Windows 10 2004 is offering optional updates for Intel drivers that are a confusing mess for users who attempt to install them.
During the Windows 10 2004 July 2020 updates, Microsoft enabled the optional updates experience, allowing users to select the optional drivers they wish to install.
This week, Microsoft began pushing out a confusing mess of Intel drivers that make it difficult to understand what should be installed.
After reading about this on WindowsLatest, I looked at my Optional Updates section and saw four different driver updates for supposedly the same 'Intel - System' device.
It is even more confusing because three drivers have dates specifying they were created in 1968, 17 years before Windows 1.0 was first released.
In a 2017 blog post, Microsoft explains that using older dates is intentional as it enables Windows to pick the latest driver when multiple drivers are found for the same hardware device.
"When the system looks for a driver to use for a particular piece of hardware, it ranks them according to various criteria. If a driver provides a perfect match to the hardware ID, then it becomes a top candidate. And if more than one driver provides a perfect match, then the one with the most recent timestamp is chosen. If there is still a tie, then the one with the highest file version number is chosen"
"Suppose that the timestamp on the driver matched the build release date. And suppose you had a custom driver provided by the manufacturer. When you installed a new build, the driver provided by Windows will have a newer timestamp than the one provided by the manufacturer. Result: When you install a new build, all your manufacturer-provided drivers get replaced by the Windows drivers. Oops."
"Intentionally backdating the drivers avoids this problem. It means that if you have a custom manufacturer-provided driver, it will retain priority over the Windows-provided driver. On the other hand, if your existing driver was the Windows-provided driver from an earlier build, then the third-level selection rule will choose the one with the higher version number, which is the one from the more recent build," Microsoft explains in a developer blog post.
Intel has also stated in the past that they use the 7/18/1968 date for older drivers that should not be selected by Windows 10 when offering driver updates. This date is Intel's foundation day.
"Intel Chipset Device Software uses an unusual date for the devices it is targeting. This is to make sure it does not overwrite any other drivers. The date 07/18/1968 has symbolic significance – Intel’s foundation day," Intel explained in a tweet.
Even with an explanation, it is still confusing
Even with the explanation of how Windows 10 picks the most suitable driver for your computer, in my particular situation illustrated above, it still does not make sense.
According to research done by BleepingComputer, the drivers showing 7/18/1968 are Intel Chipset Drivers, while the driver with version 1910.13.0.1060 is for the Intel Management Engine.
Why are they all being offered as 'Intel - System,' when they are clearly for different components?
To make matters worse, Microsoft is offering two different drivers that display the same 10.1.16.6 version.
Microsoft has to do a better job of displaying what each offered driver is for and only offering the best choice for a particular device.
To offer three different Intel Chipset Driver, with two being the same version, is confusing as to what should be installed.
According to a source familiar with the Windows optional drivers, the date shown in Windows Update is taken from the INF file for the driver package. Unless intentionally changed to an earlier date, this date reflects when the driver was created.
For each driver with the same name, they represent the best driver for a specific device in your system. In our example, this means that there are three different devices in our system that have a driver confusingly labeled the same.
BleepingComputer was told that Microsoft is aware of the confusion this is causing and are thinking about UI improvements in future versions of Windows 10.
Comments
GT500 - 4 years ago
My advice is still to avoid installing drivers via Windows Update (I disable that feature via ShutUp10) and to periodically check for driver updates manually from the hardware manufacturers to ensure you have the latest versions.
NoneRain - 4 years ago
Well...that's way better than update via WU Optional updates at this moment :p
Shplad - 4 years ago
Agreed. I avoid WU driver updates entirely. That system often chooses really poor drivers.
eLPuSHeR - 4 years ago
Good day.
