Thanks for the time, effort, and detail put into this guide. I am having issues with my 560Ti SC and I think this will be really useful.


I just picked up a customer PC to replace my trusty crusty Dell 4400. I started getting the game crashes and system reboots 4 days after plugging in and playing installing Half Life 2 (yes, an ancient game and not the BF3 standard that is touted here but i'm an old gamer).  I played DM for a good 3+ hours the first night, then another 2 hours the following afternoon with max settings, and performance was smooth and seamless. By the fourth day I was getting game crashes, system reboots, and the "285.62 driver stopped responding" error. Currently I get the black screen after the Windows boot screen. There are various factors that could have caused the problem - software updates (including a lot of the stock Windows crap)...installing a 4 port usb 2.0 card from my old PC, and installing a 250gb Maxtor HDD (my music drive) also from the old PC. Nothing major, but enough to tip the balance on my rig. I'll undo/redo everything and report back


--------------
NZXT Tempest EVO case
i5 2500 3.3
ASUS P8Z68-V LX
60 GB Corsair Force Series 3 F60 SSD
700W PSU
8Gb Corsair 1600 XMS
EVGA GTX 560Ti SC
Win7-64

rmhawk

I'm having a new pc built. I7 2600k, asrock fatality z68, and evga 560ti SC. I've read over your guide and I always setup my windows updates like you suggested. I will be installing my own retail version of win7 ultimate and plan on doing while NOT connected to the Internet so windows doesn't install any updates until I can tell it how to install them. I also never install any of the BS that comes with driver packages.

This will actually be my first nvidia card ever. I've always had ATI cards. With my new 560Ti, if I install the latest WHQL drivers (280.xx something I think), just the driver and physX, will I always have to uninstall drivers before installing new ones, or can i check the clean install box and write over the current drivers? I won't be using any drivers prior to 260.xx nor will any have ever been installed since its a new OS install.

Also, do you recommend newest beta drivers on a new OS install, or stick with WHQL?

"will I always have to uninstall drivers before installing new ones"
 
Thats a very good question
 
Since its a "new" OS install (and you appear to know how to keep Windows from installing a Video driver)..
Then YES, a "custom" install of the graphics driver and PhysX (with clean install checked) should be just fine
 
As for when Upgrading to a newer driver (or Downgrading to a older one), it is always "best" to uninstall the previous driver first, before installing.
 
Congrats on you new videocard, and welcome to the EVGA Forums

junior64

Good evening sir, i was reading your postings regarding the installing/uninstalling v. drivers, and seems a great, good job.   I tried myself and helped me (got more knowledge and expertise dealing with v. cards), we are very happy here.  Please need your help for solving the following issue :   I bought 2 Gtx 590, tested them individually on stock settings and they ran all hardcore games ( Crysis 2, Battlefield 3, CODMW2, etc.) smoothly, but whenever a placed them on sli, using different resolutions, the graphics are very dense or complicated, these games went very extremely slow.  So this picture worries any pc gamer; i have used before a Gtx 580 on stock settings, and it ran these games fast as it should be always.  I used before, 2 x ATI 5970 in sli and they ran Crysis 1 and CODMW2 very well.   With the new Gtx 590 i cant' play Crysis 1, because it crashed to the desktop, and didn't allowed me to open any other game in my pc ( i had to uninstall and install again the driver for being able to play same games).  I don't know what's the issue on it, if it is the drivers or just my pc.   Okay, my pc specifications are:


Intel - 3.33 GHZ Quad core processor - overclocked  to 3.50 GHZ, and watercooled.
Evga Classified x-58 motherboard- tri-sli - and watercooled.
Windows Vista 64 bit.
Corsair memory modules - 12 GB - in total - stock settings.
Corsair 1200 AX - psu.
2 x Evga Gtx 590 in sli and stock settings (air cooled)
2 x water pumps.
Creative x-fi titanium and i/o console.

Besides all, an incredible situation is that - "i had an old Dell XPS pc with an evga GT 6900, and at least it ran Crysis 1 with any driver (old and new)".   Please need your expertise, for making an overclock to my dual Gtx 590 ( what should be a considerable overclocking setting in digits for them?).   I know core/shader sliders move simultaneaously, but the memory slider is separate, and higher the numbers, higher the temps. will be.  And if the voltage is required for overclocking or not.?   It is first time for me in overclocking and don't want to loose -$1,500.00 in v. cards at these times.   Thank very much for attending this issue. 

