In 64-bit operating systems starting with Windows Vista, Windows will load a kernel-mode driver only if the driver is signed. It was designed to prevent unsigned device drivers (or kernel modules in general) from being loaded and executed. After installing an unsigned device driver, it will always result in a blue screen of death during the startup process.
This is because the Driver Signing Options are by default set to Warn – Prompt me each time to choose an action in Windows. To overcome this issue, the Driver Signing Options need to be set to Ignore. This option can be configured as seen below. Windows Server 2003. Open System Properties and select Driver Signing. In the Options screen.
The problem is that many devices ship with unsigned drivers. Today, we’ll show you 2 methods to disable Driver Signature Enforcement in Windows 10, 8, 7 (64-bit) so you can then install / load unsigned drivers without problems.
Option 1: Disable Driver Signature Enforcement Completely
- Open a Command Prompt with admin privileges. In Windows 10 or 8, just press the Windows key + X and then select “Command Prompt (Admin)”.
- Type in the following command and press Enter.
bcdedit /set testsigning on
You should receive “The operation completed successfully” message. If you see a message saying the value is protected by Secure Boot policy, then you have to turn off Secure Boot in the UEFI/BIOS, before disabling Driver Signature Enforcement. - Close the Command Prompt and restart your computer. From now on, you will be able to install or run any unsigned driver without problems.If you need to enable the Driver Signature Enforcement again, run this command instead:
bcdedit /set testsigning off
Option 2: Disable Driver Signature Enforcement Once
If you don’t want to use the method above to permanently disable Driver Signature Enforcement, here is a solution for you to temporary turn off Driver Signature Enforcement to install unsigned driver:
- Press the Windows key + R to bring up the Run box. Type shutdown /r /o and hit Enter.
- Windows informs you that you are about to be signed off. Click Close.
- Once your Computer has rebooted you will need to choose the Troubleshoot option.
- Then head into Advanced options.
- In the Advanced Options window, choose Startup Settings.
- Click the Restart button on the Startup Settings screen to reboot your computer again.
- After restart in Startup Settings windows, press the F7 key on your keyboard to select “Disable driver signature enforcement“.
- Your PC will then reboot. Proceed to install your unsigned drivers. During the installation procedure, Windows will inform you that can’t verify the publisher of this driver software. Just ignore the warning message and choose “Install this driver software anyway” to complete the installation.
Keep in mind that after the next restart, Driver Signature Enforcement will be automatically enabled again to prevent new drivers from being installed, but Windows will keep using any unsigned drivers you’ve already installed.
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I experienced a problem installing old hardware in Microsoft Windows 10 where I couldn’t find compatible drivers for a network card. I came across some community drivers on a website, but when I tried to install them, I received an error.
Windows encountered a problem installing the driver software for your device.
Windows found driver software for your device but encoutered an error while attempting to install it.
The hash for the file is not present in the specified catalog file. The file is likely corrupt or the victim of tampering.
Windows found driver software for your device but encoutered an error while attempting to install it.
The hash for the file is not present in the specified catalog file. The file is likely corrupt or the victim of tampering.
To solve this problem, I had to disable Device Driver Signing. Here’s how it’s done in Windows 10.
Option 1 – Command to Enable or Disable
- Click the “Start” button.
- Type “command“.
- Right-click on “Command Prompt” and select “Run As Administrator“.
- Do one of the following:
- To disable device driver signing, type “BCDEDIT /set nointegritychecks ON” then press “Enter“
- To enable device driver signing, type “BCDEDIT /set nointegritychecks OFF” then press “Enter“
You’re done! The Device Driver setting is now modified.
Option 2 – Disable From Menus
I figured this was security that was built into Windows to prevent me from installing bad drivers. This is a feature called Device Driver Signing. After going through the steps to disable driver signing in Windows 8, I was able to get my community drivers installed. Here’s how I did it.
- Select the “Start” button.
- Type “startup”.
- Select “Change advanced startup settings“.
- Select “Restart now” under the “Advanced startup” area.
- Select “Troubleshoot“.
- Select “Advanced Options“.
- Select “Startup Options“.
- Select “Restart“.
- A menu will appear where you can press “7” on your keyboard to choose “Disable driver signing enforcement“.
Now Device Driver Signing should be disabled, allowing you to install any driver you like in Windows 10 until you reboot.
FAQ
What do I do if I get an error that says “An error has occurred setting the element data. The value is protected by Secure Boot policy and cannot be modified or deleted.”?
You will need disable “Secure Boot” in the BIOS settings. Each computer has different steps for entering the BIOS settings. Check the documentation for your system for instructions that pertain to your computer. Usually, you are prompted to enter Setup or BIOS when your computer is starting. It usually requires you to press a certain key at a certain point during the boot process. Once in the BIOS, you should be able find a setting that says “Secure Boot”, and set it to “Disabled”. Be sure to save the settings before exiting.