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I was messing around looking at the Dell website some time ago and did some updates to my drivers. I got to thinking today if there were any new ones. And of course some popped up. So I'm woundering if I should update things like video, BIOS, network etc on a regular basis.
Is it really important or just as it says "recommended" but not urgent? A little help please.
I was messing around looking at the Dell website some time ago and did some updates to my drivers. I got to thinking today if there were any new ones. And of course some popped up. So I'm woundering if I should update things like video, BIOS, network etc on a regular basis.
Is it really important or just as it says "recommended" but not urgent? A little help please.
On the Dell webpage it has a status that say either recommended or urgent. Only one of the downloads for my model was urgent, so I did that one. However all other are not at that urgent status. BTW will this help out my Windows Experience Index number???
I always update VIDEO and NETWORK drivers if availablle. Especially VIDEO.
As for BIOS updates I usually read what it fixes and base my decision on that. If I don't have the problem that the update fixes, I pass.
For most other drivers if it is optional I usually skip them unless I have a problem.
I tend to be very cautious about updating hardware drivers. If the hardware is working with the operating system and no problems are evident, I don't usually see a need to update the hardware drivers. If a problem shows up, read up and update the driver if you think it will help.
Out of curiosity, why cautious? Are there instances that updating drivers from the manufacturer or Microsoft has been known to be a bad thing?
Yes. I've updated network and video drives and had them fail. Therefore, I don't update them unless a) I'm having some trouble, or b) I expect some improvement.
My guess would be that ones listed as urgent were distributed to fix a known widespread error, where as ones listed as recommended either address specific issues you may or may not be having or add functionality you may or may not need. Occasionally, they also allow for minor performance improvements.
As others have said, I would generally read exactly what the driver was released to address and then install it if I am experiencing that issue or need that functionality. There are times that updated drivers can cause weird compatability or performance issues that can only be fixed by rolling back the driver to an older version.
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