Device Manager on the Windows 7 desktop. Using the command line, the Run menu and the program shortcut
Available in the operating room Windows system very useful thing. It's called "Device Manager" or something else. Device Manager.
How to access device manager?
To find the device manager in Windows, click right click mouse on the icon My computer" and select the item " Control".
Further in the side column of the window " Computer management"we are looking for an item" device Manager" and click on it. In the central area of the window we will see what equipment the computer consists of. We can say that this is the anatomy of a particular computer.
Here you can see which HDD installed and how many of them are in the system, which CPU used, the video card model is indicated, the presence of network adapters (network cards) is shown, and much more.
Alternative way Open Device Manager: Button " Start", Further " Control Panel", then select " system and safety", then in the window we look for the section " System". It contains a link to " device Manager", she looks like this.
How can Device Manager be useful?
For laptops, one of the main problems is energy saving, since offline mode Power is provided from the battery. To reduce energy consumption, you can use various software utilities, which, as a rule, are installed on any laptops and desktop PCs.
But there is another way. You can turn off unused or rarely used devices. You can disable, for example, the built-in video camera, wired or wireless network card, host controllers of unused interfaces (for example, IEEE 1394 host controller). All these devices are real electronic devices, which consume battery power even when they are not in use and are in " sleep mode».
Another example.
Many modern all-in-one computers are equipped with a touch screen. Using operating system Windows 7 availability touch control not always convenient, and sometimes undesirable. Some touch screens are very sensitive and even react to insects (flies, midges, spiders, etc.). So, for example, I had to disable touch screen at the candy bar Sony Vaio VPCL14S1R, since random alarms from insects created inconvenience. You can rummage through the settings, but the easiest way is to disable the device that is responsible for touch input. In a specific case Touchpad registered in the dispatcher as NextWindow 1950 Touch Screen In chapter " HID devices (Human Interface Devices)".
How to disable a device in Device Manager?
You must select the device you want to disable. For example, I want to disable a wired network card because I only use a wireless one. Find the item " Network adapters ", click on the arrow so that the tab opens and all devices belonging to this category appear. As you can see, I have two network cards on my computer:
Wireless– Atheros AR9285 Wireless Network Adapter, and
Wired– Intel (R) 82567V-2 Gigabit Network Connection (We will turn it off).
Right-click on the device name and click " Disable".
A message will appear stating that the device will not work when turned off.
Please note that the main devices (hard drive, processor) cannot be turned off - point " Disable" is simply not in the drop-down menu. Yes, this is not surprising.
After disconnecting the device, an arrow in a circle will appear on its icon, indicating that the device is not currently working.
The question is, how can you then turn on a previously disabled device? What if we need it? Everything is done in the same way, but select the item " Engage". After this, the device will turn on again and will work the same way as before it was turned off. In some cases, you may have to restart the computer for the programs to work correctly.
If you are still a novice computer user, then do not disable devices in the manager unless absolutely necessary, otherwise you may encounter the fact that some programs will refuse to work. In any case, there is nothing wrong with this, since a previously turned off device can be turned on again. Therefore, if difficulties arise, there is no need to panic. You just need to find the disabled device in Device Manager and enable it.
How else can Windows 7 Device Manager be useful?
You may need a device manager when upgrading your computer hardware (upgrade). In Device Manager, you can see which driver is used to control hard drive. So, for example, in the tab "IDE ATA/ATAPI controllers"we see that a controller driver is used to control the hard drive Intel (R) ICH10 Family 4 port Serial ATA Storage Controller 1 – 3A20. Your controller may have a different driver. We also see that other adapters and controllers for interacting with SD memory cards and Memory Stick are registered in the same tab.
Also using " Device Manager"You can update the drivers specific devices, and also view the parameters and properties of the equipment through the item " Properties".
Dispatcher Windows devices used to manage all devices connected to the computer and their drivers. They are treated as internal components, for example, a video adapter or LAN card, and external: USB drives, printers, mice and keyboards. A similar tool is present in all modern Windows versions: in XP, 7, 8 and 10. This article describes how to launch the utility, as well as the basics of working with it.
