Export driver

By adding another string of text to the end of those commands, the output can be saved to a new text file in a location of your choosing by changing directory path in the command that you enter. If you want the file saved to your desktop, still be sure to change the username from "TechSpot" to your own:.

This is where we'll be retrieving the drivers from. Before getting started, note that you may be able to skip the trouble of exporting and importing the drivers. From the Device Manager on the copy of Windows which needs the driver, if you can navigate to the DriverStore folder of another Windows installation where the driver is located, then the Device Manager should be able to search that destination for compatible driver files. Right-click the device, go to "Update driver," then follow the prompts until you can browse to DriverStore on the other OS or wherever your drivers are.

Also, exporting the driver files from Windows won't include additional software that would typically be bundled with a driver package, such as a utility that accompanies the driver. However, in many cases Windows provides the given functionality natively to some extent an interface for connecting to wireless networks for instance. That said, you may be able to copy the program files directly from one instance of Windows to another, or find the utility as a separate download from the driver, or a similar package with the same utility.

Enter this command to begin exporting all of your driver files to that new folder:. Alternatively, you can perform the same action by entering this command into an elevated PowerShell. However, you can export drivers from an offline image with a separate command:. NET Framework. This PowerShell script sequentially scans all folders in the specified directory, searches for all inf files, and installs drivers in the Driver Store using the PNPUtil tool.

You can also import all the drivers from the backup directory into the offline Windows image by using the Add-Driver parameter of the DISM tool in this example, we allow the installation of unsigned drivers :. Thanks so much! I was looking for something exactly like this. Just did the backup, and next week when my new ssd arrives, I will test how it will work on the restore part. Thanks again. Notify me of followup comments via e-mail. You can also subscribe without commenting.

Leave this field empty. Home About. It must be created in advance. Pnputil on Windows 10 allows you to install all drivers from a specified folder including subfolders using a simple one-liner: pnputil. Related Reading. January 14, Forwarding Emails to an External Address in Microsoft January 13, January 10, Specifies the path to the location of the BootMgr files.

This is necessary only when the BootMgr files are located on a partition other than the one that you are running the command from. Specifies the path to the Windows directory relative to the image path. This cannot be the full path to the Windows directory; it should be a relative path. If not specified, the default is the Windows directory in the root of the offline image directory.

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