PnPUtil examples

This article provides practical PnPUtil command examples for managing Windows drivers and devices. Each example includes the exact syntax and expected output to help you immediately apply these commands.

In this article, you'll learn how to:

• Add and install driver packages
• Enable and disable devices
• Enumerate drivers and devices on your system
• Troubleshoot driver issues

Prerequisites

Administrator rights are required for most PnPUtil commands.

/add-driver

Add driver package

pnputil /add-driver x:\driver.inf

Add multiple driver packages

pnputil /add-driver c:\oem\*.inf

Add and install driver package on an existing device

pnputil /add-driver device.inf /install

/delete-driver

Delete driver package

pnputil /delete-driver oem0.inf

Force delete driver package

pnputil /delete-driver oem1.inf /force

/disable-device

Disable the device specified by device instance ID

pnputil /disable-device "USB\VID_045E&PID_00DB\6&870CE29&0&1"

Disable all devices with a specific hardware or compatible ID

pnputil /disable-device /deviceid "USB\Class_03"

Disable all devices of a specific class on a specific bus

pnputil /disable-device /class "USB" /bus "PCI"

/enable-device

Enable device specified by device instance ID

pnputil /enable-device "USB\VID_045E&PID_00DB\6&870CE29&0&1"

Enable all devices with specific hardware/compatible ID

pnputil /enable-device /deviceid "USB\Class_03"

Enable all devices of a specific class on a specific bus

pnputil /enable-device /class "USB" /bus "PCI"

/enum-classes

Enumerate all device setup classes on the system

pnputil /enum-classes

Enumerate information for a specific device setup class

pnputil /enum-classes /class "Display"

/enum-devices

Enumerate devices on the system. An enabled device appears with status Started; a disabled device appears as Disabled.

pnputil /enum-devices

Enumerate only connected devices on the system

pnputil /enum-devices /connected

Enumerate device with specific instance ID

pnputil /enum-devices /instanceid "ROOT\SYSTEM\0000"

Enumerate all devices with specific class

pnputil /enum-devices /class "Display"

Enumerate all devices with specific problem code

pnputil /enum-devices /problem 28

Enumerate all devices with problems and display hardware/compatible IDs

pnputil /enum-devices /problem /deviceids

Enumerate all devices with specific hardware/compatible ID

pnputil /enum-devices /deviceid "USB\Class_03"

Enumerate all devices with specific bus

pnputil /enum-devices /bus "PCI"

/enum-drivers

Enumerate OEM driver packages

pnputil /enum-drivers

Enumerate all OEM driver packages of a specific class

pnputil /enum-drivers /class "System"

Enumerate all OEM driver packages and display driver files

pnputil /enum-drivers /files

/enum-interfaces

Enumerate only enabled interfaces on the system

pnputil /enum-interfaces /enabled

Enumerate all interfaces with specific interface class GUID

pnputil /enum-interfaces /class "{884b96c3-56ef-11d1-bc8c-00a0c91405dd}"

/export-driver

Export driver package

pnputil /export-driver oem6.inf .

Export all driver packages

pnputil /export-driver * c:\backup

/remove-device

Remove device specified by device instance ID

pnputil /remove-device "USB\VID_045E&PID_00DB\6&870CE29&0&1"

Remove all devices with specific hardware/compatible ID

pnputil /remove-device /deviceid "USB\Class_03"

Remove all devices of a specific class on a specific bus

pnputil /remove-device /class "USB" /bus "PCI"

/restart-device

Restart device specified by device instance ID

pnputil /restart-device "USB\VID_045E&PID_00DB\6&870CE29&0&1"

Restart all devices with specific hardware/compatible ID

pnputil /restart-device /deviceid "USB\Class_03"

Restart all devices of a specific class on a specific bus

pnputil /restart-device /class "USB" /bus "PCI"

/scan-devices

Scan the system for any device hardware changes. Use this command after connecting new hardware to force Windows to detect it.

pnputil /scan-devices

After scanning, use /enum-devices /connected to verify your new device was detected.

/enum-devicetree

Enumerate device tree

pnputil /enum-devicetree

Enumerate device tree with "ROOT\SYSTEM\0000" as root

pnputil /enum-devicetree "ROOT\SYSTEM\0000"

Enumerate device tree with "ROOT\SYSTEM\0000" as root and display driver information

pnputil /enum-devicetree ROOT\SYSTEM\0000 /drivers

Enumerate tree of connected devices and display device interfaces

pnputil /enum-devicetree /connected /interfaces

Enumerate tree and display device stack information, interfaces, drivers and services

pnputil /enum-devicetree /stack /interfaces /drivers /services

/enum-containers

Enumerate all device containers on the system

pnputil /enum-containers

Enumerate specific device container

pnputil /enum-containers /containerid "{00000000-0000-0000-ffff-ffffffffffff}"

Enumerate all connected device containers and associated devices

pnputil /enum-containers /connected /devices

Enumerate all disconnected device containers, associated devices and output to a file in XML format

pnputil /enum-containers /disconnected /devices /format xml /output-file disconnecteddevices.xml

Troubleshooting

• Verify you're running the command prompt as Administrator.
• Check the PnPUtil Command Syntax for correct parameter format.
• Use /enum-devices /problem to identify device issues.

Related content

PnPUtil

PnPUtil Command Syntax