Your certainly have a very nice hardware setup there
 
There are a few things that stand out in your config...
Since you appear to have great funding, my very first suggestion would be to lose Vista and get a copy of Windows 7.
You will find that Windows 7 is much less prone to issues with newer hardware and games, and is just plain flat out a better operating system to use.
Next, you do NOT state what exact model of motherboard you are using. Please post the model number, as running dual 590's on older model x58 motherboards can be dangerous and lead to PSU and motherboard damage (24pin meltdown) without a EVGA Powerboost model installed.
 
You state that each card has been tested and appears to be working fine by itself, but when in SLI the performance is "laggy".
This issue needs to be tested to determine what is going on. Download and install the latest Afterburner 2.2.0 Beta 10, this will allow you to monitor GPU usage and other measures, and will tell you what might be going on with a given game and driverset.
 
You state that your CPU is only running at 3.5ghz, since your water cooling this would lead me to suspect you are using the "auto" overclock feature of the BIOS. This should not be done, as the settings and volatges will not be correct. Your CPU (with that cooling) should be able to run above 4.0ghz with ease, and doing so will free up horsepower for your videocards, which currenty have a slight bottleneck at only 3.5ghz.
 
As for Overclocking your dual GPU 590 videocards...
I am sorry to be the bringer of bad news, but the 590's for all intents are really not overclockable.
The cards are (by Nvidia design) just about at the max possible voltage for a single PCIE slot, and the OCP and driver based limiters of the 590 render it a "run at Stock" graphics card. While the 590 "can" be overclocked 50-75mhz by a professional, doing so can lead to killing the card and is NOT suggested.
Your comment "don't want to loose -$1,500.00 in v. cards at these times" means that you should NOT attempt to overclock your 590's -at all-, because doing so is quite risky and produces very little real world gain in games...
 
*Besides, it is NOT the clocks of your videocards that is your problem, your probelm is more releated to your CPU speed (bottleneck) and the fact that Quad SLI does not scale well in videogames.... running Afterburner will show you what is going on while playing.
You could also have heat issues or SLI issues (tests with Afterburner will show this if its happening)
 
My guess to the cause of your issues would be, low CPU speed with possible VTT voltage issues caused by 12gigs of RAM and two GTX 590's.
Possible 24pin issues (you need to post your MB model number to know if you have a problem or not)
Driver issues caused by trying to run very old games -and- the very latest on the same driversets in a Quad SLI config, without understanding the need to be aware of NVCP settings and QUAD SLI issues.
 
My suggestion would be to download MSI Afterburner 2.2.0 Beta 10 from here
 http://downloads.guru3d.com/MSI-Afterburner-2.2.0-Beta-10-download-2839.html
 
Then go play BF3, when it starts to get laggy, close the game, open Afterburner and take some screenshots of all the graphs (example below)

 
Then start a thread in the 500 series forums and I will look it over, the data should show us what is going on and how to fix it
 
*Important:  we need to know what model number of x58 motherboard you are using, please post it.
What are your RAM timings and voltage currently set at?
What model of I7 CPU are you running?
What is the current installed Nvidia driverset you are using?
 
  
    
  

SaintSevens

Hello - strange question perhaps! but i have wondered why if for instance you had a 470
running on current drivers why you cant just remove that card and say install a 580 no drivers
required as they are the same drivers aren't they? It says in the release notes what cards it supports
but obviously although it should work it may not, why? you can update many existing programs and the
update recognises the previous version carries on and updates and works!. After all these years why aren;t
graphics drivers clever enough to do this (caveat obviously nvidia to nvidia).
I am genuinely curious about this perhaps you have a thought maniacvvv?
thanks

Ahhh... a great question to start my monday morning
 
The short answer is, you can.. (and pray that things dont go wrong)
 
The correct answer is, it should NOT be done.
 
