problems with hp sr1403wm with K8S-LA. i think i need drivers.

[ejames82]

hi,

hp sr1403wm computer has 1gb of ram that's brand new.  the ram made a difference in that some linux distros will install easily, while before (with only 256mb ram) linux rarely installed.  for some reason windows xp installs much easier and behaves considerably better as well.  when i am able to install linux, i usually get eratic visual behavior.  pages take a while to load as well.  my guess is that i have video problems here as well.
the motherboard is a K8S-LA
i am using the computer right now, and it's working adequately, but in device manager there are yellow question marks in:

multimedia audio controller
PCI simple communications controller
video controller (VGA compatible)

when i double-click these entries, i get the same result "the drivers for this device are not installer (code 28)"

i admit that my computer is lacking microsoft updates.  if i updated via microsoft, would i get these drivers from them?  i am not sure how this works.
would the lack of these drivers be the reason why linux doesn't work properly?

my research has pointed in the direction of trying to find drivers, particularly for sis 760, the chipset of the motherboard.  i have read that these drivers are the first that are supposed to be installed.  this is the first time i have ever sought out to possibly install/replace drivers, can anybody please help me to get these drivers?  am i going about this correctly, or no?
would these drivers help with my linux installs?  that's what i am actually gunning for, to have a good working linux machine.  i am only using windows long enough to resolve this issue if possible and get this computer to work properly, but i want to rule out the possibility of driver problems before i go on to another possible fix.  i have everest installed, so i can provide more info if requested.  i hope my explanation wasn't too confusing.
thanks for reading my post.
 

[patio]

Travel to the Motherboard manuf. website and search your model# and it will list the available drivers...

And Yes...;.the MBoard chipset drivers should go 1st.

[ejames82]

patio,

i hope i still have you available, i could sure use more direction.
my search sent me to this page:

http://h10025.www1.hp.com/ewfrf/wc/softwareList?os=228&lc=en&dlc=en&cc=us&lang=en&product=501310#

there doesn't appear to be drivers listed that i need.  in particular, the sis 760 chipset drivers.  even though i am somewhat baffled by this, i also find it to be quite fascinating.  to my surprise there is a bios upgrade, which i find intriqueing.  i doubt this can help me with my display problems.
so could i get another suggestion from you?  is there something at this page that i am missing?

thanks for the reply.

[patio]

Stay away from the BIOS update...not needed.

First Read Here...

Then See Here...

Did you recieve a Driver CD with this machine ? ?
If so i would use that to re-install the drivers needed.

Seems they have a software package that finds the drivers for you...not sure how well it works though.

[Quantos]

Ejames82, don't do the BIOS upgrade.

Try here for SiS drivers, they have their own utility to identify your video card and assist with finding the correct driver.

[ejames82]

Quantos and patio,
thanks for helping me again.

after i run the tool, i get a list of densitydevices and categories that relate to them.  here's that list:

graphics--sis mirage2 graphics
AGP--sis acceleration graphics port
IDE--sis IDE controller
audio--sis 7012 audio controller
LAN--sis900 fast ethernet controller

to see what would happen, i clicked to download the "graphics--sis mirage2 graphics" and a new pop-up window appeared with these options:



TOP DOWNLOADS
 
 SiS7012 Audio Driver 
  (v1.12d) 2005-06-09
 
 SiS UniVGA3 Graphics Driver 
  (v3.73) 2006-03-16
 
 SiS900 LAN Driver 
  (v1.19) 2006-06-29
 
 SiS UniVGA3 graphics driver 
  (v3.84) 2008-04-09
 
 SiS AGP(GART) Driver 
  (v1.21) 2005-04-01
 
 LATEST DRIVERS
 
 SiS UniVGA5 graphics driver 
  (v5.23) 2009-11-13
 
 SiS UniVGA5 graphics driver 
  (v5.22) 2009-10-23
 
 SiS UniVGA5 graphics driver 
  (v5.18) 2009-07-03
 
 SiS UniVGA3 graphics driver 
  (v3.90) 2009-06-26
 
 SiS191/190 Glan logo driver package 
  (v2.07) 2008-10-02
 


am i supposed to download and install all of these drivers (the answer to that is probably no)? 
part of the reason i am here is because i have already been to this page and was unsure how to proceed.

also, i will not upgrade the bios.  the bios definitely has nothing to do with the yellow question marks in the device manager (mentioned earlier).
 
