Asking "where are Windows 10 drivers stored" is like asking "where is a novel stored." The answer is: in the author's drafts (DriverStore\FileRepository), in the printed book (System32\drivers), in the library catalog (INF files), and in the reader's memory (registry).
: This folder houses the actual .sys files that the operating system uses to communicate with your hardware. These are the files currently "in use" by the system. where are windows 10 drivers stored
Drivers are not just files. Their configuration lives in the registry hive at: HKLM\SYSTEM\CurrentControlSet\Services\[DriverName] Asking "where are Windows 10 drivers stored" is
You cannot manually delete from the DriverStore without breaking Windows' ability to roll back or reinstall. Microsoft’s pnputil.exe is the only proper way to remove driver packages. Drivers are not just files
Open setupapi.dev.log in the INF folder (it can be hundreds of megabytes). It is a forensic ledger of every driver installation, failure, and rollback. You’ll see lines like:
But here’s the catch: This is the stage, not the costume shop. If you delete a .sys file from here while it’s loaded, Windows will either bluescreen instantly or restore it from its shadow copies. These are active binaries, compressed, signed, and running. Their real, original, pre-installation forms live elsewhere.
>>> Section start 2025/03/15 14:23:01.872 dvi: {Build Driver List} nv_dispi.inf dvi: Matching Device ID: PCI\VEN_10DE&DEV_1B06