Running on Windows 10
Unlike older versions (XP and 7), in Windows 10 you cannot call the manager through the context menu of the Computer icon. But the developers have added several other, faster and more convenient methods to the OS:
- Present in Windows 10 menu quick access
"Quick Access Menu". It can be called up by right-clicking on the “ Start"or simultaneously press the Win + X buttons; find and click “” in the list;
- In Windows 10, in the lower left corner of the screen there is an icon with the image magnifying glass: This is a convenient search system, click on the icon and in the input field write “device manager” in whole or in part and press Enter. In the list found you will see what you were looking for;
- Next we will consider alternative options launch through various OS tools, which you can access, for example, through quick access menu(highlighted in the figure with thin red rectangles:
Working with the dispatcher
By using of this instrument Windows OS users can manage installed drivers, and search necessary information about current devices. The utility's interface has remained virtually unchanged between versions XP and 10. Only the design itself differs.
The main page of the tool is list of categories. Each category can be opened to see all its elements. For example, in the “Video adapters” category your video card (discrete or built into the motherboard) will be located.
To find out more information about the object, you need to open it double click mice. An alternative way is to open the context menu and select the option " Properties».
In the window that appears you can find 3-4 tabs:
Running on Windows XP
Login using My Computer
To open Device Manager in XP, you need to right-click on the “ My computer" on the menu " Start» or on your desktop.
The window “ Properties of the system" Go to the tab " Equipment" - the necessary service is located there.
Launch via Control Panel
Command "devmgmt.msc"
Windows 7, 8
For 7: Right-click on the " Computer" (or " My computer") on the menu " Start» or on your desktop. In the drop-down list, select " Properties».
For 8: Right-click on the " Start" and press " System».
You will be taken to your system details page. There is a menu on the left side of the window. Click on the hyperlink "" to launch it.
An alternative way is to use the “ Execute" This special utility For quick launch system tools And installed programs. Call up the dialog using the Win + R key combination. In a small window you need to enter the line “devmgmt.msc” and press Enter.
Video on the topic
The software module appeared in the very first versions of the Windows OS, where it was intended to control and coordinate the first, not always stably identified, plug and play devices for PCI buses with older devices for previous buses that did not yet support plug and play. However, it turned out to be extremely convenient, and its use was not limited to this functionality. That's why it still exists in all versions of Windows, including the latest ones.
What is Device Manager? This specialized utility, included by default with the Windows operating system. With its help, you can manage computer components and monitor their condition. It is available in every version of Windows and looks like a list of devices installed on the computer.
Device Manager is an MMC snap-in, through which you can see the operation of all elements of any computer, no matter whether it belongs to the “desktop” options, whether it is an old netbook or a sophisticated laptop latest model. The main thing is that the system is installed on the computer Windows any versions.
Using this utility, you can find out both the name and some of the characteristics of all computer modules, see what condition they are in, find out what problems may arise in their functioning, install/update drivers, and also temporarily disable one or another module .
In the manager, all computer components are distributed into various sections, which are opened in the same way as any other files - double click mice.
We will tell you about options for using Windows Device Manager and how you can find the device manager to enter it different ways.
How to find Device Manager
One of the features of any Windows OS is lack of “one right” way calls to its functions - any operation in it can be performed in at least two ways. Only one method, “because that’s how they were taught”, is used mainly by beginners. More experienced users usually choose the method that is more convenient for them in this particular situation. The device manager is no exception to this rule, which can be called in latest versions Windows can be done in more than a dozen ways.
So what are these methods??
Universal, suitable for any version of Windows:
- First
- Win + R, and then release Win. Explanation: Win looks like the Windows logo key and is located at the bottom of the keyboard, between Ctrl and Alt (there can be only one to the left or two, both to the left and to the right of the Spacebar). Instead of R, you can press Russian K without switching the keyboard layout.
- A window will open in which to enter: devmgmt.msc and press “Enter”.
- Second
“Control Panel” - “System and Security” - “System” - “Device Manager”.
- Third
It also runs directly from the "system32" folder:
- Open “drivename:\WINDOWS\system32”. Explanation: "drive_name" - system disk, which stores your Windows files. Typically this is the C:\ drive, but variations are possible.
- Find and run the devmgmt.msc utility.
- Fourth
- Open Start Menu
- In “Run” enter: devmgmt.msc
- Click "Ok".
Using the Run menu you can easily disable any module installed on your computer, the main thing is to enter the right command launch.
- Fifth
Right click on the icon (not the shortcut!) “My Computer” (“Computer”) on the desktop - “Manage” - “Device Manager”.
- Sixth
Using the hotkeys: “Win” + “Pause/Break”, then click “Device Manager”.
- Seventh
RMB on “Computer” - “Management” - “Device Manager”.
