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How to Back Up and Restore Drivers with Driver Booster

Learn how driver backups and system restore points protect your PC when using Driver Booster, and how to roll back a driver update that causes problems.

Updated October 27, 20263 min readDriver Booster guide
Driver Booster driver backup and restore illustration

The best driver update is one you can undo. Most driver updates go smoothly, but occasionally a new graphics or network driver introduces a bug that the old one did not have. Driver Booster includes tools to make rolling back straightforward. Here is how to use them, plus the Windows features that act as a second safety net.

Why backups matter for drivers

A driver sits between Windows and your hardware. If a new one is faulty, the symptoms can range from a flickering screen to no network connection at all, which makes it hard to download a fix. Having the previous working driver saved locally, and a restore point to fall back on, turns a potential headache into a two-minute job.

Safety net 1: a system restore point

Driver Booster can create a Windows system restore point automatically before it installs drivers. Check that this option is enabled in the program's settings. A restore point records system files and drivers, so returning to it undoes the update without touching your documents.

Make sure System Protection is turned on for your system drive in Windows, otherwise restore points cannot be created. You can check by searching Windows for "Create a restore point".

Safety net 2: Driver Booster's driver backup

Separately, Driver Booster can back up the currently installed drivers. In the free edition you start a backup yourself; according to IObit, PRO can back up drivers automatically before each update.

  1. Open Driver Booster and find the backup option in its tools or rescue section.
  2. Select the drivers you want to save; backing up all working drivers once is a sensible starting point.
  3. Run the backup and let it finish before updating.

How to roll back a bad driver update

Option A: restore from Driver Booster

Open the restore section, choose the device whose driver you want to revert, and select the backed-up version. Restart when asked.

Option B: use the restore point

Search Windows for "Recovery", choose Open System Restore, and pick the restore point Driver Booster created just before the update. This reverts every driver changed after that point.

Option C: Windows Device Manager

Right-click Start, open Device Manager, right-click the device, choose Properties, then the Driver tab and Roll Back Driver. This option is only available if Windows kept the previous driver.

If Windows will not start normally

If a display driver leaves you with a black screen, hold Shift while choosing Restart from the sign-in screen, then go to Troubleshoot > Advanced options > System Restore. You can also boot into Safe Mode, which uses basic display drivers, and roll back from there.

Good habits that reduce the need to roll back

  • Update one important driver at a time rather than everything at once.
  • Restart and test after graphics, chipset and network updates.
  • Skip updates for devices that are working perfectly.
  • Use Driver Booster 14's option to pick a more conservative driver version when one is offered.

For more on choosing updates wisely, read our guide on using Driver Booster safely, or see the feature overview on the homepage.