Question

Difficulty: MediumResolving System File Corruption and Driver Issues

A desktop technician is troubleshooting a Windows 11 workstation that experiences blue screen crashes whenever 3D rendering applications are launched. Diagnostic crash logs indicate that a recently updated third-party graphics driver is corrupt and causing system instability. The technician wants to revert specifically to the previously installed, working driver version without affecting user files or uninstalling other software. Which of the following is the most appropriate action to resolve this issue?

  1. Open Device Manager, select the graphics adapter properties, and execute the Roll Back Driver feature under the Driver tab.Answer
  2. B
    Launch System Configuration (msconfig) and select Diagnostic startup to replace corrupted driver files with clean default binaries.
  3. C
    Open the Programs and Features Control Panel applet, click View installed updates, and remove the latest Windows Servicing Stack Update.
  4. D
    Run the sfc /scannow command from an elevated command prompt to restore the third-party driver package from the local component store.

Answer

Open Device Manager, select the graphics adapter properties, and execute the Roll Back Driver feature under the Driver tab.
The correct action is to use Device Manager to roll back the graphics adapter driver. When a device driver is updated in Windows, the previous driver version is archived in the Driver Store. Selecting the Roll Back Driver option in Device Manager uninstalls the corrupted update and reinstalls the prior working version, directly addressing the driver instability without affecting system files or operating system updates.

Step-by-Step Solution

1
Identify the cause of instability
The issue is isolated to a corrupted third-party graphics driver update causing Stop errors during rendering tasks.
Targeted hardware driver issues require driver-level remediation rather than operating system updates or file repairs.
2
Select the appropriate administrative tool for managing hardware drivers
Device Manager provides direct controls over individual hardware device drivers, including updating, disabling, uninstalling, and rolling back drivers.
Device Manager keeps the previous version of a updated driver in the driver store specifically for recovery scenarios.
3
Perform the rollback procedure
Navigating to the graphics adapter properties under the Driver tab and selecting Roll Back Driver restores the previous stable driver.
This reverts the driver to its known good state with minimal system impact and resolves the application-triggered crashes.

Key Concept

Device Driver Rollback in Windows Device Manager
Estimated Time:1m 15s
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