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Switching from NV to ATI ... best way to replace drivers?

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pinchthings

Junior Member
Hey,

In a couple weeks I'll be swapping out my old GF260 for a 6950 (that is, if I can fit the damn thing in my case). I was wondering--what is the best way to uninstall my NVidia display drivers and install the catalyst drivers so that there won't be any driver conflicts? Is windows add/remove programs all it takes, or do I need some kind of cleaning program to clear all the registry and so forth?

I'm running Vista x64.

Thanks,
 
Last edited:
So, if I were to add something to these instructions:

Uninstall nVidia drivers.
Reboot into safe mode.
Run driver sweeper and clear out any nVidia remnants: http://www.guru3d.com/category/driversweeper/
[Pull graphics card, install new graphics card]
Reboot.
Install Catalyst drivers.

Would that be the correct place for card installation? My mobo is an ASUS P6T (X58 chipset) which I'm pretty sure doesn't have integrated graphics to switch to, so I figure a video card has to be installed during safe mode or else I won't be able to see anything, right? Or can windows do basic rendering?
 
Yes, you'll need to have some kind of graphics card installed. Once you uninstall the Nvidia drivers, you should be able to shut off the computer and install the new card. You may want to wait until after booting into Safe Mode, running Driver Sweeper, and shutting down once more to install the new card, though.
 
I've never used Driver Sweeper. Just uninstall drivers, shut down, remove card, install new card, boot, install drivers, reboot.
 
VirtualLarry said:
I've never used Driver Sweeper. Just uninstall drivers, shut down, remove card, install new card, boot, install drivers, reboot.
Click to expand...

Driver Sweeper, or a similar application, used to be almost required if you wanted to guarantee a stable migration to new drivers. It used to be a nightmare upgrading drivers for both ATI and nVidia. I think that's why some users are so ingrained into using these types of applications*.

With the relatively solid drivers of today, you can just uninstall, reboot, and install the new drivers. Since Vista's release, that's what I've been doing on any system when updating drivers or even when switching from nVidia to AMD/ATI or vice versa. For the paranoid, you can still use Driver Sweeper.


*I keep typing apps when I mean to type application. Thanks a lot Apple.
 
Also . if you use a HDTV like me (Phillips 42 " 1080p) .. you're in for some extremely annoying retarded drivers which have decided that you *need* 10% underscan.

Painfully realized that myself recently with my 4850 and the latest ATI drivers .. hope they fix that some day.
 
akugami said:
Driver Sweeper, or a similar application, used to be almost required if you wanted to guarantee a stable migration to new drivers. It used to be a nightmare upgrading drivers for both ATI and nVidia. I think that's why some users are so ingrained into using these types of applications*.

With the relatively solid drivers of today, you can just uninstall, reboot, and install the new drivers. Since Vista's release, that's what I've been doing on any system when updating drivers or even when switching from nVidia to AMD/ATI or vice versa. For the paranoid, you can still use Driver Sweeper.


*I keep typing apps when I mean to type application. Thanks a lot Apple.
Click to expand...
This
 
One should note that driversweeper works but is still a pain to use, compared to what should be 🙂.
 
Vista and 7 tend to be a lot better with handling hardware changes than XP. Since then, I've never had to run driver sweeper, but it wouldn't hurt as a precaution. I just simply uninstall from programs, shut down, remove old card, install new one, boot up, and download the latest drivers off the website. Never had an issue.
 
I agree with the above posts. In a nutshell, in vista or 7 driversweeper is not necessary, just uninstall, pull card, then install amd drivers. In xp then driversweeper is still a matter of preference, but could at least be beneficial.
 
Morg. said:
Also . if you use a HDTV like me (Phillips 42 " 1080p) .. you're in for some extremely annoying retarded drivers which have decided that you *need* 10% underscan.

Painfully realized that myself recently with my 4850 and the latest ATI drivers .. hope they fix that some day.
Click to expand...

This is a completely different subject, but if the new drivers give you trouble and the previous ones didn't... Is this what's happened?
 
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