A practical guide to removing faulty, outdated, duplicate, or incompatible device drivers from Windows safely — including Device Manager, driver packages, pnputil commands, and Safe Mode troubleshooting.
Drivers allow Windows to communicate with hardware such as graphics cards, sound devices, Wi-Fi adapters, printers, Bluetooth controllers, touchpads, and USB devices. In most cases, you should leave drivers alone. However, removing a driver can be useful when a device stops working, Windows installs the wrong driver, an update causes crashes, or you want to replace the current driver with a clean version from the manufacturer.
This guide explains several ways to uninstall drivers in Windows 10 and Windows 11. Start with Device Manager for normal cases. Use pnputil only when you need to remove a driver package from the Windows driver store.
Driver removal can temporarily disable a device. Before deleting anything, take a few precautions so you can recover quickly if Windows loses network access, sound, display acceleration, or input device support.
SystemPropertiesProtection, and click Create.Device Manager is the easiest and safest built-in tool for uninstalling a device driver. Use this method when a device is visible in Windows and you want to remove its current driver or force Windows to detect it again.
Run Dialog — Open Device Managerdevmgmt.msc
When Windows stores a driver package locally, uninstalling the device may not be enough. After rebooting, Windows can reuse the same package and reinstall the same driver. To avoid this, select the option to remove the driver package during uninstallation.
Depending on your Windows version and device type, you may see one of these options:
If you select it, Windows tries to remove the driver package from the driver store. If the package is still used by another device, Windows may keep it.
The checkbox may not appear for built-in Microsoft drivers, system-class devices, shared driver packages, or devices where Windows does not allow package removal from the Device Manager dialog. In that case, use pnputil or install a replacement driver over the current one.
Advanced users can remove driver packages from the Windows driver store with the built-in pnputil command. This is useful when you need to delete an old, duplicate, or incorrect driver package that keeps reinstalling.
Command Prompt / PowerShellpnputil /enum-drivers
Look for the driver you want to remove. Pay attention to these fields:
oem42.inf.Replace oem42.inf with the exact published name shown on your PC:
Remove Driver Packagepnputil /delete-driver oem42.inf /uninstall
If Windows says the package is in use, you can add /force, but use it carefully:
Force Removal — Use Carefullypnputil /delete-driver oem42.inf /uninstall /force
oem*.inf package can break another device. Always verify the provider, class, version, and original INF name before deleting a package.
Sometimes a driver problem starts after Windows Update installs an optional driver. If the device worked correctly before the update, use Roll Back Driver first.
If the driver was delivered as part of a Windows update, you can also check the update history:
If Windows crashes, freezes, shows a black screen, or fails to boot normally after a driver installation, remove the driver from Safe Mode. Safe Mode loads a minimal set of drivers, which can help you uninstall faulty GPU, audio, network, or peripheral drivers.
Alternative Command — Advanced Startupshutdown /r /o /f /t 0
The basic removal process is similar for all hardware, but some device classes require extra care.
For NVIDIA, AMD, or Intel graphics drivers, uninstalling from Device Manager may remove the device driver but leave control panels, services, shader caches, and extra software behind. For a simple reinstall, use the official installer and choose a clean installation option when available. For stubborn display driver problems, remove the driver in Safe Mode and then install the latest stable package from the GPU vendor.
Audio devices often appear under Sound, video and game controllers and Audio inputs and outputs. If sound stops working after removal, restart the PC and let Windows reinstall a basic driver, then install the correct Realtek, Intel, AMD, NVIDIA, or OEM audio package if needed.
Before removing Wi-Fi, Ethernet, or Bluetooth drivers, download the replacement driver first. If internet access disappears, install the saved driver package from a USB drive or use another connection method temporarily.
For printers, remove the printer device first, then remove the driver package if necessary. Open Settings → Bluetooth & devices → Printers & scanners in Windows 11 or Settings → Devices → Printers & scanners in Windows 10. You can also use Print Management on supported editions.
Run Dialog — Print Managementprintmanagement.msc
After you uninstall a driver, Windows may automatically install it again. This behavior is normal because Windows tries to keep devices working. If the same bad driver keeps returning, use one of the options below.
The best fix is usually to install a newer or older stable driver from the PC, motherboard, laptop, or hardware manufacturer. This replaces the problematic package with a known working one.
You can tell Windows not to automatically download manufacturers' apps and custom icons for devices. This does not block every driver update, but it may reduce automatic driver changes on some systems.
Run Dialog — Device Installation SettingsSystemPropertiesHardware
On Windows Pro, Enterprise, and Education editions, administrators can configure driver update behavior through Group Policy. This is useful in managed environments where a specific hardware driver must be blocked or controlled.
Use this table to choose the right driver removal method for your situation.
| Method | Best For | Removes Device | Removes Driver Package | Difficulty |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Device Manager | Normal driver removal | Yes | Only if checkbox is available | Easy |
| Roll Back Driver | Bad driver update | No | No | Easy |
| pnputil | Deleting old or stubborn driver packages | Optional with /uninstall |
Yes | Advanced |
| Safe Mode | Crashes, boot issues, black screen | Yes | Sometimes | Medium |
| Manufacturer Uninstaller | GPU, printer, audio suites | Depends on vendor | Depends on vendor | Easy to Medium |
Yes, if you uninstall the correct device driver and have a replacement available when needed. Avoid deleting boot-critical, storage, chipset, ACPI, or unknown system drivers unless you know exactly what they do.
Often yes. If Windows still has a compatible driver package in the driver store or can download one from Windows Update, it may reinstall the driver after rebooting or scanning for hardware changes.
Uninstalling a device removes the device instance from Windows. Deleting the driver software removes the driver package as well, which helps prevent Windows from reinstalling the same driver automatically.
In Device Manager, click View → Show hidden devices. If the package still does not appear, list driver packages with pnputil /enum-drivers and remove the correct oem*.inf package carefully.
Use built-in Windows tools first. Third-party cleanup tools can be helpful for specific cases, especially display driver cleanup, but they should be downloaded only from trusted sources and used with a restore point.
Boot into the Windows Recovery Environment, start Safe Mode, and uninstall or roll back the problematic driver. If that fails, use System Restore to return Windows to a working state.
For most users, the best way to uninstall a driver in Windows 10 or Windows 11 is Device Manager → Uninstall device. If the same driver keeps coming back, remove the driver software package or use pnputil to delete the correct oem*.inf package from the driver store.
If a driver update caused crashes, display problems, or network failure, try Roll Back Driver first. For severe problems, remove the driver in Safe Mode and install a stable version from the hardware manufacturer.