Windows 8.1: The Missing Manual

Troubleshooting Newly Installed Gear

If, when you connect a new component, Windows doesn’t display a “successfully installed” message like the one at the bottom of Figure 20-2, it probably can’t “see” your new device.

• If you’ve installed an internal card, make sure that it’s seated in the slot firmly (after shutting down your computer, of course).

• If you attached something external, make sure that it’s turned on, has power (if it came with a power cord), and is correctly connected to the PC.

In either case, before panicking, try restarting the PC. If you still have no luck, try the Add Hardware wizard described in the box below. (And if even that doesn’t work, then call the manufacturer.)

If your new gadget didn’t come with a disc (or maybe just a disc with drivers, but no installer), then hooking it up may produce a “Found New Hardware” balloon in the notification area, but no message about happy success. In that case, click the balloon to make the Add Hardware wizard appear.

If you have the drivers on a CD from the manufacturer, then select the first option, “Locate and install driver software.” Now Windows asks for the driver CD. Windows either finds the compatible driver and installs it automatically, or it offers you a choice. If you do not, in fact, have the CD, then click “I don’t have the disc.” You’re offered two final, fatalistic options: “Check for a solution” (Windows dials the mother ship on the off chance that a driver has miraculously cropped up since its last update) ...