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Recently, one of our regular readers asked us: “I am upgrading to a different graphics card. Should I clean uninstall the old graphics card driver? If so, how to do that?”

Although not always strictly necessary, it’s a good practice to clean uninstall your old graphics card driver when you’re switching to a different graphics card. For the uninitiated, performing a clean uninstall means totally uninstalling a driver.

Say, you’re upgrading from NVIDIA to AMD graphics card. In this instance, performing a clean uninstall of the old Intel graphics card driver is a smart move.

Performing a clean uninstall of your old graphics card driver may also be necessary if:

• You’re upgrading to a significantly newer version of a graphics card from the same manufacturer
• You’re repeatedly encountering issues related to your graphics card
• You’re facing error code 43 (which typically occurs when the installed graphics card isn’t working properly)

What does a clean uninstallation of a driver means?

Performing a clean uninstallation of a driver basically means removing all its traces from your PC.

How does this help? You may wonder.

Totally uninstalling your old NVIDIA (or any other device driver) helps remove any leftover files or potential conflicts from the old driver. This in turn ensures a fresh installation and optimal performance.

How to clean uninstall NVIDIA graphics card driver?

A clean uninstallation of the graphics driver is a multi-step process. Follow the instructions below in the order they appear.

Step 1 – Uninstall NVIDIA graphics driver using Device Manager

The Device Manager is a built-in utility in Windows computers that you can use to manage and configure hardware devices on your PC, including upgrading and uninstalling device drivers.

Here is what you need to do to uninstall a NVIDIA driver:

• Type devmgmt.msc in the Start Search bar

• Locate the Display adapters entry in the Device Manager window and expand it
• Right-click the NVIDIA GPU and click Uninstall device

• Tick the checkbox before Attempt to remove the driver for this device and then click Uninstall

• Wait until Windows complete the uninstallation process and then restart your PC

Step 2 – Remove NVIDIA software via Control Panel

The next step involves removing any remaining NVIDIA apps from the Control Panel.

• Type control panel in the Start Search bar and press Enter
• Click the Uninstall a program under Programs

• Locate the first NVIDIA software that you want to remove and then click Uninstall

• If prompted, grant administrative privileges and uninstall
• Now repeat the last two steps for the remaining NVIDIA apps that you wish to remove

Step 3 – Delete NVIDIA folders and files via File Explorer

Even after you’ve uninstalled NVIDIA drivers and apps, some files related to NVIDIA can remain on your hard drive. You can get rid of these files via File Explorer.

• Type file explorer in the Start Search bar and press Enter
• Go to the disk on which Windows is installed. Generally it is the :C drive
• Open Program Files
• Locate and right-click NVIDIA Corporation folder and then select Delete
• Return to :C drive
• Enter Program Files (x86)
• Locate and right-click NVIDIA Corporation folder and then select Delete
• Click the View menu, select the Show submenu, and then click Hidden items
• Go to ProgramData
• Locate and delete two NVIDIA folders
• In the address bar, paste the following address: C:\Users\%username%\AppData
• Delete NVIDIA folders from the Local, LocalLow, and Roaming folders

Step 4 – Remove NVIDIA Registry Keys

Now that you’ve deleted NVIDIA folders, you must remove its registry keys.

Follow these steps:

• Press Windows + R keys to open the Run dialog box
• Type regedit and press Enter
• Now enter this address in the Search Bar: Computer\HKEY_CURRENT_USER\Software

• Right-click NVIDIA Corporation folder and click Delete

• Enter this address in the Search Bar: Computer\HKEY_LOCAL_MACHINE\SOFTWARE
• Right-click NVIDIA folder and select Delete to remove it again

That’s it. Now you have clean uninstalled NVIDIA drivers and are ready to upgrade them. If you want, you may use a third-party tool to check if there are any remaining NVIDIA software and drivers present on your computer. However, using a third-party tool after you’ve performed the four steps listed above isn’t strictly necessary. What’s necessary is that you ensure you have the latest NVIDIA graphics drivers. This is because old drivers can cause performance-related issues, even frequent errors.

The best way to update NVIDIA graphics drivers (and other device drivers) is by using a reliable device update tool. We recommend Driver Updater because it is super-fast and accurate. Plus it has been around quite a few years and gets routinely updated.

Automatic driver update tools offer many benefits, the most important ones being:

• You can update device drivers automatically
• The software scans and updates all outdated or missing drivers at one go
• The tool picks the right drivers for your device and operating system, so you won’t have to worry about installing an incorrect driver by mistake
• Automatic driver updates are 100% safe

Driver Updater is one of the best driver update tools out there. Outbyte Driver Updater will give you access to a database of over 1 million drivers. It will regularly scan your PC, suggesting new driver versions to install. Driver Updater contains drivers for a variety of Windows devices. With just one click, you can update drivers in your system.

