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Like all early adapters, I was thrilled to get my hands on Windows 10. Word on the street was that it combined the best of 7, the best of 8, and added tons of extra features (virtual desktops are amazing!). But of course there are always going to be some implementation bugs. If you are like me and saw your resolution drop from a crisp 1920×1080 across two screens on Windows 7 to 1024×768 on one screen after your upgrade, I’m going to walk you through fixing it.
The Why
The Windows 10 update automatically reinstalls all your drivers, just as it reinstalls all your files and software. Unfortunately, as smart as Windows 10 is, the drivers the system chose just wouldn’t work. This is well documented for Nvidia video cards but may also affect other video cards and/or other hardware pieces such as audio cards. In fact, Microsoft was supposed to have disabled this ‘driver auto-update’ before launch, but even so, it seems some bugs slipped through.
The How
1) Uninstall the Drivers
You may be able to do this the old ‘Uninstall a Program’ method but when I tried, it kept failing. Don’t worry! I know it’s frustrating — and that’s why I’m writing this blog post! You’ll want to download this program called DDU (Display Driver Uninstaller). This will forcibly remove all video drivers from your machine and allow you to manually install the correct driver!
2) Install the Correct Driver!
Since I’ve only heard of this issue affecting Nvidia video cards, here is a link to download an Nvidia driver directly from their site. If your AMD video card is affected, here is a link to the AMD drivers. If some other device is affected by the update, you will just have to Google the manufacturer. These drivers aren’t hard to find.
3) Reboot and you’re all done!
Despite this hiccup which is likely to affect only a small number of Windows users, I’m loving Windows 10. The new Start Menu has a lot of potential; Quadrant Snapping is super convenient; and Virtual Desktops make me wonder how I ever managed without them. And this is just the tip of the iceberg!
So have fun playing with your new OS. And let me know if you have any questions or other issues!
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March 24, 2020
The new Start Menu has a lot of potential; Quadrant Snapping is super convenient; and Virtual Desktops make me wonder how I ever managed without them. And this is just the tip of the iceberg!
March 4, 2020
I am facing the same problem after installing Windows 10. I was going to uninstall it and want to go back to Windows 7. But after reading this article I will try to fix this problem by following those steps. I hope it will fix the issue. otherwise, I will reinstall Windows 7.
January 2, 2020
The Windows 10 update automatically reinstalls all your drivers, just as it reinstalls all your folders and programs. Unfortunately, as smart as Windows 10 is, the drivers the system chose just don’t work. This is well documented for Nvidia video cards but may also affect other video cards and other hardware pieces such as audio cards.