Back Up Windows Drivers Before Reinstall: Full Guide

To back up Windows drivers before a reinstall, you use a command-line tool called DISM (Deployment Imaging Service and Management) to export all third-party drivers to a folder, then copy that folder to external storage. This preserves the exact driver versions currently installed, so after reinstalling Windows you can restore them without hunting for downloads or risking incompatible updates.

Why Back Up Drivers at All

Windows includes generic drivers for most hardware, but generic drivers often lack the specific features, performance tuning, or power management of the manufacturer’s driver. After a clean install, Windows Update may also deliver a driver that is older or buggier than the one you had. Backing up your current drivers ensures you can return to a known-good configuration immediately, especially for network adapters (so you can get online), graphics cards, audio devices, and chipset drivers.

What DISM Does and How It Works

DISM is a built-in Windows utility that can service Windows images and export driver packages. When you run the export command, it copies the driver package—the .inf file, the .sys file, and any associated catalog or DLL files—from the Windows driver store to a destination folder. The driver store is a protected system folder (C:\Windows\System32\DriverStore\FileRepository) where Windows keeps every driver it has ever installed. DISM only exports third-party drivers by default, not the in-box Microsoft drivers, which is what you want because Microsoft drivers are reinstalled with Windows.

Step-by-Step: Back Up with DISM

Create a folder on a drive that is not the one you are reinstalling, for example D:\DriverBackup or a USB drive with enough free space (typically 1–5 GB).
Open an elevated Command Prompt: right-click the Start button and choose “Command Prompt (Admin)” or “Windows PowerShell (Admin)”.
Run the export command:
dism /online /export-driver /destination:D:\DriverBackup
Wait for the operation to complete. DISM will show “The operation completed successfully.”
Verify the folder contains .inf files and subfolders. You can also run dism /online /get-drivers to see a list of all third-party drivers with their published names and dates.

The command exports every third-party driver that is currently installed, including those that are not actively in use (e.g., drivers for a device you unplugged). This is usually fine, but if you want only the drivers for devices currently connected, you would need a third-party tool or a more complex PowerShell script.

How to Restore the Drivers After Reinstall

After reinstalling Windows, you can reinstall the drivers in two ways:

Device Manager: Right-click a device with a yellow exclamation mark, choose “Update driver,” then “Browse my computer for drivers,” and point to the backup folder. Windows will search subfolders recursively.
PnPUtil (command line): Open an elevated Command Prompt and run pnputil /add-driver D:\DriverBackup\*.inf /subdirs /install. This installs all drivers in the folder and subfolders at once, which is much faster for many devices.

If you have the network driver backed up, you can install it first to get online, then let Windows Update fetch the rest, and finally use your backup to overwrite any that Windows Update got wrong.

Common Problems and Pitfalls

Not enough space: The backup can be large. Check the size of the destination folder before you start; if it fills up, DISM will fail partway through.
Wrong destination drive: If you back up to the same drive you are going to format, you lose the backup. Always use a separate physical drive or a USB stick.
Missing drivers after restore: Some drivers (especially for older or exotic hardware) may not install correctly from a backup because they rely on a specific installation order or on other software. In that case, download the latest driver from the manufacturer’s website.
DISM not found: DISM is included in Windows 10 and Windows 11, but in older versions (Windows 7) you may need to use the Windows AIK or a third-party tool like Double Driver.

Alternatives to DISM

If you prefer a graphical interface, several free tools can export drivers: Double Driver (works on Windows 7 and later), DriverBackup!, and DriverStore Explorer (which also lets you delete old drivers). These tools essentially do the same thing as DISM but present it in a list with checkboxes. They are useful if you want to select only specific drivers or if you are not comfortable with the command line. However, they are third-party and may not be updated for the latest Windows versions, so the built-in DISM is the most reliable and future-proof method.

Is It Safe and Are There Costs?

Backing up drivers is completely safe—it only reads from the driver store and writes to a folder you choose. There is no cost; DISM is a built-in Windows component. The only “cost” is the time it takes (usually a few minutes) and the storage space on your backup drive. The risk is minimal, but you should always create a system restore point or a full backup before a reinstall anyway, as a safety net.

Frequently Asked Questions

Will the backup include drivers for devices I don’t use?

Yes, DISM exports all third-party drivers in the driver store, including those for devices that are not currently connected. This is generally harmless—it just takes up a bit more space. If you want to avoid that, use a tool like DriverStore Explorer that lets you select specific drivers.

Can I back up drivers from a Windows installation that won’t boot?

Yes, but you need to use the Windows Recovery Environment or a bootable USB with Windows PE. From the recovery command prompt, you can run DISM against the offline Windows partition, for example: dism /image:C:\ /export-driver /destination:D:\DriverBackup. This is more advanced and requires knowing the drive letters in the recovery environment.

Do I need to back up drivers if I’m just doing a “Reset this PC”?

If you choose “Keep my files,” Windows will keep the existing drivers, so a backup is not strictly necessary. If you choose “Remove everything,” it is a clean install and you will lose all drivers, so back them up first.

How do I know which drivers are third-party vs. Microsoft?

Run dism /online /get-drivers and look at the “Provider” column. Microsoft drivers are listed as “Microsoft,” while third-party drivers show the manufacturer’s name (e.g., Intel, NVIDIA, Realtek). DISM’s export only includes non-Microsoft providers.

Can I use the backup on a different computer?

Technically yes, but it is not recommended. Drivers are often hardware-specific, and installing drivers from another machine can cause conflicts. Use the backup only for the same computer model, or at least the same hardware.

General steps for current mainstream versions; menus can differ by device and version. See the disclaimer or report an error.

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