Did Santa bring you a new computer for the holidays? If so, you’re in luck! Now is the best time to set yourself up with good maintenance habits that can help you keep the drivers for your new computer operating as it should as time goes on.

Configure Your Computer Now

Especially if your new computer came with Windows 7 installed, you’ll notice that you’ll receive a bevy of updates and patches over the coming months. In addition to patches designed to keep the operating system working safely, many manufacturers will be updating Windows drivers for the hardware they support, and that may be installed on your computer, or attached by you at a later date.

Because many manufacturers are just bringing their updated Windows 7 drivers to market, you may find that the older piece of hardware you really want to keep requires an updated driver to work. If the driver for your hardware wasn’t submitted to Microsoft, Windows may not be aware of it. Check the manufacturer’s Web site for the latest information on the drivers your hardware requires.

In addition to providing information about hardware the manufacturer will support, many manufacturers are identifying older hardware models that they will not support, or whose support will be limited. It’s a good idea to keep yourself up-to-date on the status of support for older hardware. This may save you some anguish in the future and help you avoid an unpleasant surprise. It may also prompt you to start looking for replacement hardware, should it come to that.

One good maintenance habit to get into when it comes to your hardware drivers is to set yourself up with a good driver management program like Driver Detective. Driver Detective has been downloaded millions of times and can track literally millions of drivers for updates. Driver Detective can be invaluable when it comes to managing your drivers. Not only does Driver Detective identify your drivers, it locates them, installs them and monitors them for updates and for proper operation.

If one of your drivers fails, becomes corrupted or requires an update, Driver Detective will locate the correct driver and install it on your computer as soon as the driver is available. You no longer have to check the manufacturer’s Web site for each piece of hardware you own. Driver Detective also keeps a backup of your drivers in case your installed driver becomes damaged or gets deleted accidentally. Ultimately, that means no more wasted time struggling with drivers that don’t work and more productive computer time for you!

Photo Credit: Alan_D, via Flickr