Step 1
Click here to Install and launch the app

Step 2
Scan all devices

Step 3
Install or update drivers automatically

 

Start Download

 

Graphics card is an important component of your computer. It is responsible for rendering images on your monitor.  Many users have complained of Windows not detecting their NVIDIA graphics card. If you are facing a similar issue, we have discussed few solutions that could help resolve the issue.

There are different scenarios in which graphics card not detected issue can occur, like the following:

• Graphics card not detected in laptop– In this scenario, Windows uses onboard graphics. An easy solution to this problem is to force Windows to use dedicated graphics.
• NVIDIA GPU not detected in Windows 10 – there is a possibility the NVIDIA graphics card is not firmly seated in the slot. Make sure the graphics card is firmly seated in the slot and the graphics drivers are up to date.
• Graphics card not detected in Device Manager– there is a possibility no compatible drivers are installed. Install latest NVIDIA graphics driver
• NVIDIA graphics card not detected after update – In that case, you need to roll back the update that could resolve the issue

Now that we have discussed different scenarios for the error, let’s take a look at some solutions.

Solution One- Check whether the graphics card is enabled/disabled

If the NVIDIA graphics card is disabled, Windows will be forced to use onboard graphics. A simple solution to this problem is enabling the NVIDIA graphics card through Device Manager. Here are the steps to follow.

• Press Windows key + X to open the Quick Access Menu
• Click Device Manager from the list
• In the Device Manager window, expand the Display Adapters section
• Right-click NVIDIA graphics card in the list
• Click Enable

If there is no enable option, it means the NVIDIA graphics card is already enabled.

According to Windows experts, you need to also ensure NVIDIA graphics is enabled in BIOS. Here are the steps to follow.

• Restart your computer

Press the BIOS key to access BIOS settings.  The BIOS access keys are different for devices. Here is the list of BIOS keys by Manufacturer

• Dell – F2 or F12
• Lenovo – F2 or Fn + F2
• ASUS- DEL for motherboards and F2 for all PCs
• Gigabyte – DEL or F2
• ACER- F2 or DEL
• ASRock- F2 or DEL
• HP- F10

If your device manufacturer is not on the list, check product documentation to find out the BIOS key. Press the BIOS key when you see the first device configuration screen. When you enter the BIOS, follow these steps

• Go to Chipset and look for dGPU configuration
• Find the dGPU features and enable it
• Save BIOS settings and exit BIOS

If your computer has both discrete graphics and integrated graphics, Windows cannot detect graphics cars unless it is enabled in BIOS.  Many users have reported they were able to resolve the graphics card not detected issue after enabling the dGPU feature in BIOS.  If you find accessing the BIOS and making changes a difficult task, we have shared an easy option for you in the next solution.

Solution Two- Use Command prompt to fix the issue

• Press Windows key + X to bring up the Quick Access menu
• Click Command Prompt(Admin) from the list
• In the command prompt window, type the following and press Enter

• Close the command prompt and install the NVIDIA graphics card manually

Solution Three – Install the latest NVIDIA graphic card drivers

• Click Start -> Settings(gear icon)
• In the Settings app, go to the App section
• In the App list, locate NVIDIA drivers software and uninstall them one by one
• Click the NVIDIA software and click Uninstall
• Follow on-screen instructions to uninstall the driver.

After uninstalling all NVIDIA drivers, you need to go to the NVIDIA website and download the latest drivers for your device.  When installing NVIDIA drivers, select the Fresh Install option. Alternatively, you can use the automatic driver download tool to download and install the latest graphics drivers for your device.

If you do not find an NVIDIA graphics card under the Display adapters section, follow these steps

• In the Device Manager window, click the View option
• Click Show Hidden Devices
• Now go to the Other Devices section and expand it
• You may not see the NVIDIA device name here. The graphics card could be listed as video controllers or unknown devices. It will have a yellow exclamation mark beside it.
• Right-click unknown device and click Uninstall
• After the device is uninstalled, close Device Manager and all windows
• Restart your PC. Windows will install drivers for the graphics card. Alternatively, you can install NVIDIA graphic card drivers manually.

In most cases, installing the latest NVIDIA drivers will resolve the issue

Solution Four – Restore BIOS settings to default

There is a possibility some changes in BIOS settings are preventing graphics card detection. In that scenario, you can reset BIOS settings to default which will revert the settings. To do this, enter the BIOS settings and look for an option like Load factory default setting or something similar. Save BIOS settings and exit BIOS.

After restarting the PC, check whether the graphics card is detected. If the issue persists, move to the next solution.

Solution Five- Update BIOS

Many users were able to resolve the “graphics card not detected” issue after updating BIOS. Go to the device manufacturer website and download the latest BIOS update and install it.  If you haven’t updated BIOS earlier or find the process difficult, take assistance from the technician.

Solution Seven – Uninstall recent updates

 If you feel the “graphics card not detected” issue cropped up after installing Windows update, you can roll back the update to resolve the issue. Here are the steps to follow.

• Open Settings app
• Click Update & Security
• Click Windows Update in left column
• Click update history in the right column
• Click Uninstall updates
• Select the update you want to remove
• Click Uninstall