Indeed it is intentional. I think it's some Intel milestone release (8088 was released in 1979 according to Wikipedia). The same as MS standard AHCI driver showing Vista release date (2006) even if build number is 19041.xx On the other hand it doesn't make things easier, doesn't it? But these drivers are optional; you don't need to install them if system is working fine.
nani2232 - 4 years ago
True even I was confused yesterday.
doriel - 4 years ago
OK, seems little bit confusing. But I dont know which driver from the picture should I pick? 'cause there are two exactly same entries in the table. Followed by the same german IP address :) Drivers are one of the most important, this should be done precisely.
BTW what happened to the beautiful aero scheme? These new control pannels are nearly as ugly as I am.
NoneRain - 4 years ago
Avoid WU Optional updates until (if) they fix this mess..
Just to point it out, I noticed that way before this week... I'm trying to find some messages that I exchanged talking about it to give a more accurate date, but it certainly wasn't this month.
noelprg4 - 4 years ago
so far this problem seems to occur with Windows 10 v2004 and not with v1909 & older Win10 versions
DyingCrow - 4 years ago
Just a couple weeks ago, i did a little experiment with a Dell Laptop using command|update and WU. Fresh reimage, ran command|update, all good. Ran WU, picked all optional updates. Instant BSOD with a PNP device error. Did other Dell Laptop different model, same stuff.
This makes me think that not only optional updates are a mess as they are currently presented, but they might not be the best match at all.
The criteria appears to be messed up, and maybe a WU root issue. If the optional updates had already been presented before running the Dell updates, and Windows did not recheck those drivers when rechecking for updates, that may cause an older driver to be installed on a device that just got a firmware update or something, and mess up things bad.
My trust in optional updates is 0, and M$ is doing a terrible job presenting those updates to users that just want to turn their machines on and use.
About the dates, even if there's a method to that madness, it's something completely stupid, and the people behind this reasoning are even more stupid if they assume everyone will know what the dates mean, and why it's like that.
Are they expecting users to just click on things even when they see that the dates don't make sense?
NoneRain - 4 years ago
The optional updates are recommended only if your device is malfunctioning... With a clean install, WU would install the "best" driver it finds.
So, while I agree that the optional upds are a mess in the current state, they never were "the best match", since the "best" one will be installed automatically.
To have the latest drivers, always check the manufacturer site. Latest != best, tho.
But, yeah, optional driver updates are pretty much useless right now. Hope they will fix this instead of leaving it be like that...
doriel - 4 years ago
I just wonder why there are also drivers without any date. So there are drivers dated to 1968 and drivers, that hve no date. I know I complain all the time, but this is just so lousy, I cant be quiet.
Once there is INTEL, under this line there is Intel. Once the version is 11 digit number, second is 6 digit number. Date is year 1968, when computing had size of buildings. And what should SYSTEM driver mean? Is this some sort of new component or... ?
"If you have specific problem, one of these drivers might help."
Sure, driver from 1968 could do the job. Lets try the first one and then the second one - they look the same, but there must be the difference.
Zoro_Sama - 4 years ago
Hey, I find it confusing too.
But I installed all of them, Now I wanted to roll back to my previous ones but really don't know how to do it.
Any Suggestion?
EoflaOE - 3 years ago
Actually, one or more of these updates caused my system to not be able to run games. I've used System Restore to uninstall these drivers, and I was able to run games again.
mysterylectricity - 11 months ago
It's only getting worse. New install of Win 11 23H2 presents no less than 8 "Intel System" updates on my system: half across a range of narrow dates from 2017-2019, half are undated. And across version numbers from 8.dots to 14.dots. Exactly which part of which "System" am i trying to update here? Should I install the 8.x, the 14.x, or be very careful to install both? Admittedly I have yet to have a problem by "installing all" and letting things work themselves out: though it often takes 3 attempts while updates fail and are retried. I get enough fear, uncertainty, and doubt from macroswat. I don't need more from misintel. And I bet they're paying their apologists %100,000 more than they would have to pay a person of average intelligence to roll up her sleeves and just fix it by disambiguating. Ain't rocket science.
If I ruled the world things would go sooo much more smoothly ;)