Hi all,
I am working on an inf file that uses a Virtual COM Port to
communicate with my machine. Currently, I am trying to remove the
driver, but uninstalling is not working. Every time I uninstall and
connect the device, it automatically locates the driver and installs
it.

I know/think that there is something to do with the registry files,
but I am not sure where to start looking. I know the VID and PID of
the product, but I don't know where it is installed?
Can anyone tell me how to look, and where to look for those files? In
addition, is there somewhere else that I should be looking into?

My goal is, when I connect the device, I want it to look like it is
the very first time I have attached it to the machine.

Thanks in advance.

On Oct 31, 11:46 am, kvar...@gmail.com wrote:

Never hack around in the registry to remove devices. Especially in a
situation like modem or COM ports where the class installer goes off
and does other stuff (in this case, allocating COM ports -- you are
likely orphaning COM ports when you do this and will need to hand edit
your COMDb later...)

Just choose "uninstall" in Device Manager, this will remove the
device. To remove the driver so it doesn't automatically install, go
into C:\Windows\Inf and look for the OEMxx.INF that references your
hardware ID, and remove it (along with the associated .PNF.

In Vista, you should use the inbox utility - 'pnputil.exe' to remove
drivers from the system. Deleting INF files manually will leave the
cache and the driver database out of sync.

pnputil.exe -e will list the 3rd party drivers currently on the
system. Once you figure out the 'oem' name of the INF file you wish to
remove, calling pnputil.exe -d <oem inf name> will remove the driver
package from the system.

And as Chris mentioned, uninstalling the device from device manager
and removing the driver package from the system (as above) will get
you in the state you want.

Thanks,

Farhan

On Oct 31, 10:36 am, chris.aselt...@gmail.com wrote:

On Oct 31, 5:34 pm, Farhan Ahmed <ahm...@gmail.com> wrote:
What is this OEM?? I can't find anything with that name.

<kvartan@gmail.com> wrote in message
driver is signed, the INF file you provide will be copied to OEMx.inf and
then made a pnf. Note Chris is incorrect this will not completely remove
the driver from the system.


--
Don Burn (MVP, Windows DDK)
Windows 2k/XP/2k3 Filesystem and Driver Consulting
Website: http://www.windrvr.com
Blog: http://msmvps.com/blogs/WinDrvr
Remove StopSpam to reply

kvartan@gmail.com wrote:

Really? Have you never installed a non-standard piece of hardware? The
INF file for the first 3rd-party device you installed gets copied to
\Windows\Inf\oem0.inf, the second one gets copied to oem1.inf, and so on.

I have up to oem20.inf, and I haven't even had this machine very long.
--
Tim Roberts, timr@probo.com
Providenza & Boekelheide, Inc.

On Nov 1, 9:47 pm, Tim Roberts <t...@probo.com> wrote:
Mr. Tim Roberts,
There is a first time for everything. I was not familiar with OEM
files, until now. But I do appreciate your explanation on how it is
organized. I, as a matter of fact, have been modifying the INF file
for this device. However, it is my first INF file that I've seen, and
I am still learning.

On Nov 1, 10:34 pm, "Don Burn" <b...@stopspam.windrvr.com> wrote:

I never said it would completely remove the driver from the machine.
Where did I say that?

The OP said he wanted the machine to behave as if the device were
connected for the first time with no drivers automatically found.
Blowing away the OEMxx files will accomplish that, including on Vista,
despite what that other guy was saying.

The "driver store" idea in Vista is an abomination, during the Beta's
you could get your system into a state where it was completely
impossible to remove drivers.

Eventually around RC1 or so, they reverted to treating INFs in Windows
\Inf the same way as XP, while still storing drivers in the driver
store.

I assume this whole idea was to prevent "please insert CD-ROM"-style
dialog boxes on a new hardware installation where the previous device
installation picked up drivers from a location that is now gone, but
it had unintended side effects.

What operating system?

If it's XP then you can look in %WINDIR%\inf at the "oem*.inf" files. Find
the one that corresponds to your driver and delete it and the matching .pnf
file.

If it's Vista then once you find your INF file above you can use 'devcon
dp_delete oem*.inf' replacing * with the number of the file you found. This
will delete the driver package from the system (including the copy in the
driver store).

-p

--
This posting is provided "AS IS" with no warranties, and confers no rights.


<kvartan@gmail.com> wrote in message
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