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Chapter 5: Customizing Your Computer’s Hardware Devices
You can disable a device through the operating system by completing the following
steps:
1. In Device Manager, right-click the device you want to work with and then select
Disable.
2. When prompted to confirm the action, as shown in Figure 5-24, click Yes.
3. If you later want to enable a previously disabled device, you can do so by right-
clicking the device in Device Manager and then selecting Enable.
Troubleshooting Hardware
Windows Vista’s comprehensive diagnostics framework can detect and diagnose
automatically many common problems with hardware devices. When Windows
diagnostics detects a problem, Windows Vista displays a Problem Reports and Solu-
tions balloon telling you there is a problem. If you click this balloon, Windows Vista
should open the Problem Reports and Solutions console, which can help you resolve
the problem.
If you suspect a device isn’t working properly, you can check Device Manager to ver-
ify whether the device is working properly. For malfunctioning devices, you’ll find an
error status code and a suggested resolution for this error status code on the General
tab of the device’s Properties dialog box. In Device Manager, right-click the device
you want to work with and then select Properties to view the error details.
You can resolve most hardware device problems by reinstalling the device driver.
You can reinstall the driver for a device with a warning or error status by completing
the following steps:
1. Click Start and then click Control Panel.
2. In the Control Panel, click System and Maintenance.
3. Scroll down and then click Device Manager.
4. In Device Manager, right-click the device you want to work with and then select
Properties.
Figure 5-24. Confirming that you want to disable the device
Installing and Managing Hardware
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5. In the Properties dialog box, click the Reinstall Driver button.
6. Perform the driver reinstallation using one of the techniques discussed in
“Installing and Maintaining Device Drivers,” earlier in this chapter.
You can also uninstall the drivers and let Windows Vista reinstall the current ver-
sions of the driver files from the driver store. To do this, right-click the device in
Device Manager and then select Uninstall. In the Confirm Device Uninstall dialog
box, click OK but do not select the “Delete the driver software for this device”
checkbox. If reinstalling the device driver doesn’t work, check to make sure the
device is properly connected. You may need to disconnect and reconnect the device.
If you are still unable to get the device to work properly, visit the device manufac-
turer’s web site and check for alternative versions of the device driver. Sometimes an
older version of a device driver is more stable than the latest version.

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