What Are Windows DCH Drivers?
By Timothy Tibbetts |
Starting in late 2018, you might have seen the option to download standard or DCH drivers, especially with NVIDIA. In this tutorial, we explain what a DCH driver is and which driver you should use.
The idea behind DCH drivers is to simplify getting the latest drivers, but by creating the DCH name, many people don't understand what they are or if they should use DCH or standard drivers. Luckily, understanding DCH drivers isn't complicated.
What Are Windows DCH or Standard Drivers?
Windows DCH drivers (also referred to as Universal Windows drivers) enable developers to create one driver package for Windows 10 that works on all devices, including laptops, desktops, tablets, and embedded PCs. DCH drivers are supposed to be smaller, and installation is supposed to be faster, although we don't see a difference.
The odds are that at some point, you went to download a driver, and were given a choice to download for desktop, laptop, tablet, or embedded PC. Windows DCH drivers eliminate that option because the driver works on all devices.
There can, however, be an occasional problem. In the case of NVIDIA, the Windows DCH drivers do not include the NVIDIA Control Panel to make the drivers compatible across devices. Instead, you have to download the Control Panel from the Microsoft Store. We've addressed this problem - How to Find a Missing NVIDIA Control Panel and Restore the Context Menu or Tray Icon.
So, should you download the Standard or DCH driver? Download the DCH driver. And yes, DCH drivers can be installed over standard drivers.
The one exception to the rule is NVIDIA drivers. If you want the NVIDIA Control Panel, you should download the Standard NVIDIA driver. NVIDIA is pushing most people to the DCH driver by default, causing end-users to lose the NVIDIA Control Panel, which is not cross-device compatible.
You can download the latest NVIDIA GeForce Drivers for Windows 10 or Nvidia Geforce Drivers for Windows 7 and 8.
Finally, you might want to know what DCH stands for. You'll be sorry you asked.
Declarative - Install the driver by using only declarative INF directives. Don't include co-installers or RegisterDll functions.
Componentized - Edition-specific, OEM-specific, and optional customizations to the driver are separate from the base driver package.
Hardware Support App - Any user interface (UI) component associated with a universal driver must be packaged as a Hardware Support App (HSA) or preinstalled on the OEM device.
Similar:
What is Windows Hardware Quality Labs or WHQL?
NVIDIA GeForce Drivers for Windows 10
How to Download the Latest Drivers for Windows
How to Find a Missing NVIDIA Control Panel and Restore the Context Menu or Tray Icon
How-To Stop Windows Updates From Downloading Drivers on Windows 10
How to Use Driver Verifier Manager to Troubleshoot Driver Issues
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The idea behind DCH drivers is to simplify getting the latest drivers, but by creating the DCH name, many people don't understand what they are or if they should use DCH or standard drivers. Luckily, understanding DCH drivers isn't complicated.
What Are Windows DCH or Standard Drivers?
Windows DCH drivers (also referred to as Universal Windows drivers) enable developers to create one driver package for Windows 10 that works on all devices, including laptops, desktops, tablets, and embedded PCs. DCH drivers are supposed to be smaller, and installation is supposed to be faster, although we don't see a difference.
The odds are that at some point, you went to download a driver, and were given a choice to download for desktop, laptop, tablet, or embedded PC. Windows DCH drivers eliminate that option because the driver works on all devices.
There can, however, be an occasional problem. In the case of NVIDIA, the Windows DCH drivers do not include the NVIDIA Control Panel to make the drivers compatible across devices. Instead, you have to download the Control Panel from the Microsoft Store. We've addressed this problem - How to Find a Missing NVIDIA Control Panel and Restore the Context Menu or Tray Icon.
So, should you download the Standard or DCH driver? Download the DCH driver. And yes, DCH drivers can be installed over standard drivers.
The one exception to the rule is NVIDIA drivers. If you want the NVIDIA Control Panel, you should download the Standard NVIDIA driver. NVIDIA is pushing most people to the DCH driver by default, causing end-users to lose the NVIDIA Control Panel, which is not cross-device compatible.
You can download the latest NVIDIA GeForce Drivers for Windows 10 or Nvidia Geforce Drivers for Windows 7 and 8.
Finally, you might want to know what DCH stands for. You'll be sorry you asked.
Declarative - Install the driver by using only declarative INF directives. Don't include co-installers or RegisterDll functions.
Componentized - Edition-specific, OEM-specific, and optional customizations to the driver are separate from the base driver package.
Hardware Support App - Any user interface (UI) component associated with a universal driver must be packaged as a Hardware Support App (HSA) or preinstalled on the OEM device.
Similar:
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