What is Device Manager?:
Device Manager is an extension of the Microsoft Management Console that provides a central and organized view of all the Microsoft Windows recognized hardware installed in a computer.
What is Device Manager Used For?:
Device Manager is used to manage the hardware devices installed in a computer like hard disk drives, keyboards, sound cards, USB devices, and more.
Device Manager is most commonly used to update the device drivers for a piece of hardware.
Device Manager can also be used for changing hardware configuration options, disabling and enabling hardware, identifying conflicts between hardware devices, and much more.
Think of Device Manager as the master list of hardware that the Windows operating system understands. All the hardware on your computer can be configured from this centralized utility.
How is Device Manager Accessed?:
Device Manager can be accessed several ways, many of which are listed below:
Access Device Manger in Windows Vista:
- Access Device Manager From the Control Panel System Applet in Windows Vista
- Access Device Manager From the Computer Management Utility in Windows Vista
- Access Device Manager From a Command Prompt in Windows Vista
Access Device Manger in Windows XP:
- Access Device Manager From the Control Panel System Applet in Windows XP
- Access Device Manager From the Computer Management Utility in Windows XP
- Access Device Manager From a Command Prompt in Windows XP
How is Device Manager Used?:
Each hardware item in Device Manager contains detailed device driver, system resource, and other configuration information and settings. Changing these settings from Device Manager for a piece of hardware changes the way Windows works with the particular piece of hardware.
For example, Device Manger is used to update the drivers for your sound card when new ones are released from your sound card manufacturer. A driver update may give Windows access to certain functions of your sound card that were not available to Windows before.
Device Manager Availability:
Device Manger is available in nearly every Microsoft Windows version including Windows Vista, Windows XP, Windows 2000, Windows ME, Windows 98, Windows 95, and more.
Note: Even though Device Manager is available in almost every Windows operating system version, some small differences do exist between them.
