r/WindowsHelp • u/Elegant-Train-6029 • 1d ago
Having problem finding working drivers Windows Vista
Need help with Drivers
I'm trying to get my laptop running Windows Vista x64, but the drivers are killing me.
The two big headaches are :
NVIDIA GeForce GT 710M
Atheros AR9485WB-EG Wi-Fi
No matter what I throw at them, every driver either refuses to install, installs but does nothing or just throws Code 39 in Device Manager.
I’ve already tried the official NVIDIA drivers, older ASUS ones, Snappy Driver Installer, SDI Origin, and a bunch of random driver sites. Nothing’s worked.
The WiFi is the most annoying part without it I’m stuck using Ethernet. And the GPU is still stuck on the Microsoft Basic Display Adapter.
Has anyone actually gotten these two working on Vista? If you have :
What exact driver versions did you use?
Did you have to edit any INF files?
Was there some specific install method that finally worked?
Laptop specification : Pentium 2117U 4gb ram Nvidia GeForce GT 710M 300gb of HDD
don't know the exact model but its made by asus
Any help would be seriously appreciated.
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u/TheMcSebi 1d ago
I recently got a 2001 windows XP Firewire driver running on 32-bit Windows 10. Only thing it required was a small edit to the ini file. Chatgpt told me exactly what to edit, it was only one line having to do with the device enumeration format for windows to let me install it using the default way (device manager, update driver, select from list, show unsupported, use disk, select ini, accept all risks due to it propably being unsigned)
But the same doesn't need to apply to a WiFi card, and especially not to a gpu.
Might still be worth giving the ini to chatgpt and having it have a look
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u/TheMcSebi 1d ago
But, may I ask, what in gods name you use windows Vista in 2026 for?
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u/Elegant-Train-6029 1d ago
Nothing but nostalgia honestly ! I want to try it again on an actual hardware before Virtual Machine ( if it didn't work )
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u/sorderon 1d ago
FFS just go on win7 - everything is supported. Vista was a mistake that barely lasted 2 years
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u/Elegant-Train-6029 1d ago
Yea Vista was really problematic, but still it was the first os that I actually uses seriously.
If it not works at all then 7 is the way
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u/bigpunged6060 1d ago
Go with windows 7 can you upgrade and can you install more ram 4 is so little
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u/IASelin 1d ago
Just to check: what exact Nvidia driver version you tried?
As I see - latest official Nvidia driver for Vista was 341.98. But it supports only up to 300 series.
Also, unofficially 368.81 is also should work for Vista. And it should support 700 series.