I updated my NVIDIA graphics driver to version 617.14, and since then my browser feels sluggish, the display takes longer to sync during startup, and several installed games are reporting corrupted files. Windows did not save the previous driver for rollback, and the NVIDIA app does not show the version I had before. Do I need to factory-reset my PC or change anything in the BIOS, or is there a safer way to restore the system?
3 Answers
First identify the exact graphics card model, then search NVIDIA’s driver archive for that model and operating system. After reinstalling, verify the affected games through their launchers, since the driver update may have coincided with a separate file or storage issue. Avoid resetting the entire PC unless clean driver installation and game-file verification fail.
Use Display Driver Uninstaller, commonly called DDU, from Windows Safe Mode. Disconnect from the internet temporarily so Windows does not automatically install a driver, run DDU to remove the current NVIDIA installation, then install the older driver you downloaded. This gives you a clean reinstall instead of layering another driver over the problematic one.
That’s okay—check the archived drivers for your exact GPU and start with a known stable recent version. If the problem remains, test another nearby version.
You probably do not need a factory reset or any BIOS changes. Download the correct driver for your exact NVIDIA GPU model from NVIDIA’s official driver page, where older driver releases are also available. If you do not know which version you had, try a few recent versions rather than assuming it was the one immediately before 617.14.
I’m not sure which older version I had installed, since it wasn’t the release immediately before 617.14.