Problems with installing all kinds of control software, in particular drivers, are probably familiar to many Windows users. Quite often, when making such attempts, users are faced with the fact that the system displays a message that the software for the device has not been installed. However, it is not always clear what this is connected with. Either this is simply a failure, or conflicts with previously installed software, or disruptions in the operation of the system itself. How can I get out of this situation?
Driver installation failures (software installation failure): main reasons
Before taking any action, we briefly dwell on the reasons for this behavior of the operating system. Among all that may provoke a notification that the software for the device was not installed, the following can be distinguished:
- lack of access rights to system settings;
- lack of the necessary driver in the system database;
- conflicts with previously installed software when trying to reinstall or upgrade;
- crashes in Windows and its own components;
- blocking installation processes by third-party programs.
In general, these are the most common situations, however, in each case, the reason may be completely different. But for starters, we will start from the main list of problems.
Software for the device has not been installed: what to do first?
So, you have downloaded a new driver or additional software from the Internet and are trying to install it. To begin, consider the actions in the "Device Manager" when you update the hardware drivers using the system tools. The message that the software for the device was not installed, at the end of the automated actions may be due to the fact that you simply do not have enough rights to perform this operation. To fix the problem, log in under the administrator registration and update again. If this method of login is not possible (for example, when you do not know the account password, or the administrator simply blocked access for you), launch the dispatcher through the "Run" menu with the devmgmt.msc command, by checking the box at the launch point with admin rights, which is located a little below the main field.
If there is no such item, call the Task Manager and start a new task from the file menu. A similar console will appear, but there will already be an administrator launch point in it.
If this does not help, and a message stating that the software for the device was not installed, call the automatic driver update tool using the sysdm.cpl command in exactly the same way. Go to the hardware tab, click the device installation options button, and then activate the recommended automatic installation item, then save the changes.
If the software for the device is not installed when it is connected (for example, when using a USB flash drive or a removable memory card), first look for the appropriate software on the manufacturers website. If this does not work, check the ports, connectors, or even a card reader used to connect.
If necessary, update the drivers for absolutely all interfaces, including the entire list of installed USB controllers.
Manual conflict resolution
Quite often, a message that the software for the device was not installed when the device was connected, and when trying to manually install the necessary driver, may be due to the process being blocked at the level of security programs. As one of the methods to fix the problem, temporarily disable antiviruses or even the system’s built-in firewall.
If we are talking exclusively about drivers, and not related to additional (related software), sometimes you can try to remove the old drivers yourself. Please note that even deleting a device from the corresponding dispatcher may not give an effect.
In this case, it is better to use the Driver Sweeper program, select the desired category of drivers or software, start the analysis, and then delete all the components found. After that, it is advisable to clean the registry (also manually, since optimizer programs usually do not delete driver keys) and delete all driver files on the hard drive in the same way. Their list can be viewed either in the “Device Manager” or in the system information (msinfo32), and in the case of graphic or sound adapters, use the DirectX dialog. After that, you will need to reboot the system and, if Windows does not install the necessary software automatically, perform the installation yourself.
Note: sometimes for a correct update, you can use automated programs like Driver Booster or narrowly targeted applications from manufacturers of a certain type of equipment (for example, for graphics accelerators).
System Health Check
It is no secret that similar situations can be associated with a partial violation of the functionality of the Windows systems themselves, when some important components are damaged.
You can check the status of such files through a command line that runs exclusively on behalf of the administrator by writing the sfc / scannow command in it. If it is impossible to perform such actions in a running system, you can boot from removable media with the distribution kit or from the LiveCD recovery disk and repeat the operation. Sometimes the most common system recovery also helps if the failures turn out to be short-term and not particularly critical. But for this, it is better to use not standard rollback, but DISM tools.
What could be more?
Finally, based on the recommendations of specialists, as a last argument, we can advise you to clean your computer or laptop from dust. It is possible that some devices on the motherboard are not connected properly, the same USB ports or a card reader are clogged, etc.
As you can see, the situations can be completely different, and at first glance you won’t immediately determine what exactly is the reason for the impossibility of installing software for any device, so you have to act, which is called the “scientific poke method”, and in most cases , alas, completely blind.