The technical reasons for NOT doing so are straight forward.
There are so many different MB/BIOS/OS's/CPU/Drivers/Software combo's that all react quite differently, to finding a "different" videocard has been inserted on a reboot...
The very complex problems that can occur by doing so, are too many to count and not something that Nvidia can control in the driver itself as the issues can be caused by factors (BIOS,OS,MB,other drivers,other software) outside of its control with literaly hundreds of thousands of different issue/failure modes.
 
I could write "pages" of stuff I have seen go wrong...
 
Typicaly these are system crashes, BSOD, sound issues, app crashes, games crashing, non-Nvidia driver conflicts, artifacts and performance issues.
 
You are much more likely to encounter such issues when moving between generations of cards (like your example of going from a 400 series to a 500 series) or when "adding" a card to a system for PhysX or SLI. And the older your config/OS/system software, the more likely issues will crop up with a modern card on a previously installed driver. 
 
There is a large group of users who have simply swapped cards, and had nothing but problems since.
The proper uninstall/install of Nvidia drivers will often fix their issues, but depending on how serious the problem was, some users may have to reinstall their OS to get past the issues created...
 
For all the reasons above, it is certainly well worth the 2mins to properly uninstall ones current driver -before- installing a new graphics card, lest you find yourself like many users spending huge amounts of time troubleshooting, fighting constant problems for months or just dealing with a system that just never works correctly. And of course, sometimes having to reformat and reinstall ones OS to get past the problems caused....
 
I suggest that all users properly uninstall their Nvidia drivers, before installing any graphics card(s) on a system 
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
 

adamaj74

Hello, I have a problem. I'm at the part where I'm trying to uninstall all nvidia entries except the driver, but whenever I click on something and click "uninstall", nothing happens. Any ideas? Thanks.

 
Welcome to the EVGA Forums

What OS are you using?
Are you using a primary Admin account?
 
Please list the Nvidia entries that you see
*(remember that some configs may have Nvidia chipset entries that should not be uninstalled)

adamaj74

Hello and thanks! :)
I am running win7 64. I built this pc last feb. I'm running an i7-950, asus rampage formula mb, ocz vertex ssd (win7 is installed on here), 1TB Western Digital hdd, 6GB gskill ram, corsair psu, and an evga gtx570 oc version. hope i didn't leave anything out. I was using 275.33 drivers. When I tried to unistall anything nvidia related, it just wouldn't do anything. I would click it, then click "Uninstall/Change", but nothing happens. I can uninstall other programs just fine. Finally I just went in device manager and uninstalled it from there and installed driver version 285.62. I have full, password protected admin rights. Right now, the listings for nvidia are:
NVIDIA 3D Vision Driver 275.33
NVIDIA Graphics Driver 285.62
NVIDIA HD Audio Driver 1.2.23.3
NVIDIA PhysX System Software 9.11.0621
NVIDIA Update 1.3.5

When I installed the new driver the only things i had checked were the driver and physx. I tried other uninstall programs like ccleaner and iolo system mechanic to try to uninstall the files, but every time it's the same. I click on them, then click uninstall, and nothing happens. I don't understand.

It seems to be running fine. I played swtor for over 6 hours and it ran great. But I would like to get this cleaned up and figured out. I appreciate your help, thank you very much.

Interesting problem
 
These are correct
 NVIDIA Graphics Driver 285.62 and its PhysX version 9.11.0621
 
These versions are incorrect for having 285.62 installed
NVIDIA 3D Vision Driver 275.33
NVIDIA HD Audio Driver 1.2.23.3
 

 
It would appear that the entries might be damaged in the registry.
You dont mention how you used CCleaner and System Mechanic, did you run those from the desktop off a normal boot or in SafeMode?  DriverSweeper in SafeMode is what I suggest in my guide.....
 
However it happened, it appears that you have "broken" some of the Nvidia components in some fashion.
Its unclear if you really have the components installed -or- "Ghost" entries left by incorrect use of third party uninstallers and/or registry cleaners 
 
This means to really fix things you would want to do a OS reinstall....
 
-->Try THIS first
*you could try to see if the Graphics Driver and PhysX will uninstall correctly in programs and features, then reboot into SafeMode and use DriverSweeper (as shown in my guide) and see if it works to remove the entries... 
 
