this bug overwrites manually installed hardware drivers on some PCs

A bug in Microsoft 10/11 installs hardware drivers despite settings that say all installation must be manual. This bug is common enough to cause a stir on the networks.

Microsoft is often blamed for forcing the installation of software in Windows 10 or 11. Many netizens have taken to Twitter to express their frustration over a new wave of unsolicited updates. This time, Microsoft’s OS downloads and installs graphics card drivers, and this causes problems for some users.

To read – Windows 10, 11: this Nvidia driver causes blue screens of death, the patch is coming

It is not uncommon that in addition to feature updates and other security fixes, Microsoft also rolls out component driver updates approved by its WHQL lab. Thus, graphics cards from AMD or Nvidia frequently receive this kind of update. Whether this is usually not a problem, this can become very inconvenient when users have expressly set this setting to manual in the Windows 10/11 Group Policy Editor. In effect, the “forced” update overwrites the previous driver version.

Windows 10 and 11 forcefully install hardware drivers, despite your settings

Twitter member @ghost_motley shared his misadventure on Twitter, and the least we can say is that he is upset: “Microsoft is lying again, Windows 11 now ignores Group Policy Editor and installs driver updates through Windows Update, even if Windows Update is disabled”. According to NeoWin, “Many AMD Radeon users have reported an error message that states: “Windows Update may have automatically replaced your AMD graphics driver…”. The case is so serious that some users had to format and reinstall their operating system.

To read – Windows 12 makes a quiet appearance in Build 2023, launch is approaching

In the opinion of all observers, this forced installation of drivers is a Windows bug, and Microsoft obviously has no intention of harming it. Note that this problem should soon no longer occur on Windows 10, which is currently living its last two years of existence and should disappear from our screens in 2025.