Reinstalling software, Drivers, What is a driver – Dell Latitude D530 (Early 2008) User Manual

Page 127: Identifying drivers

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Reinstalling Software

127

14

Reinstalling Software

Drivers

What Is a Driver?

A driver is a program that controls a device such as a printer, mouse, or

keyboard. All devices require a driver program.
A driver acts like a translator between the device and any other programs that

use the device. Each device has its own set of specialized commands that only

its driver recognizes.
Dell ships your computer to you with required drivers already installed—no

further installation or configuration is needed.

NOTICE:

The Drivers and Utilities media may contain drivers for operating systems

that are not on your computer. Ensure that you are installing software appropriate

for your operating system.

Many drivers, such as the keyboard driver, come with your Microsoft

®

Windows

®

operating system. You may need to install drivers if you:

• Upgrade your operating system.
• Reinstall your operating system.
• Connect or install a new device.

Identifying Drivers

If you experience a problem with any device, identify whether the driver is the

source of your problem and, if necessary, update the driver.

Microsoft

®

Windows

®

XP

1 Click StartControl Panel.
2 Under Pick a Category, click Performance and Maintenance, and click

System.

3 In the System Properties window, click the Hardware tab, and click Device

Manager.

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