P150HM / P170HM (non-3D) + 680M + Windows 8 - Driver Installation Troubleshooting Thread

TL;DR: This thread is for troubleshooting and sharing knowledge on how to install Nvidia drivers properly for the 680M on an HM series notebook running Windows 8. This thread is also loosely applicable for other new Kepler cards which the HM series doesn't support

First off, some basic background and things I expect anyone to read into this thread to agree to, and not ask about: (there are other threads which explain the following things)

- It is assumed you know the 680M isn't officially supported by the BIOS in our HM series laptops.

- It is assumed you know that to install the drivers we've all had to tamper with the .INF files, changing the entries for our 680M from 11A0.XXXX to 11A0.0000. (or whichever applies to your card)

- It is assumed you know that laptopvideo2go.com offers modded .INF and driver files. Just a warning: trying to install these made the "Display Adapter" device in Device Manager disappear completely; only fix for me was formatting.

If you are looking for answers about installing an unsupported Nvidia card with a modded .INF, search the forums, this is not the right thread.

On to the point; I've created this thread looking for answers, as I have been unable to install Nvidia drivers for the 680M in Windows 8. I have disabled driver signature enforcement, and I do receive a prompt that asks me if I'm sure I want to install the drivers, at which point I press "Install anyway" and the installation of the graphics driver invariably fails.

Beyond suggestions to try different .INF file/driver combinations, I would like for anyone to share concrete solutions and/or their experiences. Is anyone having this problem as well?

 

hmmm...what do u mean by "invariably fails"? does it just stop? does it spit out any error prompt or smth? which driver versions have u tried so far? tried running as admin and various compatibility modes yet?

Sent from my Galaxy Nexus using Tapatalk 2

 

I'm confused as I've been able to install and use the nVidia drivers for 680m with Win8 for well over two months now (first the beta, then the release, then the updated release which is the 306.97 version if I remember correctly) without any problems.

So, if I understand you correctly, you basically start the installation, the prompt shows up and the installation fails somehow.

What version of the drivers are you using, how are you installing them (clicking the .exe, updating the driver and selecting the inf-file, or something else?), how does the log file look like from the installation if you have one and how does the error message (if any) look like?

 

Hey jaybee, thanks for your reply my friend, how have you been?

What happens when it fails is, when I press "install anyway" on the windows prompt, the installation will continue for a few seconds and when the screen flickers on and off (when the actual switch to the drivers takes place) the installer simply stops everytime, and I'm taken to the finish screen where it says it failed, like this: (This is just a reference I googled to avoid misunderstandings as to what I see when it fails)


I've tried WHQL drivers 306.97 and Beta 310.54 with modded INF and Laptopvideo2go's too. I have not explicitly run them in admin mode, simply because the installer itself asks for elevation, is there still a difference if I manually run it as admin? (this would be so stupid from my part -.- ...and here I am making a new thread)

 

What was your approach to install them? Simply using a modded INF? Did you run the installer or use Device Manager? in Admin mode? My Windows 8 is a clean install, is yours as well, or is it an upgrade installation from W7? By the way, which line do you modify in the INF file, (11A0.XXXX)?

I've tried to install WHQL drivers 306.97 and Beta 310.54 with modded INF and Laptopvideo2go's too. I've tried to install using the .exe Nvidia installer, and I've tried to install them through Device Manager by selecting the INF as well.

I haven't dug into the installation log, I'll look into it today and post back.

 

*Sigh* I feel stupid...... after 3 days of trying it finally worked. With driver signature enforcement disabled, I used Beta drivers 310.54, modified the last .INF entry for the 680M (11A0.7102 -> 11A0.0000), and ran the installer as administrator (thanks @jaybee83).

Sorry for creating the thread, I really thought I was onto something...

Thanks for your help @Othello123 and @jaybee83

 

dont sweat it, important thing is that it worked

Sent from my Galaxy Nexus using Tapatalk 2