One of the most tedious parts of installing Windows is the manual search and reinstallation of drivers for every device. Recent versions of the operating system come with generic drivers, but in most cases, you need to visit each manufacturer's website and get the right copies. However, there is an alternative to save time in the future: back up drivers in Windows using the command prompt and the DISM tool.
Windows installations don't last forever. Sooner or later, something will force you to reinstall from scratch. No matter how strict your maintenance sessions are, there will always be an error or conflict that can only be solved with the diplomacy of Lieutenant Ripley — "nuke and pave." Clean the table and start over.
If you're used to cloning your hard drive and making backups, restoring the whole system can be a matter of minutes, but if you start with a “clean” Windows installation, you'll need drivers. The problem is that sometimes you must use very specific versions, and it's hard to find them online. A popular alternative is updating drivers offline using Snappy Driver Installer Origin, but there is another option: back up the drivers in your current Windows installation before blowing everything up, using the command prompt and the DISM tool.
How to Back Up Windows Drivers with DISM
The Deployment Image Servicing and Management tool, better known as DISM, is one of the most important in the Microsoft ecosystem. DISM lets us install and uninstall operating system components, compress resources, prepare images, and in some cases, rescue the operating system from the brink. Today's goal is to take advantage of its driver export function to create backups:
- Open the command prompt with elevated privileges
- Create a folder on a drive to store the drivers
- Run the command dism /online /export-driver /destination:(foldername)
- **“(foldername)”** is the folder you created in the second step. In our example, we used “Drivers” on the G drive, that is, G:\Drivers
- Wait for DISM to finish the export
The final performance will always depend on the computer and the speed of its drives, but you shouldn't have to wait too long. Our test folder has 1.34 gigabytes of drivers that can easily be saved to a USB stick or an external drive.
Restoring the Drivers
Now, how do we reinstall them once we have Windows “clean” and back? The folks at Dell recommend manual installation using the folder as the source (“Browse my computer for driver software”) and restore each device one by one. In general, we adhere to that recommendation, except for the graphics card. In that case, it's always best to visit the manufacturer's page and get the latest version.