 

[Quantos]

You will want the UniVGA3 driver, that's the one that supports your display adapter.

<edit>  Here is the link to the SiS FAQ.  </edit>

[ejames82]

Quantos,

i was unable to determine what vbios version i have.  according to the faq, this shows whether or not i need to upgrade the bios.  this is taken from the faq:

"Check your VBIOS version, go to "Control Pannel"->"Display"->"Settings"->"Advanced"->"Administrator"->"Product information", and you can see the VBIOS information, please check if it is updated to 2.28.00 or later"

i was unable to determine this, because i have no "administrator" tab.  i spent the afternoon at microsoft update thinking this may possibly grant me the administrator tab, but no such luck.

also, there are 3 UniVGA3 drivers.  versions 3.73, 3.84, and 3.90.  if i were to guess i would say i probably need 3.90 and disregard 3.84 and 3.73.

so does the plan go as follows, install UniVGA 3.90 and forget the bios upgrade?

thanks again.  i never realized that driver installation was so complicated.




   

[Quantos]

Yes, you want 3.90, and no you do not want to update your bios.

[Computer_Commando]

i was unable to determine what vbios version i have.  according to the faq, this shows whether or not i need to upgrade the bios... i never realized that driver installation was so complicated...

If you really want to know download and install this:  http://cpuid.com/cpuz.php
Mainboard tab should tell you.
Your BIOS upgrade offers only this:  Resolves boot issue when HP Photosmart or PSC All-in-One USB printer is connected.

[ejames82]

Quantos,

that's what i am going to do.  i'll let you know how it goes.


Computer_Commando,

i already have cpu-z.  that's a good bit of info on the "huge" benefit that the bios update would do for me.

drivers remind me of the support beams in a house

thanks to both for the replies.

[Computer_Commando]

Being that it's SiS, they have completely changed their support and no longer provide drivers to the OEM manufacturers or anyone else for download.  They must be cheaper, that's why HP specifies them.

[ejames82]

to everyone,

somehow, simply downloading the UniVGA3 driver was all that was required.  when i checked out the device manager to fix the yellow question marks, they were no longer there, which was a pleasant surprise.  i thought i would, at least, have to click on "update driver" somewhere.  the drivers went right where they were needed. 
what actually happened to the driver?  does it get loaded into the silicon chip in the motherboard?  the reason i ask is because i hope to use linux and i am hoping to keep the driver.  i don't want to lose it.  i did put it in a folder on my desktop. 
do i permanently have these drivers for linux as well?  would this permanently fix my video driver issue for linux?  i did ask this sort of thing in my first post.

i hope i am not overstepping in asking this:  if i chose to use windows 7 for this computer, would these drivers work, would these drivers remain with me, and would my driver issue remain fixed?

thanks again.

[Computer_Commando]

...1.  what actually happened to the driver?
2.  does it get loaded into the silicon chip in the motherboard?
3.  the reason i ask is because i hope to use linux and i am hoping to keep the driver.  i don't want to lose it.  i did put it in a folder on my desktop. 
4.  do i permanently have these drivers for linux as well?  would this permanently fix my video driver issue for linux?  i did ask this sort of thing in my first post.
5.  if i chose to use windows 7 for this computer, would these drivers work, would these drivers remain with me, and would my driver issue remain fixed?...

1.  Usually copies to C:\Windows\System32\Drivers & adds entries to Registry.
2.  No.  It gets copied to the hard drive.
3.  Linux has it's own drivers.  Save the drivers on some other media, too.
4.  No & No.
5.  Probably not.

[Quantos]

Your computer isn't capable of running Windows 7.