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How to Troubleshoot Hardware & Driver Issues Using Device Manager

7 min read
Updated: November 2026
Hardware PnP Diagnostics

When your PC's audio disappears, Wi-Fi stops detecting networks, or your dedicated GPU throws a yellow triangle icon with "Windows has stopped this device", you are dealing with a hardware or driver fault. Device Manager is the native control console for all system hardware buses and drivers.

Step 1: Open Device Manager

The fastest way to launch Device Manager is via the Windows Quick Link menu:

Press Win + X and select Device Manager. Alternatively, press Win + R and run:

Run Shortcut
devmgmt.msc

Step 2: Decoding Device Status Error Codes

Look for any hardware category that is already expanded with a yellow warning triangle ⚠️. Right-click the faulty device and select Properties. The Device status box displays the diagnostic code:

Device Manager Error Codes
• Code 43 ("Windows has stopped this device because it has reported problems"): Most common on GPUs. Means the driver crashed repeatedly or hardware failed power delivery.
• Code 10 ("This device cannot start"): Missing or corrupted firmware/inf configuration file.
• Code 28 ("The drivers for this device are not installed"): Unrecognized PnP hardware ID.
• Code 14 ("This device cannot work properly until you restart your computer"): Pending kernel registry swap.

Step 3: How to Roll Back a Buggy Driver Update

If your device stopped working right after a Windows Update or GPU update:

  1. In the device's Properties window, click the Driver tab.
  2. Look at "Roll Back Driver". If clickable, click it.
  3. Select a reason (e.g. "Previous version of the driver was more reliable") and click Yes.
  4. Windows reinstalls the previously certified driver instantly.

Step 4: Finding Unknown Devices Using Hardware IDs

If a device appears as "Unknown device" under Other devices:

  1. In Properties, click the Details tab.
  2. In the Property dropdown, select Hardware Ids.
  3. You will see a string like PCI\VEN_10DE&DEV_2484.
Decoding the Vendor and Device
• VEN_10DE: Vendor is Nvidia (NVIDIA Corp).
• DEV_2484: Device is GeForce RTX 3070.
You can look up any VEN/DEV code at pcidatabase to find the exact manufacturer driver without guessing.

Step 5: Fixing Random USB Disconnections

If your mouse, keyboard, or webcam disconnects and reconnects randomly:

  1. Expand Universal Serial Bus controllers.
  2. Right-click USB Root Hub > Properties > Power Management tab.
  3. Uncheck: "Allow the computer to turn off this device to save power".
  4. Repeat for all Root Hubs and click OK.