If that does not work (do the same as above) -but- when putting in the Driver, do a full recommended Express Install (with clean install checked) and see if you can overwrite/rebuild the entries....
Then go back to Programs and Features, and see if the Uninstaller will now work
 
You need to get to the point where the you can completely remove your older driver components and have nothing showing, then be able to install your "new" driver and have only its correct components showing and the uninstallers are working correctly.
 
The bottom line is, if you have "older" broken Nvidia components showing that cannot be removed... you should be VERY happy things are working and your not seeing issues or errors.
Your choices are to live with it (as long as its working for you) until it doesnt, and then be "forced" to do a OS reinstall. 
Or do a OS reinstall now, when its working
 
I am OCD about such things, you could certainly just keep using it since it appears to be working for you...
Just keep in mind, that "at some point" this may/or may not cause a problem.
If a serious driver problem does happen--->the fix at that time will be a OS reinstall 
 

Ok, so I uninstalled the new driver and physx using the method you outlined (it finally let me do at least that). Then I booted in safe mode and ran drive sweeper to clean out any other nvidia leftovers. However those other pesky artifacts/ghosts were still showing up in the list. So I used ccleaner to remove/delete them from the registry, then cleaned/repaired my registry, then rebooted into safe mode and ran drive sweeper again just to be thorough. Booted back up and checked to see if they were still listed. Nope, finally no nvidia listings! So I went ahead and installed the drivers like you suggested, making sure to do a clean, custom install. Now the only listings for nvidia are the new driver and physx. Perfect! :) thanks for your help again!

Is there a good guide on completely uninstalling anything ATI related from your machine?

I felt like I did something wrong last night:

I uninstalled my 6850 from Device manager – Display adapters and then deleted the CAP profiles from Program and Features. After installing NVDA drivers (per your order) I booted back to desktop and still have Catalyst control panel show up in my right click desktop menu and in Programs and Features. Get an error message when trying to uninstall.

Would like to know best method to make sure they’re completely removed

Thanks

Thanks - I am going to completely clean/uninstall everything and then re-install fresh NVDA drivers

Hi everyone this thread seems to be full of several very experienced and helpful people, so i figured I'd post my problem since it does appear to be due to the driver installation any help or advice on what I might be able to try next , would be welcome.
 
Basically I've just set up a new system, specs below
ASUS M5A99X - Motherboard
AMD 1100T - CPU
4x4GB Corsair - Ram
EVGA GTX 550ti superclocked - GPU
90Gb OSZ agility 3 - SSD
I have a HP and Acer monitor, and have been using the HP2010i in the GPU 1st slot, running the other one unplugged now.
 
The system is running under a clean install of Windows 7 64bit
 
Hardware wise everything appears to be running properly.
 
When Windows loads the display driver comes up as Standard VGA and from there I've tried multiple times to install the GPU drivers, I've tried the latest Beta, through to the last couple of stable releases and the drivers that shipped on the accompanying disk. The install itself always seems to go smoothly and asks for a reboot, the system reboots gets to the windows logo screen where the 4 circular lights come together and then the screen has a slight pulse and remains black, instead of progressing to the login screen, the entire system remains on but the screen wont change from black. UNLESS I type in my password and press enter, which I tried one time and have found to consistently be accepted, IF I do type in the passowrd and press enter the screen changes to display what would be the background graphic for the freshly installed windows (ie the 4 coulored window on a light blue with some white swirls). The image is completely non responsive I have no mouse no command line, no icons, most of the short cut keys that I know appear to do nothing. HOWEVER pressing control Alt Delete, (which would typically bring up the login style screen and the menu to open task manager) causes the screen to revert back to its previous black "login" state from which no inut that Ive tried has had any result.
 
Ive been through all the instructions in this thread in detail, Ive scoured several other threads, and Ive personally formatted and reinstalled windows and the drivers about a dozen times so far, (as well as restoring whilst in safe mode, to a point before the drivers install, which is the only way to get back into windows) and I'm honestly at a loss as to what could be the issue.
 
Any advice would be welcomed. Cheers.
 
