Hi,

The registry on this system is corrupt beyond repair and so I'm left with no option but to perform a clean OS install, something I've never attempted before. I'm positive I know what I'm doing but there are a couple of things that are bothering me. Assuming all goes well, I get onto my shiny new desktop and update Windows, how do I know which devices in my system require drivers that will have to be downloaded and won't come on the OS disc? If someone could compile a list of these devices in the order that their drivers should be installed I'd be very grateful. Unfortunately I don't have any of the discs that came with my PC.

I am connected directly to my router through an ethernet cable, but in Device Manager my Modem, the Intel 537EP, is disabled. There is another Intel device listed under the Network Adapter tab, this must be the one that is connected to the router vie ethernet cable. Does this mean that I don't have to install the driver for the disabled modem? Will it be disabled by default even when I reinstall the OS or is this something I should do manually?

The final thing, this PC is a Dell, a few years old now. It came with integrated graphics installed but I bought a Nvidia GeForce card and had a friend of mine install it on the system. In Device Manager both the Nvidia card and the integrated graphics are enabled and the integrateds' driver is still installed. When I reinstall the operating system should I keep the monitor plugged into the Nvidia and just forget the integrated chip is there? Will I need to install the drivers for both?

Any help would be greatly appreciated, forgive my ignorance

Thanks,

Jay Ranger

welcome to the forum.
There are 2 points here as its a DELL and if you use their disk it has all the drivers built into it. If you use a none DELL disk it may not have the drivers of coarse but being dell most of their stuff is in windows anyway.

Before you start if you go to Dells site and enter your TAG number which should be on the pc you can download all the drivers for your own pc so it makes the job simple.

Dont forget if its an old XP disk it may be SP1 so download SP3 first and apply it before you connect to the internet for saftey