- Eighth
RMB on “Computer” - “Properties” - “Device Manager”.
One of the oldest today, maintaining popularity to this day, more than 15 years after its release. It has become widespread due to the fact that it is easy and simple to use. This includes managing various PC parameters using Device Manager. You can access it in this OS in two ways:
- First
“Start” - “Control Panel” - “System” - “Hardware” - “Device Manager”.
- Second
LMB on “My Computer” on the desktop or in the “Start” menu - “Properties” - “Hardware” - “Device Manager”.
RMB on “My Computer” - “Properties” - “Device Manager”.
- Second
“Start” - “Control Panel” - “Install small icons” - “Device Manager”
- Third
- Start Menu
- In the “Search” line write “dispatcher” (without quotes!)
- Choose the right option and click on it with LMB.
- Fourth
“Start” - “Control Panel” - “System and Security” - “System” - “Device Manager”.
- Fifth
Right-click on the “Computer” icon - “Manage” - “Computer Management” - “Device Manager”.
- Sixth
- "Start"
- “Find programs and files” write: devmgmt.msc
- Press "Enter".
Device Manager in Windows 8
Due to its small age, there are those among users who do not know how to enter the device manager here. But this is also not difficult to do on the G8, and in several ways:
- First
- "Start"
- On the command line write: devmgmt.msc.
- Second
RMB on “Start” - “Device Manager”
- Third
- Win+X
- Click the link to Device Manager
- Fourth
RMB on the “Start” button - “System” - “Device Manager”
- Fifth
- Win+R
- In “Run” write: devmgmt.msc and press “Enter”.
- Sixth
If there is no “Start” menu, write “Device Manager” directly on the start screen, in the search form.
Device Manager on Windows 10
- Open the folder “drive_name:\WINDOWS\system32”, where “drive_name” is the system drive that stores your Windows files. Typically this is the C:\ drive, but variations are possible.
- Find there and run devmgmt.msc.
- Second
- Click on the Start menu or use the Win+R combination
- In the Run tool that appears, enter: devmgmt.msc.
- Click “Ok”.
- Third
- Enter the Start menu
- In the command line enter: devmgmt.msc.
- Press "Enter".
- Fourth
- In the lower left corner of the screen, click the magnifying glass icon
- Write “device manager” - it doesn’t matter whether it’s the whole phrase or just part of the phrase
- Press the “Enter” key.
- Fifth
Login through the “Control Panel”.
Windows 10 PowerShell
- First
- In the search window enter “powershell” (without quotes!)
- In powershell, type “devmgmt.msc” (without quotes!).
- Second
- Start Menu
- In the “Command Prompt” enter “devmgmt.msc” (without quotes!)
- Press "Enter".
- Third
- "Computer Management"
- Launch the dispatcher.
- Fourth
All this can be done through the “System” command.
For some versions of Windows:
RMB in the “Start” menu or on the “Computer” icon directly on the desktop - “Properties” - “Device Manager”.
- Versions from Windows 7 and earlier:
- Click "Search"
- Enter “device manager” (without quotes!) into its window.
- When it is found, enter it.
- For Windows 8, 8.1 and 10:
“Start” - “Device Manager.
You can select: “Control Panel” - view by “Categories” - “Hardware and Sound” - “Device Manager”.
- Windows Vista, 7 and Server 2008 R2:
There are several methods common to these versions, and any user can open it, but only administrators can change anything here.
First
a) “Start” - “Control Panel” - “Hardware and Sound” - “Device Manager”
b) There are command lines in the “Start Search” and “Run” fields. In any of them enter “mmc devmgmt.msc” (without quotes!)
Then everything depends on the type of account:
* Built-in Account“Administrator” - you can open it, and it will become available for viewing and making changes
* Member of the Administrators group - You can access the manager by clicking Continue in the User Account Control window.
* Regular user- you will receive a message like this: “You cannot change anything in the devices.” Device Manager will open in View mode when you click OK.
Second
1. Get to the transition area
2. Click on “Device Manager”
* Administrator - Device Manager will open and become accessible
* Regular user - receive a message along the lines of: “You cannot change anything in devices.” The manager will open in view mode when you click OK.
Third
1. “Computer management”
2. In the “Action” menu, click “Connect to another computer”
3. In the “Select a computer” window that appears, two options are available:
* in the “Other computer” text field, type its name in the group and click “OK”
* click “Browse” - “Advanced”, and the required machine will be found. Then click "OK".
