Drivers

A driver is any piece of software that controls such devices as your graphics card, keyboard or printer. Windows operating systems come with many device drivers, and installs them automatically. Specialty devices, such as scanners, cameras or add-on cards, usually have their own proprietary drivers, which must be installed from a disk or downloaded file.

Troubleshooting

When any modern version of Windows can't find the driver to operate a device, it displays error code 28. You can find out more about the problem by opening Windows Control Panel, then choosing "System." Select the "Hardware" tab, then choose "Device Manager." From the Device Manager, select the problem device. In most cases, the device will have a small yellow exclamation mark next to its listing in the Device Manager. Right-click the device and choose "Properties" to see more information about the problem.

Driver Installation

You can install a missing driver on your own from the Properties dialog. Click the “Reinstall Driver” button and choose to install the software automatically. If automatic installation doesn't work, and you have a downloaded driver or one on disk, choose to install the driver from a specific location, then direct Windows to the correct file. If you don't currently have a driver for the device, visit the support section of the manufacturer's website. Most companies offer downloadable, updated drivers for all their devices.

Considerations

Sometimes Windows doesn't correctly recognize a device, even after you've installed a driver. This could happen because you used the wrong version of the driver or a driver meant for a different model of the device. Your existing driver may also be damaged and require reinstallation. In some cases, a fault in Windows may cause it not to recognize devices correctly. Microsoft offers an online diagnostic tool called Microsoft Fixit that can scan your operating system and tell you why code 28 is appearing.