UEFI BIOS) were not.

The problem is when I install windows with internet connection windows automatically install all OEM drivers right after the first boot up.

There is no problem doing this - it works just fine.

Is it fine to just download and install laptop manufacturer drivers on top of OEM drivers installed by windows?

There is no need to do this. The Windows Drivers come from the Windows Driver Catalogue which is populated by the Manufacturers with the correct drivers.

In fact, a good quality Driver Update App (e.g. Lenovo) will not duplicate the installation.

I'm curious if there will be some left over files if I just install laptop manufacturer drivers on top of windows OEM drivers.

There should not be many. Lenovo puts most installations in C:\Drivers, for example, and once installation is complete, these can be deleted.

Summary: You are fine to let Windows Update do Driver updates. Check occasionally with the Manufacturer's Driver Update App for Firmware (IME, UEFI BIOS and like firmware).

Also, it is possible that Drivers appear on the Manufacturer's website before being in the Manufacturer's Driver Update App and possibly before being in the Windows Update Catalogue. There is nothing you can do about this, so probably just wait for Windows to offer the update.

Some of the Driver Updates will be in Windows Optional Updates, so check that as well.

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Here's what you want to do

Do a clean install of Windows without internet plugged in.

When you reach the desktop for the "first time" with no internet head over to System properties and click on Device Installation Settings

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now select "No" in the next box

enter image description here

You can now return internet to your machine and you will notice none of your base system devices inside device manager have automatically installed (apart from maybe a few).

Proceed to install your drivers for the base system devices one by one as per your manufacturer software.

I don't know why your question has received so many down votes. Specifically when building workstations for creative applications like Premiere Pro or Avid Media Composer we are advised to NOT allow windows to install these devices automatically. We are always encouraged to do the above and install the manufacturer drivers instead.

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