If successful, you will see the computer name in the top left. But So you can open the manager only as a regular user.
Why do you need a dispatcher at all?
The device manager in all Windows systems provides all the necessary information about the computer’s hardware (it doesn’t matter whether it’s a desktop or a laptop). It is required to check the operation of all equipment installed on this machine. Also - to safely remove a particular component, as well as to install/update/remove drivers. In a word - sometimes you can’t go anywhere without him.
For example, you reinstalled the system, and now you are installing drivers, and at the same time you do not have accurate information about what exactly they will be needed for. In this case, you should look into the device manager: a module without a driver will be marked with an exclamation mark next to its name.
Using Device Manager you can do the following:
* Find out the status of any part of the computer
You just need to open the appropriate section. For example, in order to obtain information about what is called installed video card, need to open double click mouse in the “Video adapters” section.
For details about a component, you need to right-click once while hovering over it, and then click “Properties”.
* Find out if there are any problems in the work
Special icons are displayed next to those computer modules that have any problems. For example - a red cross, question mark/ Exclamation point. So, as soon as you open the device manager, you will be able to notice them.
* Install module driver
To install a driver for a component of a computer, you need to right-click on it, and then select “Update drivers.” Then specify the address of the folder where the drivers are stored.
* Reinstall the driver
Sometimes certain modules of the machine refuse to work properly - for example, the sound disappears due to a problem sound card. Reinstalling the driver often helps. To do this, in the device manager you need to right-click on the faulty module, and then click “Delete”. Then - in its menu, click “Action” - “Update hardware configuration”.
* Deactivate (disable) module
To do this, you need to right-click on it and in the appeared context menu select "Disable". Then you can always turn it on again - just right-click on it and select “Enable”.
It makes sense to disable those modules that will not be used for some time., For example, in laptops, to save battery power.
How to use Device Manager
The main page of the dispatcher is a list of categories. When you open any category, you can view everything that is in it. For example, in the “Video adapters” category you can see your video card - either discrete or built-in.
To learn more about a particular component, you need to open a specific category by double-clicking. You can also use RMB and “Properties”.
There are three or four tabs:
* General - all information about the module: type, who made it, what is the placement, what condition is it in,
* Driver is a program for supporting a device on a computer. Here you can update/replace the driver,
* Information - you can find out the properties of the module,
* Resources - information about how many resources and which ones are required for its operation. Some elements do not have this tab.
Learn more about how to use Device Manager
Among other things, it gives information about what code the computer module has— with the help of this information you can quickly find the necessary drivers on the Internet
So what is the immediate purpose of the dispatcher window? In it you can either disable or completely delete this or that element of the computer. And the latter means complete removal drivers. More Here software modules can be updated, and either from the system itself or from the Internet - both options will be available.
During the update process, the Hardware Wizard will open. Moreover, for automatic installation, Windows XP will offer to connect to Windows host Update.
Error codes
There are often cases when the device manager displays very a large number of error codes, and also offers possible options for correcting them. And so that you can understand what symbols mean what and make normal system settings, let’s talk about the most frequently pop-up ones:
* Code 1. This means incorrect setting computer component. Occurs most often. It means that there is no firewood or that it is configured incorrectly, as it should be. You can fix the problem by reinstalling the drivers, for which you can use the hardware wizard in the manager itself.
* Code 3. Either driver is damaged, or too few resources, including system RAM. The damaged driver needs to be reinstalled. To check resources, you need to go to “Properties”, there click “Advanced” -> “Settings” -> “Performance”.
* Code 14. This means that the system needs to be rebooted for the module to work as it should.
* Code 18. You need to reinstall the system component drivers.
* Code 44. Due to any open program work was suspended. A simple restart of the computer can fix this issue.
* Code 31. Due to unsuccessful loading of drivers, the module has malfunctioned. This may occur due to the system being unable to load the driver. In this case, a driver downloaded from the Internet will fix the problem.
How to change data in the registry
The dispatcher can be launched through the “Computer” context menu, through the “Management” section. However, it is only needed if too large changes have been made to the system registry. If they are included, the “Device Manager” item is already shown in the context menu. You can make the necessary changes like this:
1. Display the “Start” line (you can press Win+R)
2. Enter regedit into it to launch the registry editor
3. Go to HKEY_CLASSES_ROOTCLSID
4. Make a subsection in the “shell” section
5. Name it “Device Manager” (without quotes!)
6. Make a second subsection in it
7. Give it the name “command” (without quotes!)
8. In command, double-click on the “Default” parameter
9. Set the mmc value to devmgmt.msc
And so - it is possible to open the equipment manager by right-clicking on the “Computer” icon without going into “Management”.