Judd
 
 

the power supply is a
OCZ ZX 1000w
I unplugged the second monitor early on in my testing,
 
I also have a Western Digital Caviar Green (WD20EARX) 2TB SATA3 drive, empty and unformatted attached to the system.
Otherwise though its a bare system.
 
Ive been doing my installs etc off a 16Gb USB stick. I havent taken the system on the net at all, have been transfering and updating via my laptop. I have installed off the desktop after copying files from the USB stick as suggested, (have also installed straight off the stick).
 
I've also just installed the latest Bios for the motherboard to see if that will make a difference, though Im not optimistic
Thanks.

Hi just posting an update to say that the system just booted up with the nvidia drivers. It would seem to be an issue to do with the motherboard Bios (previously 7.02 I think) being incompatible with the Nvidia drivers, but with the new Bios v09.01 it FINALLY worked, I'll have a play with everything and report back if theres any issues with instability etc, however touch wood I think my system is finally up and running.
 
Appreciate the fast response before though and big thanks for this whole thread as I'd already made several of the noted mistakes listed above in my first few attempted installs. Cheers.
 
Judd
 

Thanks for this excellent guide!
I tried everything suggested to get PhysX to install. Nothing worked.
When I opened the Nvidia folder and tried installing PhysX from there, a message came up saying that the PhysX Driver I was trying to install was older than the driver already installed. This was from a completely new install of 285.62, for Win7 x64.
So, I Googled "PhysX" and found a listing for "Download PhysX for Win7 x64."
I went there, downloaded it and it installed instantly.
Even though the new driver I downloaded and installed was for 64 bit Win7, apparently it was trying to install a 32 bit version of PhysX.
All of this started because the Nvidia Control Panel usually works for a few days and then suddenly refuses to open. It's listed as being installed, shows up in the control panel and the right click context menu. It just refuses to open after a few days. Funny thing is, it opens when I'm uninstalling the drivers and won't close until I restart after the uninstall. After restart, the same thing. It works a few days and then refuses, once again, to open.
Any ideas on this one?
I've been up all night installing, deleting, redownloading and reinstalling this driver, and now it's after 7 AM. I'm going to bed. I'm seriously considering returning to AMD. Unlike Nvidia, at least I always expect AMD to be screwy. Since Nvidia can no longer write proper drivers, maybe it's time to change back to AMD.
 

kzinti1

Thanks for this excellent guide!
I tried everything suggested to get PhysX to install. Nothing worked.
When I opened the Nvidia folder and tried installing PhysX from there, a message came up saying that the PhysX Driver I was trying to install was older than the driver already installed. This was from a completely new install of 285.62, for Win7 x64.
So, I Googled "PhysX" and found a listing for "Download PhysX for Win7 x64."
I went there, downloaded it and it installed instantly.
Even though the new driver I downloaded and installed was for 64 bit Win7, apparently it was trying to install a 32 bit version of PhysX.
All of this started because the Nvidia Control Panel usually works for a few days and then suddenly refuses to open. It's listed as being installed, shows up in the control panel and the right click context menu. It just refuses to open after a few days. Funny thing is, it opens when I'm uninstalling the drivers and won't close until I restart after the uninstall. After restart, the same thing. It works a few days and then refuses, once again, to open.
Any ideas on this one?
I've been up all night installing, deleting, redownloading and reinstalling this driver, and now it's after 7 AM. I'm going to bed. I'm seriously considering returning to AMD. Unlike Nvidia, at least I always expect AMD to be screwy. Since Nvidia can no longer write proper drivers, maybe it's time to change back to AMD.

Take a deep breath
 
You are being you own worst enemy here, and the mistakes your making are compounding your problems making them even worse.
 
"When I opened the Nvidia folder and tried installing PhysX from there, a message came up saying that the PhysX Driver I was trying to install was older than the driver already installed"
*This message was telling you, that there had been a error while uninstalling your previous Nvidia driver. You should have stopped right there, and properly uninstalled PhysX before going forward. 
 
Each Nvidia driver version (release) is made to work with a certain PhysX version, but not all drivers contain a "newer" version as sometimes a PhysX version will be not get a update and be "reused" within a driver family.
Each Nvidia driver will only work correctly with the PhysX driver its coded for, and will check PhysX versions to prevent using the wrong one....
 
