How to download drivers using vendor make/model/hardware ID?

Drivers are used to communicate between the Operating System and the system hardware, and are considered the most important components for OS deployment. It is required to ensure that the drivers which are compatible with the target computers is available for OS deployment.

Automate the vendor driver management

Right when a computer is imaged, apart from the OS partitions, the relevant drivers are also collected. These drivers will automatically be installed in the target computer once an operating system is deployed. To manage the drivers from different vendors and to create bootable media, OS Deployer comes with a set of readily downloadable vendor-specific WinPE drivers. These drivers are readily accessible from the console. Follow the steps below to search and add the vendor-specific WinPE drivers.

Note: This feature is available only for on-premise versions only

1. From the OS Deployer console, navigate to the Drivers -> Vendor Drivers. The list of readily-downloadable WinPE drivers will be available. You can also filter the drivers based on vendors.
2. To use the readily-downloadable drivers (Recommended)
   
   • From the list of vendor drivers available, Click on the Download icon against the drivers required.
   • These drivers will be downloaded (only once) from the respective vendor website to the computer where the central server is installed.
3. To manually upload vendor drivers (This option is recommended if the above option fails / the server does not have access to internet)
   
   • Click on the link against the driver name and download.
   • Once the download is complete, click on the upload drivers button. Browse and select the downloaded drivers.
   • The driver files will be uploaded to the computer where the central server is installed.
4. The WinPE drivers can now be used in creating bootable WinPE media.

As mentioned in this document, apart from the drivers which are automatically collected from the machine where imaging is performed, you can also manually add the drivers to the Manual collections. Some required drivers which are not available in the configured driver repositories will be listed in the "Missing Drivers" tab in the OS deployment console. You have to manually add these drivers into the manual collections repository. This document will provide the steps to search the compatible drivers according to their models and vendor makes.

Searching drivers using Vendor make/model

To search the drivers according to the required models, follow the steps given below,

1. For HP Drivers:

   • Go to www.hp.com/drivers
   • Enter your HP serial number, product number or product name for the required model and select Find.
   • You will be able to view the search result with the available models. Select the required model. You will be redirected to Software and Drivers download page.

   For Dell Drivers:

   • Go to www.dell.com/drivers
   • Enter the service tag of the required model or choose from all products.

   For Lenovo Drivers:

   • Go to www.lenovo.com/drivers
   • Search for the required model using the product name, serial number or machine type.
   • Select Drivers & Software tab.
2. Select the required OS and version. All the drivers of the selected OS will be listed now. 
3. Download the required drivers. If the file is downloaded in the EXE format. Run the EXE and extract the files by following the on screen instructions. 
4. Go to the extracted folder and navigate to the folder containing the drivers file (.inf, .cat, .sys etc.,). 
5. Copy all the files in the folder and paste it into a new folder created in the network share. If you haven't configure this folder as manual collection, configure this as manual driver repository by following the steps given in the document.
6. After configuring the repository, go to the product console and select Scan Driver Repository under Driver Repository tab. 

Searching drivers using Hardware ID

To search drivers using Hardware ID follow the steps given below,

How to fetch Hardware ID from computers?

1. Press the key combination Windows Key + R, enter "devmgmt.msc" and click OK. Device Manager Window will open.
2. Navigate to the required device for which you need drivers, right click on it and select Properties. 
3. Go to Details tab and Select Hardware IDs from the property drop down. You can also select Compatible IDs, but it is recommended to select Hardware IDs.
4. In the value box, you will be able to see the list of Hardware IDs. 

How to search drivers using hardware ID in the internet?

1. Enter the hardware ID in your browser and search it in the internet. 
2. From the search result, select the link and download the drivers. Ensure that you download the driver for the required OS version. 
3. Go to the downloaded folder (extract it if it is an EXE or zip file) and navigate to the folder containing the drivers file (.inf, .cat, .sys etc.,). 
4. Copy all the files in the folder and paste it into a new folder created in the network share. If you haven't configure this folder as manual collection, configure this as manual driver repository by following the steps given in the document.
5. After configuring the repository, go to the product console and select Scan Driver Repository under Driver Repository tab.