If you try to install Intel drivers on a pre-built computer, you will most likely see an error message that says: “The driver being installed is not validated for this computer”, and there is no option to install the driver. However, don’t give up; there is a way you can install the driver and fix this error.
The causes of a “The Driver Being Installed Is Not Validated” error
This error appears because you are trying to install drivers that the manufacturer does not provide directly. When a manufacturer makes a PC or laptop, they usually have a special setup between the hardware and the driver.
Therefore, if you try to install a driver that has not been officially confirmed by the manufacturer, the computer will tell you that the driver has not been verified. Unfortunately, there is no “Install anyway” button on the error that appears. However, you can install the driver another way; just know that the manufacturer blocks unverified driver downloads for a reason!
How to fix “The Driver Being Installed Is Not Validated” error
If you are getting this error and still want to install the driver, the easy installation method cannot be used to do this. When you download and run the EXE file, the computer will stop it.
To fix this, first find the driver you want to install on the Intel website. For this article, the author will update the i3 7100u, so I searched for “driver i3 7100u” and clicked the Intel link that appeared.
Select the driver you want to install from the list. Then, the most important step: when you can choose to download the EXE or ZIP file, choose the ZIP file.
While downloading, press the Start button, type Device Manager, and press Enter.
Expand the Display adaptors category, right-click the graphics driver, and select Update driver.
Select Browse my computer for driver software.
On the next menu, don’t browse for any files. Instead, select Let me pick from a list of available drivers for my computer.
After selecting the graphics adapter, click Have Disk.
On the next menu, make sure the ZIP file is downloaded and unzipped before you continue. Browse to the folder you extracted and go into the Graphics folder.
Here, you will see several DDL files to choose from. You need to select a file depending on the device you have.
Unfortunately, there doesn’t seem to be a universal answer for all drivers. For example, some people say to look for a file named “igdlh64.inf” or “igdlh32.inf”. A few others said to look for a file ending in 64 or 32 and choose the one that is appropriate for your 32 or 64 bit system.
Unfortunately, for the 7100u in the example, neither option appears. After a while of searching, the author discovered that he needed the file “iigd_dch.inf” so the example used that file. When you select the correct file, it will install the driver without an error message.
Bypassing Intel’s Driver Limits
As you can see, it is easy to solve the “The driver being installed is not validated” error in Windows. Just remember that manufacturers prevent you from installing the driver because they haven’t verified it. If you are still adamant about installing the driver, you can fix this error by installing the driver yourself.
If you are having driver problems, you can view recently updated Windows drivers or check for faulty drivers using Driver Verifier.