Your first mistake was trying to use the PhysX installer directly from the Nvidia folder, as that installer is NOT designed to be run in that fashion.
 
PhysX is a 32bit application contained within the Nvidia driver installer, your Googling has most likey given you either a Malware/Virus or a PhysX designed for a stand alone PhysX card from 2005...
Either way it is certain to cause you terrible problems....
 
Your driver issues with the control panel not showing is well known issue (as noted in my guide)
Also, Nvidia control panel problems with opening (as described) are most often caused by config issues, memory problems, Antivirus issues Etc and should be tested before taking action...
 
It seems as though you started out with some control panel issues and also failed to properly remove your previous PhysX version before attempting a driver install....
And then things went really bad, as you attempted to -force- a fix on your install issues.
 
"I've been up all night installing, deleting, redownloading and reinstalling this driver, and now it's after 7 AM."
 
Because of the above, I am going to have to recommend that you -completely- wipe your OS drive and start over. Because you appear to be using a SSD setup, this will require a "Secure Erase" to prep your SSD before the OS install (see your SSD's webpage for the correct process of Secure Erase and SSD OS install prep) 
-->You could have done so originaly last night many times over with the time you spent...
 
Before reinstalling, I would suggest a FULL system scan with AntiVirus to rule out any issues from your "PhysX" download having gotten into any secondary drives..
Next I would pre-download and burn to disk the correct copies (for your 590/OS version) of Nvidia 285.79 and Nvidia 290.53 so you have them on-hand after reinstall.
*Start with installing the 290.53 -first- and then test the Nvidia driver and NVCP. 
  
After you Secure Erase you SSD's and begin your OS reinstall... you MUST input a user Admin password when asked. This will help you avoid problems and issues that can occur if you skip this step....
 
A SSD Secure Erase, full OS install, chipset/MB drivers, Nvidia driver and then a full Windows Update (no optionals or hardware updates) should take less than 1-2hrs depending on your internet connection...
*Do NOT install any AV software until -after- the primary installs listed above have been completed 
Doing a full OS reinstall will take much much less time than you spent lastnight, and -if done correctly- will give you a perfect fresh install with a correctly working Nvidia driver 
 
* I see you live in the USA, if you would like me to help you look over the "current" state of your drivers and see if there is any non-OS reinstall recovery possible, please PM me and I will go over some things on the phone with you and see just how bad things are
  
  
 

McMarty

Hi all,
I have big trouble with imstalling NVidia drivers. During the play of the BF3 I got several graphic card resets (video HW error) so I decided to downgrade from 290.53 to recommended 285.62.

I followed maniac´s instruction, but I wasn´t successful. Some parts of the NVidia drivers weren´t installed.

Here are there:
NVidia Update 1.5.20 - wasn´t install
PhysX 9.11.0621 - unsuccessful
Driver control of 3D Vision 285.62 - wasn´t install
Driver 3D Vision 285.62 - wasn´t install

I tried many times, unistall in Win Control panel, then safe mode, Driver Cleaner, CCleaner. Custom installation of NVidia drivers. No success.

I will be glad for some hints.

My configuration:
Win Vista x64 SP2
i5 2600K
GTX570 (OC edition)

P.S. Sorry for my English. I am not so skilled in PC English.

Martin

There was no need to to install a "older" driver because of the error you were seeing. Nvidia 285.62 has not been a recommended driver for BF3 for over 4 months, currently 290.53 is the recommended driver for BF3. 
 
NVidia Update 1.5.20 - wasn´t install--------------------------- This is correct
PhysX 9.11.0621 - unsuccessful---------------------------------- may or may NOT be correct 
Driver control of 3D Vision 285.62 - wasn´t install ----------- This is correct
Driver 3D Vision 285.62 - wasn´t install-------------------- This is correct
 
I assume the driver installed and the NVCP is working correctly
 
Please Open the NVCP, go to HELP then SYSTEM INFORMATION then COMPONENTS
This will show you what PhysX version you currently have installed. (as shown below)



 
PhysX version 9.11.0621 is the correct version for Nvidia 285.62
 
Please report back if that is what is showing