So, now you know how and why you need to open the remote control, so now you can control how your computer and the programs that provide this work work. By the way, laptops have modules that are best turned off if you want the machine to work longer without recharging.
Device Manager in the Windows operating system collects information about hardware computer or laptop. Device Manager is necessary to collect information about all devices that are installed on the computer. You can also use it to remove a device from the system or update drivers for it. In general, this device manager is a very useful and necessary thing. For example, to install drivers after reinstalling the system, when you don’t know exactly which components you should install drivers for (an exclamation mark appears next to the device name).
Today I will talk about how to launch Device Manager. This can be done in different ways and they all lead to the same result, so which one should be used is up to you to decide. Everything will take you a few seconds.
Method 1
Find the “Computer” icon on the desktop (if you don’t see it, click the “Start” button - it will be on the right side of the screen), click on it once with the mouse and click on the right button. A menu will appear, select “Properties”.
Here is a window for viewing basic information about your computer. On the left side of the window you will see a small menu. Select “Device Manager” from it.
Voila, Device Manager is launched.
Method 2
Look for the “Computer” icon again and click on the right mouse button. Only now in the menu we select the “Management” item, and not “Properties”.
A window titled “Computer Management” will appear. Select "Device Manager" here.
Method 3
Another option. Click on the “Start” button and add the following word to the “Search programs and files” line: devmgmt.msc. Press Enter.
Device Manager is used to view information about hardware, change hardware settings, and also serves to configure and view drivers.
Sometimes cases arise when some device on the computer begins to work incorrectly, and sometimes stops working altogether.
To find out which device has stopped working, you need to use the built-in device manager. It will display all information about installed devices , work status drivers And so on.
If a device begins to work incorrectly, it will be marked with a certain sign. Also, information about uninstalled drivers (unknown devices) will be displayed.
And also device Manager useful in cases when you updated the drivers for a device and it stopped working, then you can simply roll back to old version drivers, backup copy which was saved before installing the new version.
Also, device Manager Allows you to search for updates for some devices. Updating drivers is useful in many cases.
How to login device Manager?
To enter Device Manager, you need to open system properties by right-clicking on the computer shortcut and selecting properties. You can open system properties in another way - by typing the key combination from Win + Pause Break.
System properties menu In the window that appears, there will be a login button on the left. That's what it's called - device Manager.
The manager window shows all the devices on the computer. If you have a tab Other devices, and an exclamation point in a yellow triangle or some other sign is shown above this device, then you need to try updating or reinstalling the driver for this device. And if everything in your task manager is the same as shown in the screenshot above, then no intervention is required.
Here is an example of a tab Other devices:
If there is something similar, as in the screenshot above, then first you need to right-click on this device and select from the corresponding menu Update drivers.
A window will appear with the following selection:
Driver search options Here you need to choose where you will look for the driver for the non-working device.
If you have a driver for this device on your computer, then you need to select the second item - Search for drivers on this computer.
But in most cases, you should select the first item, which performs the search automatically. At the same time, the search is carried out via the Internet, so the latest and most recent stable versions drivers for the device.
And if you cannot find a driver via the Internet, it means the device is faulty or, perhaps, a CD was supplied with this device on which the driver itself was recorded.
In the same way, you can update drivers for working devices. Everything is the same.
If, after searching for drivers, an inscription is revealed that the most suitable software for this device has already been installed, this will mean that this device doesn't need updating.
If you need to disable a device, you need to right-click on it and select disable. You can turn on the device at any time by first finding it in the manager and clicking turn on. After this, the device will immediately start working.
There is also an option to delete devices in Device Manager. It is recommended to do this after you have searched for a driver but have not found it or simply want to reinstall the driver. If you remove the device and restart the computer, then after loading the operating system, the search and installation of the driver will automatically begin. In this case, the driver will be reinstalled.
Properties
Right-click on the device you want and select properties.
Displaying device properties In the tab Are common The status of the device, its manufacturer and type will be shown.
Driver tab In the tab Driver you can view information, check for updates, roll back the driver to previous version, if suddenly after the update the device began to work incorrectly. Also, here is the option to disable or remove the driver.
I will not describe the remaining tabs, since there is nothing special in them, just a display of statistics.
From this article you learned about what it is device Manager how to run it and how it works.