How to use Intel's driver website

In this comprehensive tutorial we will walk you through the process of finding and installing the hardware drivers for your Intel Gigabit Ethernet Controller. This is a vital part of your operating system. If the Ethernet controller is malfunctioning, you are unable to access the Internet or the local connections.

Although it might seem simple to troubleshoot problems related to this device, it is not. Sometimes, the cause of some problems remains hidden. We might encounter situations where IT experts have a lot of work to do before finding and solving the problem.

Here are a few real problems from real people all around the world:

• "Hi guys! I have some problems with my Ethernet controller, I don't know how to upgrade/install the right drivers, and I know that my motherboard is the ASUS A7V8X ... but I am having problems finding the right drivers, can anyone help me? Thanks!"
• "Hi there. I recently had to reformat and reinstall windows XP, and amongst some of the problems that have surfaced since is that I no longer have the Ethernet controller for my pc. I have an XP 2200+ with an Albatron KX400-8XV Pro motherboard. I am looking for the Ethernet controller driver. The CD that I used when I built the PC has long gone. Any advice as to where I can find it. I've looked around the INTEL website but don't seem to be able to find it"
• "Hi I have the "HP Media Center m7160n Desktop PC" and currently I just reformatted my system. After I reformatted I tried connecting to the internet and I kept on getting an error. So I went to device manager and noticed that my Ethernet controller is not recognized and that the driver needs to be updated. But to do that i need to connect to the internet. So if anyone can help me out with what to do that would be very helpful. (And I bought my system almost 2 years ago so I don't have the recovery disk anymore). Any help that you can offer is appreciated. Thanks in advance."

As you can see, after installing the operating system, there are many problems that appear out of nowhere. We must solve these problems if we want to use all of our computer's resources. I have an Intel 82540EM Gigabit Ethernet Controller and Windows can't see it. I have lost my original CD with the drivers. What can I do? Let's see!

Finding and downloading the latest drivers for your device

Almost all manufacturers maintain a database of drivers on their website. This database contains drivers, software, and technical documentation for all of their products. So, if we want to find the latest drivers for our Inter device, we must visit Intel's website at www.intel.com. We can also google "Intel" and the first result is the page we need. Here is how their main page look like:

As you can see, you must first choose your location. I have already chosen Canada-English. Next, you must place your mouse over Work and choose Support. Support is where downloads are usually located. Here is how to reach the support page:

Click the link and you should reach the following page:

You will immediately notice the Download Center link in the General Resources tab. Its description is "Find drivers, BIOS, utilities, updates, plug-ins, and other support software". This is definitely what we need. Go ahead and click the link to reach the next page:

We notice the navigation menu at the left of the page. We need to go to the Ethernet components category, then Ethernet controllers and choose Intel® 82540EM Gigabit Ethernet Controller. You can choose any product from there, depending on your configuration. Here is how the navigation menu looks like:

Click on the link to get to the following page:

You must now choose your operating system from the drop-down menu. I am personally using Windows XP Professional Service Pack 3. However, make sure you choose the system you are using. Once you have chosen, you will reach a page like the one below:

We immediately notice the Drivers tab. It has a driver listed, called "Network Adapter Drivers for Windows* 2000, Windows* XP, and Windows Server* 2003". It installs the network drivers. Includes Intel® PROSet for Windows* Device Manager, Advanced Networking Services (ANS), and SNMP. This is definitely what we need. Go ahead and click it:

On this page, you will find lots of information regarding the hardware driver. You should read all this information to make sure the driver is suited for your system. Once you are certain the driver is the perfect choice, go ahead and click the Download link. You will be asked to accept Intel's terms and conditions. Since we don't have a choice, accept them and the download window should appear:

Click Save File and save it to an easy to remember location on your computer. After downloading it, you should save it to a CD or DVD to have easy access to it whenever you install or reinstall your operating system.

Installing the drivers

Now let's get to the last part of the tutorial, the installation. This is not a difficult process if you follow the instructions to the letter. Double click the file and you should see the following warning message:

We know that the file is genuine and that it came from a trustworthy source, so we can click Run. After a few files are extracted, you should see this:

Click Next and you will have to accept Intel's terms and conditions once again:

Check "I accept the terms in the License agreement. And click Next. You will see the following window:

I would suggest leaving this as it is, since you are not an advanced user. Click Next to reach the final window:

If you click Install, the selected components will be installed. If you want to change anything, now is the time to click Back and change it. Otherwise, click Install and the Installation will begin. It should take just a few minutes.

Restart you computer so the changes can take effect. Try your Internet connection and you should be able to access the World Wide Web. Congratulations!